November 19, 2025 • 26 mins
Still waiting for your acting career to finally pick up?
If you’ve been working hard, auditioning your heart out, and still wondering why nothing is “clicking,” this episode is going to feel like someone finally turning the lights on.
In today’s episode, I’m sharing the exact 3-part system that helped me go from overwhelmed, burnt out, and feeling behind… to booking multiple jobs, rebuilding momentum, and actually enjoying the process again. You’ll learn why your nervous system might be sabotaging your auditions, how your subconscious shapes your confidence, and why repetition is the real secret to sustainable success.
If you’ve ever doubted your talent, compared yourself to every other actor online, or felt like your career is stuck on pause, this episode will give you clarity, hope, and tools you can start using this week.
Books from this episode:
Proximity Principle - Ken Coleman
The Power of the Actor: The Chubbuck Technique - Ivana Chubbuck
2025 could be the year everything shifts for you—and I want to be right there with you on the journey.
Follow along for the real behind-the-scenes of acting, modeling, and mindset growth—you’ll see the wins, the lessons, and what it really takes to build a creative career.
📸 Instagram: @megsalisburycreative
🎬 TikTok: @megsalisburycreative
🌐 Blog + FREE Resources
Mindset Coaching for Actors: Subconscious reprogramming + nevous system regulation is fastest, easiest way to book more meaningful acting work. If you’re tired of holding youself back and want support to show up with confidence, clarity, and ease—I’d love to work with you. Apply for 1:1 coaching here
The Glow Up Newsletter: Want the best tips and takeaways to help you book more work and thrive in your career? Sign up here and start glowing up month by month.
You don’t have to figure this out alone. Subscribe, leave a review, and share this with another dreamer—because your next big break might be closer than you think.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_02 (00:00):
And the real key to success in the acting world is
not luck.
It's this three-part system thatyou can repeat over and over.
unknown (00:08):
Are you ready for it?
SPEAKER_00 (00:10):
The first thing, step one, it's a little bit
more.
SPEAKER_02 (00:26):
Welcome back to the I'm Matt, actress, model, and
mindset coach for actors.
Think of me as yourbehind-the-scenes bestie for
chasing dreams, surviving plottwists, and building something
big.
Here we talk about it all.
(00:46):
Audition, photo shoots, mindsetchips, script, prep, and the
career curveballs that nobodyprepares you for.
I'll share the highs and thehard lessons in real time
because growing in this industryisn't always pretty, but it's
always worth it.
If you're ready to ditchself-sabotage, step into your
confidence and build the careerand mindset you've been dreaming
(01:10):
of.
Grab your favorite drink, getcozy, and let's dive in.
Hey y'all, and welcome back toanother episode of The Glow Up
Year.
We have some cool things instore today, so I'm excited to
like hop right in and getstarted.
But before we do, I legit Icannot believe that I forgot to
(01:32):
tell you guys this.
But I booked three jobs inOctober.
Woohoo! Yeah.
And it totally slipped my mindon the Halloween episode, so I
figured I'd tell you guys today.
But I'll give you like a quickrecap on the three, and then
we're gonna kind of start movinginto a new direction with the
podcast, which I'm very, veryexcited about.
(01:54):
But before we do, let's talkabout these three jobs.
I booked a highway PSA for NewHampshire, which was like a do
not drink and drive style umcommercial, which was really
very fun.
There was this huge LED screen.
I've been in these rooms beforewhen I've worked with the big
screens when I've worked in crewjobs, and I've always kind of
(02:15):
dreamed of being an actor infront of a big like LED screen,
and it was very, very cool.
I was sitting in the car,supposedly driving, but really
the screen was just movingaround me, which was very crazy
and weird, but also very fun andnice and exciting.
So that was great.
Also booked a commercial forManchester Airport, which is
(02:39):
also New Hampshire.
Apparently, I'm the new NewHampshire spokesperson, guys.
I don't know.
I don't know what's up, but Igot to be a spouse, I was a wife
for this commercial, which wasvery fun.
But the whole crew was so sogreat, and that was a fun day.
I had one line, and it was oneof those like repetition
commercials.
So they say the same line overand over again.
(02:59):
So I got to say kind of this thetagline multiple times, which is
really fun.
Um, and then my last job was forGoogle Ooh Fancy.
And that commercial was alsoironically in New Hampshire, or
maybe it was NAS.
I can't remember, guys.
I'm sorry.
And I think this is like whatevery actor dreams of is like
(03:22):
getting to lay in bed and getpaid for them to film you laying
in bed.
Have you ever seen those sleepcommercials where people are
just like quietly sleeping in abed and they're getting filmed
and they're gonna pay for that?
Well, that was the epitome ofthis shoe, and it was fantastic
and fun, and also another greatcrew and another great set.
(03:45):
But the meat of today's episodeis gonna be my origin story
because I have some excitingnews to announce at the end of
the story, and I kind of wantyou to see like the arc that
let's say the character arc forthe sake of this, but I want you
to kind of see the arc of myjourney and how my journey can
influence your journey and helpyou grow as an actor and a
(04:07):
creative as well.
So I wanted to start today bytelling you guys how I actually
got into acting and kind of hearfrom you too.
How did you get into acting?
Comment below and let me know.
I started acting when I waslittle, little four, but really
started acting in high schooland middle school was when I
started getting into like themusical theater and the plays
(04:30):
that we had every year.
My school put on two each year,and I really think that deep
down I was so called to actingand so called to like this kind
of creative journey was in theform of escapism.
So I really started acting justto escape my reality because you
(04:52):
know things were turbulent athome, it wasn't always great,
and it actually felt really niceto not have to be me for a
little bit.
And I think that was kind oflike the beginning way of how I
kind of coped with my childhoodtrauma and how I coped just in
general, getting throughday-to-day.
And acting really gave me thisplace where I could just be
(05:13):
somebody else and kind of forgetabout my problems and focus my
energy on something that waspositive and good.
So that's how my journey really,really started was kind of out
of this like escapism world.
And then fast forward, I go toschool for acting, right?
I graduate from high school andI'm like, well, there's nothing
else I can imagine doing in myentire life.
(05:34):
I've always kind of felt likeI've been called to do this, so
I might as well stick with it.
So I went to college for acting,and I did four years, two in New
York and two in LA.
And and those years were okay.
I really struggled throughcollege just kind of
emotionally.
I was still really developing mysense of identity and all of
those things through college.
So it was a little rough, but wego through college, we graduate,
(05:57):
and I start my acting career,right?
And when I say I start my actingcareer, I was living in LA, and
so I was booking background workand extra work and doing
audience jobs.
And for those of you who don'tknow, they usually pay people to
fill the seats in a studioaudience like Ellen or Steve
Harvey or any of those types ofshows, uh, game shows, they
(06:19):
usually have to pay people tofill in the seats that they
don't sell.
So I would get paid to go dothose jobs, and that's how I was
primarily making my income was100% on extra work, background
work, and doing these audiencegigs here and there.
And then all of a sudden, thepandemic hits.
Bom, bum bomb bum.
(06:41):
And all of the entertainmentbusiness work that I was doing
was shut down.
Obviously, everybody knowspandemic starts in March.
By September, nothing hashappened.
I haven't worked a day, there'sno opportunities, the COVID
restrictions are really bad, andhaving to get the thing stuck up
your nose and all of the thingswas very, very complicated and
(07:02):
complex to get back into.
And so I make the hard decision.
We make the hard decision, meand my husband, that we're gonna
move back home to Maine.
Moving back home wasbittersweet.
Part of me was uh, you know, alittle stressed about not having
as much opportunity, and part ofme was kind of determined to
find opportunities at home andin my market.
(07:25):
I just read The ProximityPrinciple, which I can't
remember the author's name ofit, but he was talking about how
there's always opportunitywithin our zip code that we're
just not even aware of.
And so I was really trying totake that mindset of finding
some opportunities at home, butit was a different market.
I went from the acting world tocommercial land.
(07:47):
Those are two very differenttypes and styles of acting.
And so I really felt like I wasstarting all over again.
And I think that's a typicalmindset thing that actors
struggle with in general, isjust feeling like you're
starting from scratch.
When we'll talk about thislater, when in reality you're
(08:08):
not starting from scratch, yourjourney has led you up to this
point.
But I felt like I wasstruggling, and I felt like I
was starting all over again andtrying to network and make
contacts and looking for all myopportunities on backstage and
on casting sites and reallytrying to figure out how I can
(08:30):
make this career work.
And I remember feeling like Iwas just like falling farther
and farther behind in my career.
I was really depressed when Icouldn't get any opportunities
or when I was auditioning andnever hearing anything back, the
rejection kind of overload.
I was anxious about is thereever gonna be an opportunity
(08:53):
again for me?
Like, is this just the end of myacting road?
I was worried, which I thinkties into, you know, anxiousness
and probably honestly a littlebit depressed too, because I
went from this market that feltlike it was thriving to a market
that I couldn't didn't know howto function in.
And I spent a lot of timehustling and overworking myself
(09:17):
and feeling overwhelmed becauseI felt like, and this was
definitely a limiting beliefthat I had is the harder I
hustled, the more opportunityand the more chances I would
have.
And I really tried, I felt likeeverything to fix these feelings
that I was having and to fix orsolve my career and start
bringing more opportunities.
(09:38):
I I tried every castingsubscription that was available
in my area that made sense forme.
I had this book called TheChubbuck Method, which I really
loved, and I was just endlesslykind of studying this for scene
study and trying to like stay inpractice without having the
opportunity to really practice.
(09:58):
I mean, I carried this bookeverywhere to me.
It was in work.
It was like I had this bookeverywhere, and I was listening
to it on audiobook too.
I was really just endlessstudying, which wasn't helping.
I tried these workshops that Iwould pay money for that like
promised overnight success andnothing ever happened.
I was reading self-help bookslike I was mad trying to figure
(10:22):
out what was wrong with me andwhat was wrong with my career
that I couldn't make this work.
While simultaneously doing allof these things, I was also in
therapy.
And while therapy was helpful, Ijust I spent so much time
explaining to my therapist likethe intricate details of this
industry so that she couldunderstand my position.
(10:44):
And it felt like it was reallyjust distracting to the session.
Long story short, nothingworked.
And every time I got anotherrejection or somebody didn't
respond to a self-tape that Isent in, I really started to
wonder maybe I'm just not goodenough, or maybe this career,
(11:05):
maybe it's just not for me.
And my rock bottom was in 2022when I realized that my husband
and I we were so poor that wecouldn't live together in our
first year of marriage becausewe just couldn't financially
make it work.
We were barely, barely makingends.
(11:26):
Me and I went and I lived sograciously with my mother-in-law
for a year so that we could saveup money while my husband lived
with our brother-in-law so hecould be closer to work.
And the whole time I was justsitting there praying and like
begging the universe, thinking,just one acting job could change
(11:48):
my whole situation, my wholelife.
One job on backstage that is 10grand could change my entire
situation.
But sitting there, like hopingand praying and dreaming and
wishing, I realized that thiswasn't the life that I wanted.
I realized I didn't want to sitat home and be sitting there
(12:10):
dreaming and wishing.
I wanted some sort of action tohappen.
And I made the decision that Iwas at this crossroads.
I could really believe in myselfand I could go for it full
force, no holding back, or Icould quit and decide this was
it.
And let all this pastprogramming in my brain rule my
(12:32):
life.
And if you couldn't tell, Ichose to go for it.
As I started that journey, whatI started to realize was that my
skills weren't the problem.
It was my mindset.
It was these stories that I kepttelling myself in my head that
were keeping me stuck.
(12:52):
And a lot of the time, thosestories I was telling myself
weren't even true or based infact.
And I had never looked at mycareer or my life from this
angle.
So I continued working with mytherapist, and she was great.
She helped me spot these blocksthat I couldn't see alone.
But like I said, I had to do somuch explaining about the
(13:13):
industry that it just wasn'tquite the fit.
And that's when I thought I wishthat I had somebody who
understood both mindset and theshifts that I wanted to take in
my brain, as well as acting andthis whole life and this whole
career and this whole industry,and someone who could coach me
in like the resiliency you needwith this really complex
(13:35):
industry environment that I wasin.
So, circling back around,working with a therapist, I
started doing the work.
The first thing that I did was Istarted reprogramming my
mindset, getting rid of thoseold thoughts that weren't
serving me anymore, andreintroducing these new thoughts
that were.
And I like to think about thisas like getting rid of the
(13:57):
things that I don't want tobelieve anymore and adding the
things in that I do want tobelieve.
And then this crazy thinghappened.
All of a sudden, I was startingto take like this inspired
action I was getting naturallyinstead of spinning my wheels,
and I got signed with my firstagent.
And then I started to feel like,well, I now I have access to
(14:19):
these life-changing jobs, thejobs that could pay me 10k in
one sitting.
So then I decided, okay, well,this mindset thing is working,
so how can I support it?
So, along with continuing todevelop my mindset, I started
working on regulating my nervoussystem because I realized that I
was in this chronic state offight or flight, which meant
(14:39):
that my mind and my body werealways like revving like a car,
but the car stuck with like theemergency brake-on and park.
And so I was like burning allthis energy, but not actually
ever moving forward.
And as soon as I startedregulating my nervous system on
a regular basis and continuingworking on my mindset, before I
knew it, I was booking real paidacting work with my agency.
(15:02):
And then I was like, heck, I'lltake inspired action and I'll
submit to a couple otheragencies.
All of a sudden I was signedwith another agent and then
another agent.
And eventually I wasn't evenreally looking for jobs, but
they were just finding me.
Like my agent would reach outand say, These people want to
book you on this gig.
I never even auditioned.
And that's when my brain madethis connection that if I could
(15:26):
create this transformationwithin myself, then I could
definitely help other actors dothe same thing, but faster than
I did because my process was soslow and it took me so long.
Because I was having to likefind and spot my own things
versus like being able to havesomebody to help you spot your
blocks.
And that's when I decided, youknow, I could really make a
(15:47):
difference if I became a mindsetcoach for actors.
So I went to school, y'all, andI got my certificate and
coaching.
SPEAKER_00 (15:55):
And I actually just graduated.
Yeah, go Megan.
We're making our dreams cometrue.
SPEAKER_02 (16:03):
So I'm actually qualified now to help you.
And this is the thing I believethat your acting career, your
glow-up, it shouldn't takeforever.
And with the right tools and theright support, it can happen way
faster than you think.
And on top of that, we have thisreally unique opportunity here
(16:23):
to change the wholeentertainment industry.
And here's what I mean The morewe know ourselves, our triggers,
our nervous systems, ourprogramming, our boundaries, our
bodies, the better equipped weare to advocate for ourselves on
set.
(16:44):
And the more we advocate forourselves on set, the more the
industry will naturally evolvewith us.
And so, in the most ultimateglow-up and reveal of all, I
told you guys in the lastepisode of this podcast that
this podcast is gonna shift abit.
And while I'm still gonna sharemy journey and my wins along the
(17:05):
way and all of the amazingthings that I'm learning in real
time, this podcast is gonnastart to be geared more towards
you because I wanna help you.
I wanna help you go from feelingbehind in your acting career and
burned out and overwhelmed andsecond-guessing your worth to
becoming the actor who bookswith confidence, builds
(17:28):
momentum, and feels genuinelyfulfilled by the work that you
do.
Just like I've done and Icontinue to do.
And the real key to success inthe acting world is not lucky,
it's this three-part system thatyou can repeat over and over.
unknown (17:45):
Are you ready for it?
SPEAKER_02 (17:47):
The first thing, step one, is nervous system
regulation.
AKA preparing your body forsuccess.
Number two is subconsciousreprogramming, aka mindset.
And number three is arepetition.
Moving forward, our podcasttopics are going to revolve more
(18:07):
around how you can become a moreregulated person so you can
become a more regulated actor.
Because regulated actors,they're the ones who book real
meaningful acting work.
SPEAKER_00 (18:18):
And because I love my little podcast babies, you
guys are my little podcastbabies and my little podcast
friends, and oh, I love you somuch.
SPEAKER_02 (18:27):
At the end of each podcast episode, I'm gonna give
you one actionable tip that youcan implement this week to help
your acting career glow up.
So here's your actionable tipthat you can implement this week
to help your acting career glowup.
Self-care slash rest.
I want you to come up with threeways that you can regulate your
(18:49):
nervous system through self-careslash rest.
Rest.
Our nervous systems don't workproperly if we don't rest.
And I know what you're thinking.
You're thinking, Meg, I don'thave time to rest.
SPEAKER_00 (19:02):
I'm hustling to make my dream come true.
And I'm like, I see you, babe.
I see you, and I hear you.
And I just spent the last 10years doing the same thing, too.
I get it.
SPEAKER_02 (19:12):
But what I found and what science tells us, let's not
discount the science here.
You're gonna get your bestinspiration when you're
relaxing.
Yeah, that's when your bestideas are gonna come.
Because you're not busy, yourmind's not busy working.
But the science tells us yourbody has a chance to digest
because when you're in fight orflight, you actually can't
(19:33):
digest your food.
That's why they call it rest anddigest.
And if you feel like you mightbe chronically in fight or
flight like I was, you mightalso notice that you struggle
with your weight.
And that's likely because yourbody never has the opportunity
to digest because you're infight or flight.
The science also tells us thatyou'll sleep better.
So if you're a chronic fight orflighter and you struggle with
(19:54):
insomnia, this is youropportunity to find some
activities that will help yourest before you rest, which will
help you sleep better.
And the science tells us thatemotionally rest helps you make
better decisions and respondrather than react and helps you
stay grounded.
All things that are superimportant, not only for your
(20:16):
acting career, but for yourlife.
And then last but not least,rest boosts resilience.
And for actors, that meansbetter audition presence, less
burnout from long hours,stronger boundaries and
challenging set situations, andsustained creativity, which is
what we all want, right?
(20:37):
So I'm here to remind you ifyou're a little hustling queen
like I was, that rest is anoptional for your nervous
system, for your creativeenergy, for your acting career.
It's a foundational tool.
Okay.
When you build rest into yourrhythm, it gives your body and
your nervous system the chanceto regulate, recover, and show
(20:59):
up stronger for the nextaudition.
And while we're here, let megive you a little sprinkle, a
little dose of options you coulddo for rest.
Yeah, I'm looking them up.
Don't judge me.
And guys, this is notcomplicated.
I'm just uh literally Google AIing this.
Let's see here.
Here's your inspo list foractivities that you can add into
(21:21):
your routineful rest, girl.
Okay.
Take a warm long bath with Epsomsalts and essential oils.
I do this every once in a while.
It's fantastic.
Nap or simply rest in a cozyblanket.
Amazing.
Enjoy a warm drink, like a cupof coffee or an herbal tea.
Mmm.
(21:41):
Burn a candle in the room thatyou're in with this calming
scent.
You could do an at-home spatreatment with a face mask or a
little manicure.
That sounds fun.
You could journal, read a book,sit outside and just listen and
observe and people watch yoursurroundings.
You could do a walkingmeditation.
You could color or draw orpaint, do some gentle stretching
(22:05):
or some restorative yoga, whichis very fun.
Listen to music, dance aroundyour house.
That's not very restful, GoogleAI.
Unless you find that restful,then do it.
Maybe you want like to gardenand you want to nurture your
plants and prune your plants.
That's a great restful activity.
You could also listen to yourfavorite podcast, Haha, The Glow
(22:26):
Up Year by Megan Salisbury.
And journal.
You could try journaling.
Write down your your thoughtsand your feelings.
Practice breathing ormeditation.
I love doing meditation.
I do that daily.
So now you have no excuses.
You can pick from the list.
Pretty much did your homeworkfor you.
Or you can find some more thingsthrough Googling or any other
(22:48):
form of finding out things thatyou use.
Yes, Megan, those are words.
And before you go, I'll sharewith you my restful activities.
I, like I said, I like to do aspa day.
And I'll take a bath, I'll putcandles in the bathroom, I'll
put some um of like the foamingbubble bath in the bath, I'll
(23:08):
turn the lights off so it's darkand all candly, and then when I
get out of the tub, I'll do aface mask and a couple different
well, I do a couple of differentface masks, but I'll do some
face mask and really like prepmy skin, and that helps me feel
like I got some relaxing andenjoyment in.
I also do like to do my nailsand manicure as well at home.
I like to honestly just playwith my dog.
(23:31):
Go outside with um, we have likea chucket and just throw and
watch him like run around theyard and throw a ball back and
forth with him.
I do a meditation almost everysingle day that's about 15-20
minutes long in the evening,helps me my mind relax and calm
down before I'm going to bed.
And honestly, I'm a person whoreally enjoys like physical
(23:54):
snuggles and contact.
And so I'll spend some time likesnuggling with my husband if I
feel like I need something likerestful but restorative in a
way.
And I also do love yoga too,especially restorative yoga.
It's literally no effort, y'all.
It's like pretty much sleepingon the floor on a mat.
SPEAKER_01 (24:14):
I am unhinged today, y'all.
I feel unhinged.
unknown (24:18):
Alright.
SPEAKER_01 (24:20):
I think I'm concluding this episode of the
podcast.
I hope that you're excited aboutthe future and the way forward
that we're going and um this newdirection.
And I'm so excited, guys.
SPEAKER_02 (24:32):
I'm excited to get out there to help you to really
like help you find the path inthe direction that you want to
go and help you feel morefulfilled in your career so long
in my life that I just felt sounfulfilled in my acting career,
and I really just had to reframewhat I felt like was success.
(24:55):
That changed my entire outlookon this career, and I just am so
thankful and grateful for theopportunity to get to do
something that I love, and alsoadjacently get to help people do
something that I love.
I hope you guys have a wonderfulrest of your day.
It was great talking with youtoday, and keep killing it.
(25:19):
Keep glowing up, y'all.
We'll see you in the next one.
That's a wrap on today's episodeof the glow up year.
Thanks for hanging out with me.
I love having you along for theride.
We're just getting started, andyour glow-up is only getting
brighter.
If you felt inspired today, hitsubscribe or leave a quick
(25:43):
review or share this episodewith another fellow dreamer in
your circle.
If you want more support, youcan work with me one-on-one as
your career mindset coach.
I'll help you clear out thosemental blocks, find balance, and
take some bold steps towardsyour career goals.
You'll find all the details towork with me in the show notes.
And of course, come hang outwith me on Instagram or TikTok
(26:07):
at MegSallsVerry Creative formore behind the scenes and pep
talk and just fun.
Remember, your glow-up isunfolding one bold move at a
time.
Keep going, keep dreamingbigger, and I'll catch you on
the next one.
And the real key to success in the acting world is
not luck.
It's this three-part system thatyou can repeat over and over.
unknown (00:08):
Are you ready for it?
SPEAKER_00 (00:10):
The first thing, step one, it's a little bit
more.
SPEAKER_02 (00:26):
Welcome back to the I'm Matt, actress, model, and
mindset coach for actors.
Think of me as yourbehind-the-scenes bestie for
chasing dreams, surviving plottwists, and building something
big.
Here we talk about it all.
(00:46):
Audition, photo shoots, mindsetchips, script, prep, and the
career curveballs that nobodyprepares you for.
I'll share the highs and thehard lessons in real time
because growing in this industryisn't always pretty, but it's
always worth it.
If you're ready to ditchself-sabotage, step into your
confidence and build the careerand mindset you've been dreaming
(01:10):
of.
Grab your favorite drink, getcozy, and let's dive in.
Hey y'all, and welcome back toanother episode of The Glow Up
Year.
We have some cool things instore today, so I'm excited to
like hop right in and getstarted.
But before we do, I legit Icannot believe that I forgot to
(01:32):
tell you guys this.
But I booked three jobs inOctober.
Woohoo! Yeah.
And it totally slipped my mindon the Halloween episode, so I
figured I'd tell you guys today.
But I'll give you like a quickrecap on the three, and then
we're gonna kind of start movinginto a new direction with the
podcast, which I'm very, veryexcited about.
(01:54):
But before we do, let's talkabout these three jobs.
I booked a highway PSA for NewHampshire, which was like a do
not drink and drive style umcommercial, which was really
very fun.
There was this huge LED screen.
I've been in these rooms beforewhen I've worked with the big
screens when I've worked in crewjobs, and I've always kind of
(02:15):
dreamed of being an actor infront of a big like LED screen,
and it was very, very cool.
I was sitting in the car,supposedly driving, but really
the screen was just movingaround me, which was very crazy
and weird, but also very fun andnice and exciting.
So that was great.
Also booked a commercial forManchester Airport, which is
(02:39):
also New Hampshire.
Apparently, I'm the new NewHampshire spokesperson, guys.
I don't know.
I don't know what's up, but Igot to be a spouse, I was a wife
for this commercial, which wasvery fun.
But the whole crew was so sogreat, and that was a fun day.
I had one line, and it was oneof those like repetition
commercials.
So they say the same line overand over again.
(02:59):
So I got to say kind of this thetagline multiple times, which is
really fun.
Um, and then my last job was forGoogle Ooh Fancy.
And that commercial was alsoironically in New Hampshire, or
maybe it was NAS.
I can't remember, guys.
I'm sorry.
And I think this is like whatevery actor dreams of is like
(03:22):
getting to lay in bed and getpaid for them to film you laying
in bed.
Have you ever seen those sleepcommercials where people are
just like quietly sleeping in abed and they're getting filmed
and they're gonna pay for that?
Well, that was the epitome ofthis shoe, and it was fantastic
and fun, and also another greatcrew and another great set.
(03:45):
But the meat of today's episodeis gonna be my origin story
because I have some excitingnews to announce at the end of
the story, and I kind of wantyou to see like the arc that
let's say the character arc forthe sake of this, but I want you
to kind of see the arc of myjourney and how my journey can
influence your journey and helpyou grow as an actor and a
(04:07):
creative as well.
So I wanted to start today bytelling you guys how I actually
got into acting and kind of hearfrom you too.
How did you get into acting?
Comment below and let me know.
I started acting when I waslittle, little four, but really
started acting in high schooland middle school was when I
started getting into like themusical theater and the plays
(04:30):
that we had every year.
My school put on two each year,and I really think that deep
down I was so called to actingand so called to like this kind
of creative journey was in theform of escapism.
So I really started acting justto escape my reality because you
(04:52):
know things were turbulent athome, it wasn't always great,
and it actually felt really niceto not have to be me for a
little bit.
And I think that was kind oflike the beginning way of how I
kind of coped with my childhoodtrauma and how I coped just in
general, getting throughday-to-day.
And acting really gave me thisplace where I could just be
(05:13):
somebody else and kind of forgetabout my problems and focus my
energy on something that waspositive and good.
So that's how my journey really,really started was kind of out
of this like escapism world.
And then fast forward, I go toschool for acting, right?
I graduate from high school andI'm like, well, there's nothing
else I can imagine doing in myentire life.
(05:34):
I've always kind of felt likeI've been called to do this, so
I might as well stick with it.
So I went to college for acting,and I did four years, two in New
York and two in LA.
And and those years were okay.
I really struggled throughcollege just kind of
emotionally.
I was still really developing mysense of identity and all of
those things through college.
So it was a little rough, but wego through college, we graduate,
(05:57):
and I start my acting career,right?
And when I say I start my actingcareer, I was living in LA, and
so I was booking background workand extra work and doing
audience jobs.
And for those of you who don'tknow, they usually pay people to
fill the seats in a studioaudience like Ellen or Steve
Harvey or any of those types ofshows, uh, game shows, they
(06:19):
usually have to pay people tofill in the seats that they
don't sell.
So I would get paid to go dothose jobs, and that's how I was
primarily making my income was100% on extra work, background
work, and doing these audiencegigs here and there.
And then all of a sudden, thepandemic hits.
Bom, bum bomb bum.
(06:41):
And all of the entertainmentbusiness work that I was doing
was shut down.
Obviously, everybody knowspandemic starts in March.
By September, nothing hashappened.
I haven't worked a day, there'sno opportunities, the COVID
restrictions are really bad, andhaving to get the thing stuck up
your nose and all of the thingswas very, very complicated and
(07:02):
complex to get back into.
And so I make the hard decision.
We make the hard decision, meand my husband, that we're gonna
move back home to Maine.
Moving back home wasbittersweet.
Part of me was uh, you know, alittle stressed about not having
as much opportunity, and part ofme was kind of determined to
find opportunities at home andin my market.
(07:25):
I just read The ProximityPrinciple, which I can't
remember the author's name ofit, but he was talking about how
there's always opportunitywithin our zip code that we're
just not even aware of.
And so I was really trying totake that mindset of finding
some opportunities at home, butit was a different market.
I went from the acting world tocommercial land.
(07:47):
Those are two very differenttypes and styles of acting.
And so I really felt like I wasstarting all over again.
And I think that's a typicalmindset thing that actors
struggle with in general, isjust feeling like you're
starting from scratch.
When we'll talk about thislater, when in reality you're
(08:08):
not starting from scratch, yourjourney has led you up to this
point.
But I felt like I wasstruggling, and I felt like I
was starting all over again andtrying to network and make
contacts and looking for all myopportunities on backstage and
on casting sites and reallytrying to figure out how I can
(08:30):
make this career work.
And I remember feeling like Iwas just like falling farther
and farther behind in my career.
I was really depressed when Icouldn't get any opportunities
or when I was auditioning andnever hearing anything back, the
rejection kind of overload.
I was anxious about is thereever gonna be an opportunity
(08:53):
again for me?
Like, is this just the end of myacting road?
I was worried, which I thinkties into, you know, anxiousness
and probably honestly a littlebit depressed too, because I
went from this market that feltlike it was thriving to a market
that I couldn't didn't know howto function in.
And I spent a lot of timehustling and overworking myself
(09:17):
and feeling overwhelmed becauseI felt like, and this was
definitely a limiting beliefthat I had is the harder I
hustled, the more opportunityand the more chances I would
have.
And I really tried, I felt likeeverything to fix these feelings
that I was having and to fix orsolve my career and start
bringing more opportunities.
(09:38):
I I tried every castingsubscription that was available
in my area that made sense forme.
I had this book called TheChubbuck Method, which I really
loved, and I was just endlesslykind of studying this for scene
study and trying to like stay inpractice without having the
opportunity to really practice.
(09:58):
I mean, I carried this bookeverywhere to me.
It was in work.
It was like I had this bookeverywhere, and I was listening
to it on audiobook too.
I was really just endlessstudying, which wasn't helping.
I tried these workshops that Iwould pay money for that like
promised overnight success andnothing ever happened.
I was reading self-help bookslike I was mad trying to figure
(10:22):
out what was wrong with me andwhat was wrong with my career
that I couldn't make this work.
While simultaneously doing allof these things, I was also in
therapy.
And while therapy was helpful, Ijust I spent so much time
explaining to my therapist likethe intricate details of this
industry so that she couldunderstand my position.
(10:44):
And it felt like it was reallyjust distracting to the session.
Long story short, nothingworked.
And every time I got anotherrejection or somebody didn't
respond to a self-tape that Isent in, I really started to
wonder maybe I'm just not goodenough, or maybe this career,
(11:05):
maybe it's just not for me.
And my rock bottom was in 2022when I realized that my husband
and I we were so poor that wecouldn't live together in our
first year of marriage becausewe just couldn't financially
make it work.
We were barely, barely makingends.
(11:26):
Me and I went and I lived sograciously with my mother-in-law
for a year so that we could saveup money while my husband lived
with our brother-in-law so hecould be closer to work.
And the whole time I was justsitting there praying and like
begging the universe, thinking,just one acting job could change
(11:48):
my whole situation, my wholelife.
One job on backstage that is 10grand could change my entire
situation.
But sitting there, like hopingand praying and dreaming and
wishing, I realized that thiswasn't the life that I wanted.
I realized I didn't want to sitat home and be sitting there
(12:10):
dreaming and wishing.
I wanted some sort of action tohappen.
And I made the decision that Iwas at this crossroads.
I could really believe in myselfand I could go for it full
force, no holding back, or Icould quit and decide this was
it.
And let all this pastprogramming in my brain rule my
(12:32):
life.
And if you couldn't tell, Ichose to go for it.
As I started that journey, whatI started to realize was that my
skills weren't the problem.
It was my mindset.
It was these stories that I kepttelling myself in my head that
were keeping me stuck.
(12:52):
And a lot of the time, thosestories I was telling myself
weren't even true or based infact.
And I had never looked at mycareer or my life from this
angle.
So I continued working with mytherapist, and she was great.
She helped me spot these blocksthat I couldn't see alone.
But like I said, I had to do somuch explaining about the
(13:13):
industry that it just wasn'tquite the fit.
And that's when I thought I wishthat I had somebody who
understood both mindset and theshifts that I wanted to take in
my brain, as well as acting andthis whole life and this whole
career and this whole industry,and someone who could coach me
in like the resiliency you needwith this really complex
(13:35):
industry environment that I wasin.
So, circling back around,working with a therapist, I
started doing the work.
The first thing that I did was Istarted reprogramming my
mindset, getting rid of thoseold thoughts that weren't
serving me anymore, andreintroducing these new thoughts
that were.
And I like to think about thisas like getting rid of the
(13:57):
things that I don't want tobelieve anymore and adding the
things in that I do want tobelieve.
And then this crazy thinghappened.
All of a sudden, I was startingto take like this inspired
action I was getting naturallyinstead of spinning my wheels,
and I got signed with my firstagent.
And then I started to feel like,well, I now I have access to
(14:19):
these life-changing jobs, thejobs that could pay me 10k in
one sitting.
So then I decided, okay, well,this mindset thing is working,
so how can I support it?
So, along with continuing todevelop my mindset, I started
working on regulating my nervoussystem because I realized that I
was in this chronic state offight or flight, which meant
(14:39):
that my mind and my body werealways like revving like a car,
but the car stuck with like theemergency brake-on and park.
And so I was like burning allthis energy, but not actually
ever moving forward.
And as soon as I startedregulating my nervous system on
a regular basis and continuingworking on my mindset, before I
knew it, I was booking real paidacting work with my agency.
(15:02):
And then I was like, heck, I'lltake inspired action and I'll
submit to a couple otheragencies.
All of a sudden I was signedwith another agent and then
another agent.
And eventually I wasn't evenreally looking for jobs, but
they were just finding me.
Like my agent would reach outand say, These people want to
book you on this gig.
I never even auditioned.
And that's when my brain madethis connection that if I could
(15:26):
create this transformationwithin myself, then I could
definitely help other actors dothe same thing, but faster than
I did because my process was soslow and it took me so long.
Because I was having to likefind and spot my own things
versus like being able to havesomebody to help you spot your
blocks.
And that's when I decided, youknow, I could really make a
(15:47):
difference if I became a mindsetcoach for actors.
So I went to school, y'all, andI got my certificate and
coaching.
SPEAKER_00 (15:55):
And I actually just graduated.
Yeah, go Megan.
We're making our dreams cometrue.
SPEAKER_02 (16:03):
So I'm actually qualified now to help you.
And this is the thing I believethat your acting career, your
glow-up, it shouldn't takeforever.
And with the right tools and theright support, it can happen way
faster than you think.
And on top of that, we have thisreally unique opportunity here
(16:23):
to change the wholeentertainment industry.
And here's what I mean The morewe know ourselves, our triggers,
our nervous systems, ourprogramming, our boundaries, our
bodies, the better equipped weare to advocate for ourselves on
set.
(16:44):
And the more we advocate forourselves on set, the more the
industry will naturally evolvewith us.
And so, in the most ultimateglow-up and reveal of all, I
told you guys in the lastepisode of this podcast that
this podcast is gonna shift abit.
And while I'm still gonna sharemy journey and my wins along the
(17:05):
way and all of the amazingthings that I'm learning in real
time, this podcast is gonnastart to be geared more towards
you because I wanna help you.
I wanna help you go from feelingbehind in your acting career and
burned out and overwhelmed andsecond-guessing your worth to
becoming the actor who bookswith confidence, builds
(17:28):
momentum, and feels genuinelyfulfilled by the work that you
do.
Just like I've done and Icontinue to do.
And the real key to success inthe acting world is not lucky,
it's this three-part system thatyou can repeat over and over.
unknown (17:45):
Are you ready for it?
SPEAKER_02 (17:47):
The first thing, step one, is nervous system
regulation.
AKA preparing your body forsuccess.
Number two is subconsciousreprogramming, aka mindset.
And number three is arepetition.
Moving forward, our podcasttopics are going to revolve more
(18:07):
around how you can become a moreregulated person so you can
become a more regulated actor.
Because regulated actors,they're the ones who book real
meaningful acting work.
SPEAKER_00 (18:18):
And because I love my little podcast babies, you
guys are my little podcastbabies and my little podcast
friends, and oh, I love you somuch.
SPEAKER_02 (18:27):
At the end of each podcast episode, I'm gonna give
you one actionable tip that youcan implement this week to help
your acting career glow up.
So here's your actionable tipthat you can implement this week
to help your acting career glowup.
Self-care slash rest.
I want you to come up with threeways that you can regulate your
(18:49):
nervous system through self-careslash rest.
Rest.
Our nervous systems don't workproperly if we don't rest.
And I know what you're thinking.
You're thinking, Meg, I don'thave time to rest.
SPEAKER_00 (19:02):
I'm hustling to make my dream come true.
And I'm like, I see you, babe.
I see you, and I hear you.
And I just spent the last 10years doing the same thing, too.
I get it.
SPEAKER_02 (19:12):
But what I found and what science tells us, let's not
discount the science here.
You're gonna get your bestinspiration when you're
relaxing.
Yeah, that's when your bestideas are gonna come.
Because you're not busy, yourmind's not busy working.
But the science tells us yourbody has a chance to digest
because when you're in fight orflight, you actually can't
(19:33):
digest your food.
That's why they call it rest anddigest.
And if you feel like you mightbe chronically in fight or
flight like I was, you mightalso notice that you struggle
with your weight.
And that's likely because yourbody never has the opportunity
to digest because you're infight or flight.
The science also tells us thatyou'll sleep better.
So if you're a chronic fight orflighter and you struggle with
(19:54):
insomnia, this is youropportunity to find some
activities that will help yourest before you rest, which will
help you sleep better.
And the science tells us thatemotionally rest helps you make
better decisions and respondrather than react and helps you
stay grounded.
All things that are superimportant, not only for your
(20:16):
acting career, but for yourlife.
And then last but not least,rest boosts resilience.
And for actors, that meansbetter audition presence, less
burnout from long hours,stronger boundaries and
challenging set situations, andsustained creativity, which is
what we all want, right?
(20:37):
So I'm here to remind you ifyou're a little hustling queen
like I was, that rest is anoptional for your nervous
system, for your creativeenergy, for your acting career.
It's a foundational tool.
Okay.
When you build rest into yourrhythm, it gives your body and
your nervous system the chanceto regulate, recover, and show
(20:59):
up stronger for the nextaudition.
And while we're here, let megive you a little sprinkle, a
little dose of options you coulddo for rest.
Yeah, I'm looking them up.
Don't judge me.
And guys, this is notcomplicated.
I'm just uh literally Google AIing this.
Let's see here.
Here's your inspo list foractivities that you can add into
(21:21):
your routineful rest, girl.
Okay.
Take a warm long bath with Epsomsalts and essential oils.
I do this every once in a while.
It's fantastic.
Nap or simply rest in a cozyblanket.
Amazing.
Enjoy a warm drink, like a cupof coffee or an herbal tea.
Mmm.
(21:41):
Burn a candle in the room thatyou're in with this calming
scent.
You could do an at-home spatreatment with a face mask or a
little manicure.
That sounds fun.
You could journal, read a book,sit outside and just listen and
observe and people watch yoursurroundings.
You could do a walkingmeditation.
You could color or draw orpaint, do some gentle stretching
(22:05):
or some restorative yoga, whichis very fun.
Listen to music, dance aroundyour house.
That's not very restful, GoogleAI.
Unless you find that restful,then do it.
Maybe you want like to gardenand you want to nurture your
plants and prune your plants.
That's a great restful activity.
You could also listen to yourfavorite podcast, Haha, The Glow
(22:26):
Up Year by Megan Salisbury.
And journal.
You could try journaling.
Write down your your thoughtsand your feelings.
Practice breathing ormeditation.
I love doing meditation.
I do that daily.
So now you have no excuses.
You can pick from the list.
Pretty much did your homeworkfor you.
Or you can find some more thingsthrough Googling or any other
(22:48):
form of finding out things thatyou use.
Yes, Megan, those are words.
And before you go, I'll sharewith you my restful activities.
I, like I said, I like to do aspa day.
And I'll take a bath, I'll putcandles in the bathroom, I'll
put some um of like the foamingbubble bath in the bath, I'll
(23:08):
turn the lights off so it's darkand all candly, and then when I
get out of the tub, I'll do aface mask and a couple different
well, I do a couple of differentface masks, but I'll do some
face mask and really like prepmy skin, and that helps me feel
like I got some relaxing andenjoyment in.
I also do like to do my nailsand manicure as well at home.
I like to honestly just playwith my dog.
(23:31):
Go outside with um, we have likea chucket and just throw and
watch him like run around theyard and throw a ball back and
forth with him.
I do a meditation almost everysingle day that's about 15-20
minutes long in the evening,helps me my mind relax and calm
down before I'm going to bed.
And honestly, I'm a person whoreally enjoys like physical
(23:54):
snuggles and contact.
And so I'll spend some time likesnuggling with my husband if I
feel like I need something likerestful but restorative in a
way.
And I also do love yoga too,especially restorative yoga.
It's literally no effort, y'all.
It's like pretty much sleepingon the floor on a mat.
SPEAKER_01 (24:14):
I am unhinged today, y'all.
I feel unhinged.
unknown (24:18):
Alright.
SPEAKER_01 (24:20):
I think I'm concluding this episode of the
podcast.
I hope that you're excited aboutthe future and the way forward
that we're going and um this newdirection.
And I'm so excited, guys.
SPEAKER_02 (24:32):
I'm excited to get out there to help you to really
like help you find the path inthe direction that you want to
go and help you feel morefulfilled in your career so long
in my life that I just felt sounfulfilled in my acting career,
and I really just had to reframewhat I felt like was success.
(24:55):
That changed my entire outlookon this career, and I just am so
thankful and grateful for theopportunity to get to do
something that I love, and alsoadjacently get to help people do
something that I love.
I hope you guys have a wonderfulrest of your day.
It was great talking with youtoday, and keep killing it.
(25:19):
Keep glowing up, y'all.
We'll see you in the next one.
That's a wrap on today's episodeof the glow up year.
Thanks for hanging out with me.
I love having you along for theride.
We're just getting started, andyour glow-up is only getting
brighter.
If you felt inspired today, hitsubscribe or leave a quick
(25:43):
review or share this episodewith another fellow dreamer in
your circle.
If you want more support, youcan work with me one-on-one as
your career mindset coach.
I'll help you clear out thosemental blocks, find balance, and
take some bold steps towardsyour career goals.
You'll find all the details towork with me in the show notes.
And of course, come hang outwith me on Instagram or TikTok
(26:07):
at MegSallsVerry Creative formore behind the scenes and pep
talk and just fun.
Remember, your glow-up isunfolding one bold move at a
time.
Keep going, keep dreamingbigger, and I'll catch you on
the next one.
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