I like working with actors. I understand where they are coming from because I was one myself. I know how difficult it is to stay motivated with so much rejection. Not only does an actor have to deal with their own doubt, but also the rejection from others. There are times when the word ‘no’ is all they hear. Because of this, many actors never fully enmesh themselves in their career. They may start off strong but opt out for something safer when things get tough. It takes discipline to pursue an acting career.

Over the years I’ve talked with many actors about their career. Some are still auditioning and others have long ago left the business. I recently talked with my client Denise Woelpern about her Hollywood story. I first noticed a slight accent and asked where she was from. She smiled and said she grew up in small town called Jever, (close to the Baltic Sea) in northern Germany. As a kid she would organize theater skits with her friends for all the neighbors on the block. She knew back then it was something that she wanted to do. But the practicality of life took over in time. She was told over and over again that acting is not something that you can do as a career- only pursue as a hobby.

Ignoring her feelings she went off to school and got a degree in business and ended up working for one of the biggest German companies. But as life had it she was transferred to an office in Los Angeles.

Her passion for acting never went away. She eventually made the decision that she was going to get back into acting and do what she loved the most. She quit her day job, got her headshots done and started auditioning again. In just a short time she got cast in a German Television show that starts filming this year. She couldn’t be happier.

There are so many stories that are similar to Denise’s. We can never really run away from our passions. In Denise’s case she was not denied even if she had to move here from another country.