‘Tis the Season, Audition Season

Whether you’re actually doing auditions this season or not, you’ll still feel a certain way about it. You’ll have a belief about who you are. About just how ready you are. And what will you say to others when they ask you about the final quarter of 2025.

So, what’s your mindset as you face the upcoming Audition Season?

The key question you need to ask yourself is: “Amateur or Professional – which am I?”

Here are two of Carol’s favorite quotes to help get you motivated to make the shift to full-time professional.

“Though no one can go back and make a brand new start, anyone can start from now and make a brand new ending.”

Carl Bard

“A bend in the road is not the end of the road… unless you fail to make the turn.”

Helen Keller

Yes, we've discussed this topic before (October 2018, to be exact). This time of year, when auditioning—or as AriaReady likes to call it, “Going to Do Your Job” season—is once again upon us, and it’s well worth repeating.

Being a professional is not just about getting paid; it’s about your belief system and your mindset.

The key thing for you to understand is that you are an amateur if you believe and behave like one. Or you are a professional if you think and behave as one.

It’s not so much about what others say about you. The important thing is what you feel is true for you.

It’s never too early to shift your mindset. It’s a choice you need to start considering as you move forward with your career. Even if you are a freshman in college, you must make that choice, to include the idea of changing your mindset. Yes, it’s a simple shift in your belief about yourself, but simple doesn’t mean it will be easy. But this choice will empower you and define the path you take.

OK, let’s lay out some of the key differences between amateurs and professionals.

1. Amateurs stop when they achieve something. Professionals know the initial achievement is just the beginning of the journey.
2. Amateurs have a goal. Professionals have strategies and tactics to achieve their goals.
3. Amateurs often believe they are good at everything. Professionals understand they have differing degrees of competence.
4. Often, when amateurs work with coaches/conductors, they feel they are being criticized as a person. Professionals know they have weak spots and take criticism as an opportunity to get better at what they know needs work.
5. Giving up and feeling like a failure is easier for amateurs. Professionals recognize that mistakes and failures are essential steps on the path to growth and mastery.
6. Amateurs tend to focus on the short term. Professionals always work in the long term.
7. If things are not going well, amateurs tend to blame others. Professionals take responsibility for their actions, whether good or bad.
8. Amateurs tend to be inconsistent in their practice, rehearsal, and yes, even in their performances.
9. Professionals show up every day, prepared, focused, and ready to work, thus becoming consistent in their performance. So, what does “prepared, focused, and ready to work” mean to you?
10. Amateurs tend to think in absolutes. Professionals think in probabilities.
11. Amateurs believe that the world should work the way they want it to. Professionals recognize that they must work with the world as it is.
12. Amateurs are scared to be vulnerable and honest with themselves. Professionals feel they are capable of handling almost anything.

There are many other differences, but it all boils down to two key factors: fear and reality. Let me leave you with this food for thought:

In what circumstances do you find yourself behaving like an amateur instead of as a professional? And, what’s holding you back?

Are you associating with those whose thoughts are more like those of an amateur? Why not start now to shift your relationships to include those who are enjoying the journey and always moving forward, the professionals, and let that reassurance and motivation rub off on you instead? Surrounding yourself with like-minded people, whether they are singers or not, will provide you with the support and encouragement you need to maintain a professional mindset.

Over the past couple of months, I’ve spoken with many young singers, and the question I hear most often is, “Why should I read AriaReady, or take your workshops? What’s in it for me? Quite simply, my answer echoes the subtitle of her book:

"Personal and Business Strategies for Making the Transition from Aspiring Artist to Prepared Professional."

To put a finer point on this, let me share just a portion from two industry leaders' praise of AriaReady:

“… AriaReady deals with both the core values that make a singer successful, as well as ideas that may well also lead to a happier, more fulfilled life, both onstage and off.”

Ken Benson

“… This is essential information for a career in singing, for which there isn’t time to address in the voice studio, and that many academic programs do not attempt to address. It is a must-have for singers and teachers of singing alike.”

Michael Egel

Now, what’s on your mind? Your feedback is integral to the content of this blog. Have we missed something important to you? What would you like to see covered in future blogs?

Avanti, DNA.