A few weeks back I appeared as a guest on the fabulous Marc Scott's VOpreneur podcast talking about the perils of being what I call the 'Perpetual Workshop Attendee'
You can listen to the full podcast here which is full of useful tips from Marc and other industry pros, but I isolated my section for you below:
Obviously continued professional development and training is essential for even the most seasoned performer, but sometimes we use workshops as a crutch or for instant gratification. At some point you need to make your investment back!
The real secret to success won't be found in a workshop, it will be the cumulative effect of lots of small things you have done, usually the boring things like researching potential clients, networking, blogging, emailing loads of prospects, usually with no reply, and that little bit of luck.
And of course the best way to learn is by actually doing rather than waiting for someone to recognize your talents. I have this little plaque in my studio that reminds me "You Create Your Own Opportunities"...because it's true. Just like Sylvester Stallone wrote the film Rocky. He created the role he wanted to play and would probably never get cast as if he waited...and what are we on now? Rocky 12?
I can't imagine Sylvester attended endless workshops on how to write a successful film franchise, he just went out and did it! I will say this though, he liked a good training montage. So go out there and be more Balboa!