The Law of Attraction and the performer

Manifesting success as an actor, singer, public speaker, performer.

The world is massive, the competition is vast and brilliant and your ‘realistic’ or ‘pessimistic’ brain constantly gets in the way of your advancement. Relationships are getting in the way of your career, or you are questioning whether you want the time commitment and risk of a career over a family. You always hit walls and you don’t know how to escape your cycle.

This is the reality of the modern world of the performer. Go back 50 years and the world seemed a lot smaller. Our greatest known artists remained in a particular location and their voices were heard through records which were limited. There was no internet, so not everyone was privy to the world of performing. Some countries were not exposed to the western opera and musical theatre forms or other contemporary music like Jazz, pop, RnB and rock. There were less artists competing for spots in prestigious schools, competing against other, wealthier entrepreneurs or for the attention of producers.

With the rise of youtube and television talent shows, the globalization of the arts and mainstream public speaking and the ability to apply for and research programs online, people feel as if they would never stand a chance in the big world. If you want to survive in the performance world nowadays, you need a different perspective. I have mostly written this article from the perspective of a singer/performer, however I believe that the law can be applied very similarly. You simply need to replace examples such as ‘going for an audition’ to ‘pitching your idea to a producer or event coordinator’.

This is where the Law of Attraction comes in. The Law of Attraction is a theory that like attracts like. If you believe that you are wealthy, you will be wealthy. If you believe that you are always lacking, you will always be lacking. The law of attraction works from your subconscious. When we continue to have faith in something for a long enough time, our conscious mind and eventually our reality will reflect this faith.

I will give you an example of someone successful who uses the Law of Attraction and how they use it; Lady Gaga constantly gives her heartfelt gratitude to her fans, and she means it genuinely. In return, her gratitude attracts more success for her. She is constantly seeking improvement in her art form. She came into American Horror Story as a fairly amateur actor and improved throughout, while acknowledging that this was a brilliant opportunity for her and how grateful she was to have it. She did not see acting as beneath her, she saw it as art and she gave gratitude for being a part of it. Thoughts of gratitude and love will attract more of the thing she desires, which is the love of her fans and more opportunities to perform for them.

On the other hand, thoughts surrounded in anxiety and negativity, such as the fear of not being loved, will beget more situations where one is not loved.

Does this seem a bit too ‘mystical’? Hear me out. If not, then you have probably already taken the right steps.

Picture yourself in a situation where you are going for to audition. You go into the room with confidence, as if you are meant to be there. The best performers always look as if they deserve to be on stage – a sense of self-entitlement. The ones that hold the respect of their fans will not over-compensate (i.e. arrogance). The self-entitlement comes from a desire to present the art as best as you possible can. If you go into the room with a sense of confidence in yourself, the casting director will see that you deserve to be there. Now, picture the opposite. The situation where you are ‘realistic.’ Anyone who is being realistic will probably say “there are 100 people going for this role, so there’s only a chance I will get it”. I can guarantee that when you enter that audition, you will not attract the same kind of attention as the former. I won’t even mention how a pessimist will appear to a casting director.

When you expect a good result with confidence and when you give gratitude for your blessings, you will change everything around you. A small change in your energy will cause a ripple-out effect. One phone call that you make where you come across as grateful will become a number of conversations where you will do the same thing. In a few weeks time, a few months, a few years, practicing these skills every day will cause these deeds to come back to you in some way or form without fail. Adversely, if you predict bad outcomes, lack gratitude and cannot see the blessings in your life, you will not create what you want in your life.

Before going on, I would just like to mention that you can find links to some of the best books around the Law of Attraction here. They are all extremely cheap and can be found second hand or as e-books on amazon. I’ve included those links in the above link too. In particular, The Inner Game of Music has many methods that appear to be drawn from the Law of Attraction.

How can I practice the Law of Attraction as a singer, musician and performer?

Ok, so let’s get to it. Basically, like attracts like. Love attracts love, thoughts of success attract success – if not directly, then the thought will become small actions, which will radiate outwards and result in the things you desire.

I have based the following exercizes or stances on a number of formulas by authorities on the Law of Attraction (namely Rhonda Byrne and the interviewees in ‘The Secret’). You will recognize similar methods in almost everything you read on this subject.

1. Count your blessings 10 times every day. Make sure that amongst these blessings, you give thanks for your talents and your gifts.

2. Give reasons as to why you are thankful for your gift. Is it because you simply love singing and performing? Is that what you want to do for the rest of your life? Or does it provide a fun hobby outside of work hours?

3. When you encounter a difficulty, do not let it overcome you. You need to give gratitude for everything you do well as a singer. Give gratitude for any future insights that you receive about the issue you have come up against. Make sure that if anyone solves this issue for you that you give sincere thanks to that person. Do not constantly go over and over about all your problems as a singer. Look at them all as learning processes. You will notice that if you approach them this way, any teacher or person listening to you will be more inclined to give better advice. On the other hand, if you constantly complain about how awful your problem is, people become frustrated with you and may not willingly work with you in the future.

4. As well as this, always give gratitude for anything you learn outside of your difficulties. All improvement is improvement and it should be acknowledged. You should not only give gratitude when things are going wrong.

5. When you are preparing for an audition, give thanks for the success and positive outcome of the audition. DO NOT give thanks for being GIVEN the role prior to the audition. You cannot force someone else to think a certain way with the law of attraction, you can only change the way people perceive you and your energy. If you give thanks for a positive outcome, you will always get a positive outcome; either you will get the role, or you won’t get the role, but you will have gained experience (which is a HUGE deal for auditions), potential contacts and you have more time to audition for other roles or other conservatories. Imagine going into an audition where both outcomes are the best possible outcome. Think about the stress that this would take off your shoulders! Think about how significantly this would improve your audition.

If you do get given the role, be grateful for the opportunity. Do not over-do the gratitude to the casting director. I often find that “Thank you very much. This is a wonderful opportunity and I look forward to working with you” works really well. Be sincere, but don’t break out into tears unless you are on live television (they love that stuff!). You must be grateful, but do not over-compensate. Over-compensation is a product of insecurity and other people will see that.

6. Every night you perform for an audience, give thanks. If it is a large audience that you are bowing for, you could either mouth ‘thank you’ or you could think ‘thank you’ – you will appear grateful even if you do the latter. I find that if you are the focal point of the performance (i.e. it’s your recital), then mouthing or saying the words are fine. If you are a cast member in a musical or opera, it is best to think “thank you”, or you might get in trouble! For a small audience (i.e. your singing teacher or an audition panel) you can voice your thanks. It means so much for people to see you. You never know the difference one single person can make if they see you perform. Always give thanks for the audiences and their enjoyment.

7. After a performance or a rehearsal, give thanks for all the lessons you learned that night. There will never be a time when you don’t learn something when performing live. Give thanks for how this will make your next performance even greater.

8. VERY IMPORTANT ONE: When you are sick, STOP COMPLAINING. Firstly, you are using up valuable energy by complaining. Secondly, your body is far more likely to heal faster if you know that you will get well. Put it this way: When you are sad or grumpy, you tend to feel tired and stressed right? Any kind of negativity, stress or worry affects the speed at which your body functions and heals. In your 10 daily blessings, it is always good to give thanks for your good health, even when you are well. Your overall positivity will improve your immune system and reduce the likelihood of you falling ill. When you do fall ill, give thanks for your wonderful healing and amazing immune system.

9. Always be grateful whenever someone helps you out. Help is a very valuable thing in the performing world and a lot of success boils down to who you know. You need to appreciate every inch of help you get, from the person giving you the lead vocals in a top band right down to the person pouring coffee at rehearsal. You never know who they might have connections to. Kindness and gratitude goes a long way.

I would word “down to the person pouring coffee” differently if I could, because I do not see this person as any less important than a well-known band.

10. If you are having difficulty with someone, take some time during the day to give thanks for them. This does not need to be to their face. They are in your life for a reason – challenge is a teacher and you will learn something from this difficulty. If you are thankful for their contribution in your life and their place in the production, band or gig you are involved with, you might even find that the issue magically stops one day. It can happen and you will find that conflict becomes far less common when you reach this understanding.

11. When there is somebody or something in the industry that is a ‘block’ to your career advancement, give gratitude that you are being pointed in a different direction. So often I see singers in particular give up on their dreams because their university lecturer dislikes them and won’t give them opportunities where they arise. Have you considered that of the tens of thousands of cities around the world, this is not the one you are meant to perform in?

I know a singer with a criminal record that prevents them from singing in a number of countries. They are happily performing in a bunch of different countries. These are countries that this singer was far more interested in going to in the first place. The criminal record simply nudged them in that direction.

12. Here’s a big one that I believe too many new and upcoming singers need to think about: If you experience a painful loss – whether this is a massive disappointment, having no money, being fired, replaced, losing the ability to work in a certain area, give thanks to the pain. You must find it in your heart to embrace suffering with open arms. Therapist and motivational speaker Sean Stephenson states that pain is a “powerful teacher.” Pain comes with the territory of being a human being, let alone being a performer – where this is amplified significantly as a result of the work.

You must be grateful that this pain has taught you an extremely valuable lesson. Normally you will feel pain when something occurs that has wider consequences in your mind than in reality. In reality, you will learn a number of things; what you value most, what you need to know for next time, how you could change your focus and how you could change your perspective or situation to improve. With this kind of learning comes massive wisdom, and you will thank the universe for this lesson in times to come.

Be thankful that the pain will turn you into a much greater performer. If you think of the best performers in the last 100 years, they have all experienced considerable pain; Edith Piaf, Maria Callas, Elvis Presley, Louis Armstrong, Judy Garland, Michael Jackson, Lady Gaga, even Jussi Bjorling (he had an alcohol problem) to name a few. The performers with the most recognizable voices and acts are the ones who have experienced a lot of pain.

I have seen many; many singers with so much talent go completely off the radar even at a local level as a result of a single, traumatic event. This is such a pity, because they had so much to offer. It is, however, a decision that some performers must make in the face of extreme hardship.

I hope that this will give you a good beginner’s grip on the law of attraction and the way in which you can adapt it as a performer. I believe that all performers can benefit from this approach and it will give you a significant edge in a world where only a small percentage of people make it to the top. You must, however, understand that the ‘top’ is not the only path to a career as a musician. People have this belief that you either have to be performing at the Metropolitan Opera or on the West end or becoming a teacher from home (this is not to say being a teacher is bad, particularly when you are a public speaker, your whole life is teaching).   What people don’t know is that if you start adapting your perspective so that you can step back and see the blessings that surround you every day, you will live in the now, you will see the ‘middle-ground’ opportunities that are open to so many musicians and practitioners. Public speakers also have many opportunities to research, write, teach and choose smaller gigs rather than the largest ones out there. Dancers have many, many companies from around the world to audition for professionally – there are many companies who are not necessarily ‘A grade’ that will also pay their dancers. And remember, if you are passionate about teaching, teachers create the next great singers, public speakers, actors, dancers, musicians. There are many people who detest the idea of going down this pathway because they really wanted to ‘sing in New York’ or ‘be a dancer for the Russian Ballet’. Perhaps they should also consider the numerous other options out there too.

Again, I emphasize going straight to the best contemporary source on this subject; The Secret and The Magic by Rhonda Byrne. There are many, many other authors and teachers who write about the Law of Attraction, but The Secret is the most concise and relevant for our current society. Amazon will also have some good suggestions for books that you can buy in addition to The Secret – these are all books that other buyers on Amazon have a high opinion of. The majority of these books are extremely cheap and easy to read and the lessons will change your life.

I am so grateful to you for taking the time to read this. May your days be filled with love and gratitude! .