Entitlement: Belief that one is deserving of or entitled to certain privileges.
Deserving: To earn by service; to be worthy of.
Is there a difference to you? To me, there is a big one. I happen to know of too many self proclaimed "artists" (and when I say artists I mean in any aspect be it actor, singer, danger, video maker, etc.) who suffer from the delusion of entitlement. They truly believe that they are owed the role, work or fame. More often than not they haven't worked for it or worked on their craft and then are shocked when they don't get it. First of all...life ain't fair. And showbiz is one screwy business. So much of the time, there is absolutely no rhyme or reason to it. The true reasons half the time for why someone is cast over than another would blow your mind. It's one thing to be confident, but come on. Know your limits, know your type and know that nobody is better than another and you're not owed more than the joe schmo standing next to you.
What I've been thinking about lately, is what it means to feel like you deserve something. To me, feeling like you DESERVE it means you believe in yourself and are in a place where you are open to accept the success that comes your way. You're working hard, you're paying your dues, you're getting to a point where you can pick and chose a bit more...and do the kind of art you chose to, because you're in a place where you, gulp, deserve it. You're not in the category of those sitting around with their thumb up their bum waiting for their big break to knock on their door. How can you have that sense of entitlement when you're not even helping yourself? Don't you want to have every advantage? Live up to your fullest potential?
Stay in "performance ready shape", meaning be fucking proactive. Create your own art and make your own name for yourself. Be your own boss in between other opportunities. Be your best at what you do and what you can offer and if you're living up to that, then yes. You deserve it.
I say this because I have no patience or sympathy for people who waste their time and talents but suffer from 'entitlement'. Oh well. That's one less person to compete with.
We absolutely have the power to make anything we want happen. I believe that 100%.
xoxo
Deena Marie Manzanares
That's a hard lesson to learn. Especially for a chronic narcissist like me. Thank you for your thoughts on this subject. It rings very true. ;-)
ReplyDeletethat word blow my mind, you have all reason 100%. Thanks fot that!
ReplyDeleteI think it's very easy to stay away from the dangerous path of entitlement. Always remember that you are not the center of the universe, and always pledge to work as hard as you possibly can. One cannot underestimate the benefit of hard, directed effort in your field.
ReplyDeleteThis reminds me of an interview I read from Icelander Agusta Eva Erlensdottir.
ReplyDeleteIceland is pretty huge with musicians and artists in general.
In the interview she talked in some length about how she cringes (paraphrasing here) at the large amount of artists who just want to sit around and wait for the work to come to them.
Very little comes from very little.
Very much come from very much.
This is so true !
ReplyDeleteI know many people that just sit all day and do nothing and wait for something FANTASTIC to happen ...
It's ridiculous !
Good topic Deena !