Embrace Your Musical Theatre Fearlessness

I’ve had a really good month. The festival I was producing went off without a hitch, I signed on as a major producer for a new Broadway show, and am in option talks for another new musical.  Several people who know of these goings on have commented that I am fearless in pursuing my dreams.

"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." - FDR (shown here as I know him best)

While I appreciate the sentiment, the first thought that goes through my head when I hear that is “I’m not fearless!” There are plenty of things that scare me every day. I realized that what comes across as fearlessness is actually something different.

When I’m faced with something that scares me – whether it’s calling that Broadway bigwig, asking for a large sum of money for a musical, or committing to a major project (all things I’ve done in the last month, by the way) I think to myself, “what’s the worst that can happen?”

If you consider this question practically and break it down to the most simple “pros and cons” it’s hard to justify your fears.

If I make the phone call to the Broadway bigwig, that person could hang up on me or they could decide to work with me. The former, a hang up, would be embarrassing in that moment but easily forgettable. The latter, an engaging conversation, could be a major boon for my career. Pro outweighs con.

Same goes for asking for a donation or investment toward a new musical. I could be told no, which could be momentarily discouraging.  I could be told yes which, again, would further my dreams AND potentially further the dreams of many other people.

If you think about the things that scare you in a very practical, pros and cons way, odds are you can appear fearless too. If you don’t believe me, I challenge you to try it for yourself. Start thinking in terms of realistic pros and cons. Conquer your fears a little every day and it gets easier. Believe me, I know!

Posted in Funding, Inspiration