A HIGHER PLAN

Do you think you know better than the universe what is best for you?

If you do, then you are setting yourself up for heartbreak.

You cannot control the outcome of your life. You simply can’t get everything you want. So if you feel you need a certain outcome in order to be happy, you will consistently be disappointed.

Why not just take disappointment out of the equation.

There is an affirmation that goes:

“I am relaxed, trusting in a higher plan that is unfolding for me.”

The acting profession is an ethereal business. You can’t ever know what’s coming around the corner. But if you’re putting good stuff out there, then good things will come your way.

Your concern should be working on your craft and going for what you want, but not getting hung up on whether you get it or not. It’s all about timing and chance, and these are things you cannot control.

I learned this lesson early in my career thankfully.

I had wanted to get the national tour of GREASE so bad I could taste it. I worked very hard on my audition and got called back. Now, by this time I had just started reading self-help books, and for some reason I was very calm at the call back. My friend was up for the same part, and I remember wanting him to do a good job.

Well, I didn’t get the part, but he did… And I was crushed.

But, while they were out on tour, I got an audition for THE CONAN O’BRIEN SHOW. They were looking for someone to play a silly character, and I booked the job. I ended up making 13 appearances on the show!

A writer I met on CONAN thought I’d be perfect for a pilot he was writing for HBO, and I booked that job! That pilot brought me to Los Angeles and led to all the other film and TV work I’ve done.

So you see, all the terrific blessings in my life can be traced back to me NOT getting that role in GREASE. I am so thankful that I didn’t get what I thought I had wanted.

Some people worry so much that they are not where they are meant to be in life, but the universe has a marvelous plan for you, and I can prove it-

You’re ALIVE!

You might’ve gotten hit by a bus yesterday, but you didn’t! Do you realize how lucky you are?

The universe has brought you to this moment alive. And, because you are alive, you are in a place with infinite possibilities. Think of the millions of souls that aren’t so lucky. It’s such a better way to look at life. Living happily is about focusing on the positive. The negative things will always be there, but why focus on them?

I know it sounds a little crazy, but when I don’t get a role I say to the universe “Thank you!” I thank the universe for saving me from that job, because if I had gotten that role, on the flight to the location where we were going to film it, my plane would’ve crashed. So by not booking that job, my life has been saved.

Or, even if the plane wouldn’t have crashed, my life course would’ve been altered in a way that would’ve kept me from meeting my gorgeous and wonderful lover that I’m still waiting to meet.

I think of David Strickland, the actor from the TV show SUDDENLY SUSAN. I’m sure when he booked that job he was thrilled. If he had known that three years later it would lead to his suicide, he may have felt differently.

Or how about Aaliyah? Her plane crashed as she returned from shooting a music video in the Bahamas.

And I once heard about a young couple that got married and at least twenty of the wedding guests died when the dance floor collapsed.

I’m sorry, I know it’s morbid, but it’s so important to impress upon you that YOU CANNOT KNOW WHAT IS BEST FOR YOU.

You might say, “Yes, I understand I can’t get every job I want, but I gotta get a job SOMETIME, or else I’m a failure.” That’s not true. The universe may just have another plan for you, an even more fulfilling plan.

When I first moved to Los Angeles, I had done very well with booking jobs. My streak of good luck continued for some time, culminating with me booking a series regular role on a FOX TV show. I thought I knew what the universe’s plan was for me. In my mind, I was going to continue auditioning and getting terrific jobs. But the show was cancelled after the first season, and I went quite a long time without getting any work. I got depressed, and I mean really depressed, and moped for quite awhile.

I got so bored not working, that I finally was forced to get active.

I got reconnected to my creative side and started performing more. One of the characters I used to do in my sketch show was on old washed up actress that I named “Evie”. I volunteered to host an AIDS benefit as the character. A friend and I made a short film to show at the benefit. The film came out well, so we decided to take it up a notch and film it on a nicer digital camera, and this time we enlisted the help of a TV writer friend of mine, who gave us a bunch of funny jokes. We had it professionally edited, and it came out great, was nominated for an Internet short film award, and went to some film festivals.

My TV writer friend was so thrilled with it that he decided to write a feature film starring my character, which I executive produced. The film won many awards, had a theatrical release and is now out on video by MGM.

And all this because I wasn’t getting any work. If my show hadn’t been cancelled, I wouldn’t have been forced to explore the creative side of myself.

I believe I am here on earth to do more than just act, and my series being cancelled was an important step in my fulfilling my true destiny. When all is said and done, producing and starring in my own film will be one of the things in my life that I am most proud of. Much more proud than I am of having been on that TV show.

And what happens when someone with the core belief that they need a certain career in order to be happy, actually attains that career? Well, sometimes, sadly, it’s a case of “careful what you wish for”.

In college, I always thought doing musical theater would make me happy. I believed that certainly everyone performing on Broadway must be elated. But, once I got to New York, I found that this wasn’t always true.

Some of the musical theater performers I met, who were currently in Broadway shows, seemed very unhappy, and acted out with alcohol.

There’s a meltdown that happens when you achieve what you think is your dream, only to find that it isn’t making you truly happy. Perhaps these people weren’t happy to begin with. Or perhaps they were happy, but the eight show a week ritual wasn’t truly fulfilling them as artists. A lot of people go into the theater because they are very creative, and performing the same show eight times a week for years can be stifling for someone like that.

I love the saying, “Rejection is God’s protection”.

Trust that you can’t know what’s best for you. When you don’t get something you thought you wanted, the universe may be protecting you from something, and leading you to an even greater destination.

So have faith that the universe is leading you somewhere wonderful! And you can trust that it’s true, because as long as you’re alive, you are somewhere WONDERFUL.