How I Am In Business

Detailing how I transitioned out of the arts and into finance/real estate

If you know me well, you know I had an extensive amount of time invested into the arts from middle school to late high school. When I was 11 years old, I was in 5th grade and moving to a new school. So much fun! Displacement!

At this time, my mom proposed the idea of taking a few acting classes at a local place (Dearing Acting Studio) so I could cultivate a few hobbies and just have something to do. I was much more ADHD when I was younger, and had wayyy too much energy for someone who had a pretty solid diet of fruits and vegetables. Pondering about how I felt in the weeks leading up to my first class, how I felt or if I was nervous about it...don't know. My memory doesn't extend that far or is nearly that detailed.

I just realized how much of an anticlimactic sentence that was...Ben "No Payoff" Davis

I do recall being incredibly nervous. That feeling was prominent the first few months of my involvement with the studio, "What if I'm not able to memorize effectively?"..."What if I can't take notes and change my performance?"..."What if I'm not good enough?".

There is a funny story about when I did my first (and last) agency showcase to try and break into the more professional acting realm, and failed miserably, which really hit my confidence in acting for a while...but I digress.

Thankfully, the instructors there were wonderful. One of my first teachers, Brian Sweeney, is now an incredibly close friend and confidant of mine and I am so thankful he was one of the first people I had met. Brian was teaching my 2nd acting class, I think, and recommended I try the Improv class.

Here's where my life definitely changed.

Once I joined improv, I found myself in a realm where I felt completely infatuated with the topic. I loved improvisation right off the bat. The challenge of creating coherent scenes and comedic beats off of nothing? Sign me up. Entertaining people? Added bonus. I found an avenue for my imagination to run wild, I didn't have to restrict myself to the constraints of a script or specific character. I could be anybody. Grandpa with a bad back? I'm there. Mime who is really bad at hand signals? It's me. I felt like the world of acting had burst open and I was seeing it in a way I hadn't before.

I had the best time in those improv classes, and eventually phased out the acting/commercial/script reading classes I was enrolled in. I just wanted to do improv and only improv. Which, in hindsight, might not have been the best call as the classes contained invaluable information that would have assisted my improv. Everything is so interconnected in the arts that sharpening one skill sharpens them all. Example, learning to sing from your diaphragm boosts your ability to project so when acting in a theater and you need dialogue to hit the last row, boom you got it.

Eventually, I was invited to join the teen chaos improv troupe at Dearing. This entailed monthly performances for an audience and a select group of other members of the troupe. I loved it. Not every joke landed, not every scene was rock solid, but it genuinely was the most fun I had ever had at that point. I progressed from the teen troupe to the collective troupe (more intermediate group with adults and more honing of the improv craft). This was where I began seeing improv as far more than something fun to do. The technical aspect of it, the dimensions of being able to consistently kill it on the stage, is an aspect that many don't realize when thinking of improv. They say, "Oh those improv games are fun!" but they can't see how the "improv games" are such a small part of the craft.

I sound so pretentious don't I.

During my time on the collective troupe, I was brought up on a few shows to perform with the main stage. These were the big dogs at the studio. Brian, Matt, Leeann, and a few others had this energy about them that I loved to be around when I was younger, and their improv was always stellar. Having the opportunity to join them a few times on stage was exhilarating, and eventually I was brought onto the main stage as a permanent player. The amount of love I had for the studio, and the amount of love and support I received (and still receive) is something I value more than anything. I can't articulate the appreciation I have for the studio and leaders inside it.

Which is why it was so difficult to stop.

My attendance at the studio became more and more sporadic as high school progressed. I love being involved on campus and immersing myself in the extra curricular opportunities that were right next to me. Unfortunately, there's only 24 hours in a day and I ultimately ended up sacrificing a ton of time at the studio to pursue other ventures. Was this the right call? Maybe. I think it's important to explore other areas, purely for personal growth and development. Would my time have been better spent at the studio during those years? Possibly.

But I am glad I went out there and did my best to answer those questions. I met a ton of people, and participated in a number of musicals and a few plays during that time. I took on the challenge of singing (which I'm still not great at) and was able to land my dream role of Javert in Les Mis the summer of my junior year in high school (Me? An antagonist?). This was actually my last role I had. Figured it'd be a good stopping point, going out on a high note, and after encountering the frustrating bureaucracy of high school theater again when I was a senior and finally being fed up with an incompetent musical theater director at my school I "retired".

However, being in that atmosphere for 6 years and surrounding myself with the arts and creatives who have dreams of Hollywood and Beverly Hills, I definitely began thinking about the future. A future of trying to be an actor.

This thought had crossed my mind many times over the time I was in that realm, and I had actually taken a few acting classes outside of Dearing (Sorry gang ??) and attended a couple of acting seminars trying to build a network and create some connections to facilitate a move to LA. I was enamored with the lifestyle and prestige when I was younger. The notoriety of it all, but also practicing your craft at the highest level. I viewed so many actors with the highest regard, and day dreamed about starring in films of my own.

Alas, dreams and fantasies are ultimately what they will be.

Now here is where I get into the title of this article.

Coming out of high school, I wanted to go into a field I felt my strengths complimented well and I could be interested in. I was never going to be in medicine, or any science field. Me in a lab coat wouldn't end well. Additionally, I never wanted to go into academia or teaching so that limited things further. I sort of knew business was what I was going to end up in, but I was happy to have reasons other than, "it was the default pick".

Like I was talking about earlier in the article, when I sharpened one skill in acting it sharpened them all. I believe, through the years I spent in that world, I cultivated numerous advantages in the business realm ranging from public speaking to creating interpersonal relationships. I felt my talent on the stage transitioned perfectly to a business sense, and I could still utilize that side of my self to find success.

Recognizing my strengths, and finding applications for them outside of acting, was integral I believe to being confident in where I am at. Seeing my thoughts being verified through concrete examples the last two years in college has furthered this notion and removed any, "Oh what if I made the wrong choice?" type feelings.

There is no regret or discontentment I feel with my position relative to the friends I have pursuing their acting or LA ambitions. I am incredibly happy and proud of their successes, and love seeing them chip away at a discipline they are passionate about. While I confess, there were times where I suffered a little bit of jealousy and envied their positions, I've grown and matured to simply root for them and support them.

While shifting focus and trudging down the business path was certainly an adjustment, I am very happy and fulfilled where I am. I've been grateful to have many affiliations and roles on campus and have realized passions I was not aware of.

I was once an individual who had a somewhat narrow minded view on what my career or life would look like, hitting certain milestones one after the other with no variance or deviations from the path, but now I recognize life is only variance and deviations. Trying to cement your future in the present is the most foolhardy use of time, and while I promote absolutely having goals and ambitions, trying remove the intangibles from life is removing life itself.

(I'd also like to point out, having an outline and baby steps to achieving goals is fine but being malleable and open to fluctuations is a must)

Make the most of it.