Be prepared (part 1)

I’m Told I Need To Blog More About Improv…

A few days ago I learned that famed #improv institution, #SecondCity, was holding #auditions for their brand new theater in #Brooklyn. All I needed to submit was my name, phone number, email, #headshot, & resume. That’s it. Sounds pretty simple and straight forward, right?

It wasn’t.

The issue I had was updating my resume into a neat & tidy format properly suited for #actors & improvisers. You see, most industry resumes follow the same format: bullet points followed by brief explanations. But acting & entertainment resumes follow a much different structure:
Production :: Role :: Theater company :: Director (or at least some version of that).

I searched high & low for #templates across Google Search, but either it was the wrong format, or WAY to flashy & colorful. So NOW what am I gonna do? Im not all that “Microsoft Word Savvy” and submissions are due in a matter of hours.

(Now do you see where I’m going with this?)

It took a few hours, but I finally found an app which allowed me to #format (for the most part) the way I needed/wanted it to look. Now the real task began!

I’ve done so many things, #taught so many #classes, produced so many shows, and played on so many stages that I had a hard time remembering all of the more important/valuable/eye-catching ones.

Which ones do I put down?

In what order do I list them?

Does this listing really belong under this banner?

WHAT AM I DOING?!

Short story long, I finally figured it out and submitted my materials under the #deadline. But this raises the much larger point of #preparedness.

In the back of my mind, I actually thought I was “prepared” to submit. I mean, I have the #experience. So what am I worrying about?

But the reality is that I’ve known for quite some time that I don’t already have a formatted #resume ready-to-go. I’m so use to doing everything on the fly anyway that I’ve become far too dependent on my #confidence that I’ll “just get it done somehow”.

Being #prepared in your #skills and #talents is half of the job. Being prepared to present those skills and talents is another thing entirely.

Don’t be like me. Get your resume formatted today! You never know when you’re gonna need it!