Doing Breeds Doing

Sitting in a cafe with my best mate

A few months ago

Making plans and discussing our current

Life situation,

I was lamenting the quiet patch of work

Over the past 18 months.

And how difficult it’s been to come by

Opportunities that excite me.

I said something like:

“Yeah, work breeds work”.

And he said,

Quite off handedly

Something like:

“Yeah.  And doing breeds doing”.

And I was like… fuck.

Doing. Breeds. Doing.

That sounds so much better.

And I immediately got so curious

As to why doing breeds doing

Makes so much more sense.

I read that:

"A study looked at artists

who started at the bottom

and worked their way to successful careers.

The researchers identified one factor

That was consistent across the group:

They performed far more shows

Than the average artist.

The same principle holds true in many fields.

If you want to rise,

You need a lot of shots on goal.

Keep showing up.

Keep making new material.

Eventually, you catch a lucky break."

This from James Clear,

Author of Atomic Habits.

An amazingly useful read

If you want to start

Making small changes in your

Life and career.

But reading this,

Reminded me of that phrase

“Doing breeds doing”.

And then it clicked,

In an instant.

Until two months ago,

I’d always said

Work breeds work.

And in a lot of cases… that’s true.

Work can lead to more work.

But surprise surprise,

As an actor and artist,

There is only so much you can do

To influence the outcome of

Booking a job.

Unless you are the one literally creating the jobs,

There’s way to control how many

Opportunities there are going around.

And besides, in the case of

Work breeds work,

The idea is limited to just…

Work. Or a job.

And focussing on that outcome—

Booking that dream role

That’s going to change your life forever

Is a sure-fire way to end up

Pushing for a result

Focusing on external validation,

Trying to please others

And to be something that you’re not.

And eventually… burnt out.

And for a very long time

I based my value as an actor,

On the job that I was doing.

Or the job I had just done,

Or the job I had coming up next.

And to be honest,

This feeling still creeps up on me.

Still lingers in the back of my mind

During periods of unemployment.

And it’s a really tricky one.

How can I call myself an actor

When I’m not actually acting?

This reminds me of something

A friend said to my partner once,

When she was going through a particularly

Rough time of unemployment.

He asked,

“How’s the acting going”?

She said

“Really hard. I haven’t had a job in years”.

And went on to expressed how she didn’t

Feel like an actor at that time

For the lack of work.

And our friend Matt told her…

You don’t have a job.

You have a career.

But I digress…

In the times of unemployment

During the moments where

I feel like I haven’t got anywhere

To put my energy,

The one way I’ve found to

Alleviate the feelings of worthlessness

Envy or even boredom,

Is to shift my focus from

“Work breeds work”,

(Outside my control)

To

“Doing breeds doing”.

(Within my control)

Let’s break it down…

What is it about an acting job

That remains the most appealing to me?

What am I really chasing when

I want an acting job?

Connection.

Collaborating with other artists.

Connecting with others.

Contributing to something

Greater than myself.

Having somewhere to put my energy

That feels energising.

Giving a piece of myself to my art.

Sharing what I value.

Feeling valuable and valued,

Which of course,

Includes the exchange of value feeling even,

Whether it be financial or otherwise.

Or even in terms of time, effort, input etc.

The list goes on.

When I look at this list…

I realise that outside of acting,

There are loads of areas I can

Put my energy into

That fill me with a sense of self-worth.

I can contribute

To my craft,

My industry,

My community,

And to myself.

By taking a step back,

Looking at what sets me on fire

And taking steps

To give that to the world.

Doing breeds doing

Isn't just about booking a job.

Is about taking action

That leads to more action —

In any capacity

By focusing on what you can control.

It speaks to forming habits.

And getting a roll on.

And the idea —

That once the ball is rolling —

It’s way easier to keep it moving.

But more importantly,

It speaks to skipping

The over-interlectualisation

Of taking action

And simply.

Doing.

Reserving judgment and

Simply starting.

Do and keep doing,

And let the results come to you.

The best part,

In time —

The doing

Becomes easier.

Which also raises the opposite point.

Staying where you are,

Remaining stagnant—

Leads to atrophy,

And eventually… death.

Bleak.

But true.

So while I love comfort and stability

Shifting outside of comfort and leaning into change

Is the prerequisite for growth.

I don’t know about you

But I have always found

The most difficult steps

Of any journey, task or undertaking

The initial ones.

So here’s a little

System For Doing.

1) Make a list.

The top five most energising things

You could be doing right now

For your life or art.

2) Circle the top two highest leverage—

The needle movers.

Activities that would bring the greatest change.

3) Choose one.

Let go of the bullseye —

And throw a dart.

This means

Take action on that activity,

To the best of your ability,

With no expectation of an outcome or result.

This is important.

Forget perfection

Just: To the best of your ability,

In this moment.

What ever that is for you.

When throwing a dart at anything —

Give everything you’ve got

Without expectation that you should succeed..

The expectation isn’t that you’re going

To make waves on your first or even 50th attempt.

But what you are doing

Is building the muscle of doing.

And in doing so,

You build your artistry and craft

Through constantly bettering yourself

And putting out your best, each time.

4) Repeat

Repeat this process.

Follow what sets you on fire —

And continue to do so,

To discover the path of least resistance

And effortless flow in your work.

The point is not to win every attempt you make.

You won’t.

That’s life.

The point is to build the habit of doing.

Rather than waiting.

Rather that ruminating.

Rather than aiming for perfection.

Give yourself permission to fall on your face.

Let go of the bulls eye

And throw the dart.

Yes,

A strike rate is measured by

How many times you hit the target

Vs.

How many throws you take.

But!

How can you hope to find success

Without high output?

And how can you expect to improve

Without a volume of attempts

The principles is simple:

The more darts you throw,

The better at darts you get.

And the easier darts becomes.

And therefore

You throw more darts.

It’s a cycle.

And then obviously…

The more chances you have at hitting

The target.

Pursue what sets you on fire

And allow space for more of the same.

After the initial step is taken,

The first uncomfortable email is sent

Or the slightly nerve-wracking

Expedition back into an acting class

Or brain busting hour staring at a blank page,

Or the phone call that makes you feel sick,

Once the first dart is thrown,

Which perhaps misses the board entirely…

But it makes the throwing of the second, third, fourth, 50th.

Far easier.

The more throws you attempt,

The stronger your throw gets

And the better your aim becomes.

And eventually…

You will land on the board.

I hope at that point,

You’re prepared for whatever comes next.

Have fun out there.

Dx