Here is the guest blog I wrote for the website I Create Positivity
A few years ago I was working in the world of promotions, working on a stand at an exhibition. I was spending my days giving out free stuff and selling products. It was not my chosen career path and I was just working to pay the bills. It was a flexible job which worked well with being an actress. I was chasing my dreams of being an actress, or so I thought. But looking back I was just waiting for them to happen and I was treading water.
I started working with a guy who wanted to make movies and I will never forget him turning to me and saying ‘luck is when preparation meets opportunity’. This really stuck with me but it’s only been recently in my life when I have truly understood the meaning of this, and it’s true.
I was treading water because I didn’t know how to make things happen. Sometimes we can try too hard and then we miss all the wonderful things that are all around us.
I believe that we are surrounded by opportunities every day! Some days more than others but they are always there. We just have to be open to them. Now I’m not saying wait around and stuff will happen because you have to do more than that. But realising that we have opportunities everyday makes life pretty exciting. And if you miss one it’s ok because there’s another one coming.
An example of this is I had one of these opportunities a few years ago when I had been invited to go out for a girl’s night out. It came to the evening and I was really tired and started thinking about cancelling. But I didn’t, I decided to go and have an evening out with some new and old friends. When I got there I met a lovely woman who works with voiceover artists (that’s what I do now), she actually employs/casts them for a big TV channel here in the UK. I grabbed that opportunity with both hands and we have been working together as well as being good friends now for about 4 years.
I’m not saying you’ve got to go out every time you’re invited but just being open to these exciting opportunities is enough and making sure when they come along to grab them with both hands.
The world is a very beautiful place to be and we are surrounded by wonderful things and people every day.
Ok so we’ve talked about all these opportunities but how do we prepare for them?
I think one of the best ways to do this is figure out what it is you want. I mean really want. Sit down and focus on you and what you want your life to look like in a year or 2 or 5 or 10. Whichever works for you. What do you want to be doing? Where do you want to be living etc? And these can change, you don’t have to keep them fixed, it’s your life. Once we’ve figured out what we really want then it make it easier for us to spot those wonderful fleeting moments when someone says oh I know someone who works in the industry you’ve always wanted to work in. Or there was a brilliant blog I read the other day about x. Or making sure when that fantastic idea pops into your head to write it down! Or to listen to that webinar, read that book, go to that event, ask for advice from that wonderful friend. You get the idea.
Prepare – figure out what you want.
Opportunity – open your eyes to what’s around you. It may mean stepping out of your comfort zone, which feels great!
The Magic – that will happen.
I’d like to say that the guy who wanted to make movies all those years ago………. I’m pleased to say is now a feature film director and has made some great movies.
I’m a voiceover artist, actress, entrepreneur and I absolutely love my job. Embracing opportunities is such a wonderful feeling. Recently I’ve had some amazing opportunities that turned to magical moments.
I hope you get some magical moments soon too.
The original article on the website I Create Positivity is here – When Preperation meets opportunity, that’s when the magic happens!
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