The one time I accidentally got bangs and my entire career changed. (True story)
I didn’t want really want bangs, but bangs wanted me.
Fun fact: It wasn’t until a few years ago that I understood the importance of branding and how much it could shift my career. I’m actually embarrassed to admit that a few people over the years tried to get me to focus on my branding (it was actually more like begging me…) and I still didn’t understand the need for it.
I’ve always been a hard worker, even when I was a kid. To me, branding didn’t seem like it was “work” or a necessary career strategy.
I was in classes that challenged me.
I was producing my own content that was getting into film festivals and winning awards.
I had just recently up-leveled my representation.
I was doing casting director workshops regularly and expanding my network.
I was “doing” all the things I was supposed to be doing, and I still wasn’t getting the opportunities that I knew I deserved.
And I know many of you are in that same boat because we talk about it.
You’re working hard, there’s no doubt about that. You’re taking different classes and expanding your network. You’re constantly sharpening your craft and your business skills. You’re doing the darn thing! But you want more auditions, which is totally understandable. And you should be getting them.
I honestly didn’t really know what other action to take…
Which was highly frustrating. I was working two-part time jobs, finishing college online, and busting my butt trying to build my career.
But as my frustration continued to grow and my burnout became inevitable I decided it was time for a change.
If you’re thinking I was intelligent enough to do a career re-vamp, you’re wrong. I made an appointment with my hairdresser.
A lot of my spiritual friends in Los Angeles have told me this is so “Aquarius” of me to think a quick hair trim will solve all my problems.
I didn’t want bangs. I don’t even remember saying the word bangs. Maybe I sneezed and it sounded like I said bangs? I’ve pondered this even years later.
But bangs are what I got. And not just bangs, but 9 inches cut off the length of my hair too.
HOW…. How did this happen? I’m not quite sure.
But what happened next I’m eternally grateful for.
Right after (literally RIGHT after) I was leaving the hairdresser in a state of shock and slight panic, I got an urgent last-minute callback for a Wendy’s national commercial I had auditioned for the week prior.
The only note from casting was, “Make sure the talent’s hair is in braids like the first audition.”
HAAAA! That wasn’t possible.
If you’ve heard enough about my hair and are wondering when this story actually turns to branding… we’re almost there!
I went into the audition and truly felt like I had nothing to lose since I just had all my hair chopped off, and I just went for it.
I got put on avail for the role. Didn’t book it. But the clients were fond of me and called my manager to say they loved my performance and my new haircut really worked for me.
My manager didn’t know I got a new haircut.
He was initially angry but moved quickly into action mode. I needed new headshots stat since my hair was so insanely different.
And this was the first time I strategically focused on branding in my entire career.
My manager and I got together and for 3 hours put together a “brand”. And to be honest, we weren’t even that good at it. But my upcoming photoshoot required some thought that was deeper than just “what sweaters for layering am I going to bring.”
These were some of the selects that I had from my headshot shoot. I then filmed a self-tape reel scene for each of my new branded looks and completely re-did my casting profile to finally match my casting potential.
Within the next 12 months:
I had booked two guest star roles on television shows
Booked two national commercials
One independent feature film
One national commercial print campaign
Was put on 13 avails
My callback ratio skyrocketed – as did the number of auditions I was getting.
I don’t want you to stumble upon a haircut “accident” to maximize your career growth.
It wasn’t the bangs.
It was the strategy that I finally put into designing my marketing materials to reflect who I was as a storyteller. And doing the work to dig deep and decide who I was as a storyteller in the first place.
I was the same actress that I was before the bangs, the level of my talent hadn’t suddenly improved. I had the same work ethic. Same team of representatives.
But the way that casting directors now saw me when they viewed my profile was completely different. They saw characters they wanted to cast. They saw characters that could fit into the stories they were telling.
Finally putting some thought and strategy into my branding helped me tremendously. That’s why I’m so passionate about helping actors discover their special sauce and how to best serve it up to casting directors.
The work I do with my clients is designed to give you clarity and confidence in creating the characters you KNOW you could be cast as today and re-designing your casting profiles to shine a light on your undeniable casting potential.
Let’s make it easier for casting directors to say “yes” to bring you in for auditions. Let’s redefine what your unique casting potential is.
Book a FREE 30-minute consultation so we can discuss your branding as an actor and how we can design your unique casting potential to show off your special sauce and get more casting directors saying YES to bring you in for auditions.
I can’t wait to discover your branding and infuse your marketing materials with your very special sauce.
You don’t need bangs to change your career. You just need a simple strategy in place.
