In this episode of the Acting Business Bootcamp Podcast, I sit down with James Robbins to talk about listening to your inner voice, building resilience, and what happens when you stop ignoring the signals that something needs to change.

James shares stories from his life as a climber and leadership coach, including what he's learned from climbing mountains, facing fear, and doing hard things repeatedly. We talk about burnout, discernment, anxiety, and how these lessons apply directly to actors navigating uncertainty in their careers.

This episode is about courage, self-trust, and staying engaged in your acting career even when the path forward feels uncomfortable or unclear.

James Robbins is an international keynote speaker, leadership advisor, and author of Nine Minutes on Monday and The Call to Climb. He helps people uncover purpose, build resilience, and lead with clarity and heart. His work has inspired leaders and teams around the world, blending storytelling with practical strategies for growth.

James shared a phrase in this conversation that stayed with me: most of us ignore our appointment with our soul.

He talked about how this often shows up when everything looks fine on the outside, but internally something feels off. You might have stability, validation, or a life that makes sense to other people, yet still feel restless or disengaged.

Ignoring that inner voice does not make it disappear. Over time, it usually leads to exhaustion or burnout. That deadness is often the signal, not the problem.

A major theme of this episode is the value of doing hard things on purpose.

James described climbing at high altitude and how mountains wear you down mentally before they wear you down physically. Your mind wants to quit long before your body actually needs to.

The more experience you have doing hard things, the better your judgment becomes. You develop discernment. You learn when to keep going and when turning back is actually the wiser choice.

This applies directly to acting. Staying in the work long enough builds perspective. You stop reacting to fear and start responding from experience.

One of the most powerful lessons James shared is that the mind gives up before the body does.

On the mountain, this is obvious. In acting careers, it's quieter. It shows up as procrastination, self-doubt, or the story that nothing is happening.

Learning to recognize when fear is mental rather than physical allows you to keep moving forward without forcing yourself into burnout.

James talked about the idea of creating your own weather, choosing an elevated emotional state instead of reacting to circumstances.

Rather than letting fear, stress, or frustration dictate your day, you learn to orient toward peace, purpose, confidence, and clarity. That internal state changes how you make decisions and how you show up to your work.

For actors, this means grounding yourself internally before auditions, self-tapes, and long stretches of waiting.

A recurring theme in this episode is how difficult it is for people to answer the question, what do you really want?

Often, it's not confusion. It's fear. Wanting something fully means risking judgment, failure, or change.

Ignoring that question keeps you stuck in noise. Slowing down enough to listen gives you direction.

James's experiences inspired his book Call to Climb, a fable about answering the deeper call in your life when you've been avoiding it.

We've included links in the show notes if you want to learn more about his work or pick up a copy of the book.

This episode connects closely with the work I do in my time management workshop.

We talk about how burnout often comes from misalignment. When your days don't reflect what you actually want, frustration builds.

I want to talk about something we reference a lot in acting, but usually only vaguely.

Self-perception.

It sits at the center of almost every actor's journey. It shapes how you talk about yourself, who you reach out to, what rooms you think you belong in, and how far you let yourself go.

Most of the time, we don't even notice it happening.

I was thinking about 10 Things I Hate About You and that line about being overwhelmed and underwhelmed, and asking if you can ever just be whelmed.

It made me think about actors.

We know we can underestimate ourselves.
We know we can overestimate ourselves.

Both are a problem.

But what about just estimating ourselves accurately?

Because everything depends on how we see ourselves.

This is one of the most common patterns I see.

It sounds like:

• I'll wait until I'm better

• I just need one more class

• I'll reach out when I've booked something bigger

• Agents like that would never sign someone like me

I recently spoke with an actor who told me they wouldn't reach out to a top agent because they didn't think someone "like them" could ever be with an agent like that.

That belief is a cage.

When you underestimate yourself, you pre-reject yourself.
You become your own no.
Your own locked door.

You cannot build a career while actively shrinking inside of it.

Agents don't sign the perfectly ready actor.
They sign the clear actor.
The specific actor who understands what they bring to the table and how they fit a roster.

Most of the time, the only person who believes you don't belong is you.

The pendulum can swing the other way.

Overestimation sounds like:

• I don't need more training

• My demo is fine

• I'll just wing it

• I already know what I'm doing

That's just as dangerous.

Overestimation blinds you to growth. And growth is essential in this industry.

One extreme keeps you small.
The other makes you sloppy.

Both keep you stuck.

The middle ground is grounded confidence.

Confidence that says:

• I belong here

• And I'm still sharpening my craft

That's where momentum lives.

When actors don't reach out, it's usually not logic.

It's fear.

Fear of rejection.
Fear of being seen.
Fear of success.

But self-abandonment hurts more than rejection.

When you don't give yourself a chance, you reject your future before it has a chance to recognize you.

You say no to rooms that haven't even had the opportunity to say yes.

Instead of asking, am I good enough for that agent,

Ask, do my materials and brand match what that agent represents?

This isn't about worth.
It's about alignment.

You might not be ready for a specific agent yet, and that's okay.

That doesn't mean you're not talented.
It usually means your materials, brand clarity, or positioning need work.

That's strategy.
And strategy is learnable.

Identify one agent, director, or producer you've labeled as "out of your league."

Then ask yourself what actual evidence proves that.

Most of the time, there is none.

And if there's no evidence, you're not protecting yourself.

You're stalling your life.

Actors who move forward act before they feel ready.

Ready is a choice.

You belong in the room.
But you still have to walk through the door.

If this episode brought something up for you and you want to share it, you can always email me at mandy@actingbusinessbootcamp.com. I love hearing where things clicked and where things still feel sticky.

And if you want to know when the next class or training is coming up, keep an eye on your inbox. There's more support on the way.