C Do we really know ourselves as we should? 

When it comes to discovering our acting talents and what roles we can take on, it’s easy to fall prey to what we believe works or we’re good at. 

Whether it’s stage performance, accents or physical acting how can we gauge what we’re honestly good at, know what our strengths and weaknesses are, and how can we uncover those hidden gems? 

Most actors who start off in their career will most probably already have an idea of what they’re good at. But the truth of the matter is, we may be surprised by how much we don’t know about ourselves.

So, here is a list of five ways of which can help you discover your key strengths when it comes to acting. 

These can point you in the right direction, and perhaps reveal what you should concentrate on most as an actor. 

1. What sort of environment did you grow up in? You were born  with a natural set of competencies and grew up in an environment that helped create your mental map. This assisted you in nurturing your skills, which eventually developed into interests and curiosities toward certain ideas. Don’t ignore these. Remind yourself what you grew up around and what you enjoyed doing as a youngster.

2. What have you been doing for the last ten years? What hobbies or habits have you nurtured in the last decade? Write down what you did in the last several years that most appealed to your senses. It doesn’t necessarily have to do with work; it could be more to do with interests and likings. Are you good at cooking, dancing or some other activity that you didn’t immediately see as a relevant benefit? 

3. What feedback have you received? What do other people say about you? Is there a consistent pattern of compliments you have received from strangers throughout your life? You can only build on existing competence, so dig deeper to find out what you’re naturally good at. Avoid approaching relatives for the answers. Go further and ask those who don’t know you to get the honest, constructive feedback you need. It might be your smile, your sense of direction, the way you empathise with people, how well you listen, or how amazing you are at a certain sport. How can you build on this competence? What are the obvious signs of the things you are naturally good at? Reflect on your life so far.

4. When you’re out with friends, what do you talk about effortlessly? Which topics do you discuss that make you feel alive and energised? Which subjects could you discuss for hours on end? Is there a particular subject matter that you find close to your heart that you could talk with a stranger and keep them captivated throughout the conversation?

5. What is your personality type? There are countless assessment systems on the internet that will allow you to assess your personality type. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator will allow you to identify which of the sixteen distinctive personality types are the best match for you. The Clifton Strengths assessment will help you identify your talents so that you can develop them into great strengths. These are just a couple of the assessment systems that are well worth investigating and I’ve put the links below for you to access.

We all tend to fall into the trap of believing we know what we’re good at, but sometimes this can be far from the truth. Allowing ourselves to answer these five questions honestly and truthfully, and then following whichever assessment system we choose will open up our mind to greater possibilities in the acting world, some of which we may not even have realised were possible. 

These questions will not only draw out our personality type and the skills we have acquired so far, but will also give us a better idea of what types of character(s) we could realistically portray in our endeavours as an actor. 

So go ahead and explore yourself further and see what other sparks of talent you manage to dig out. 

Myers Briggs – www.myersbriggs.org 

The Clifton Strengths Assessment – www.gallupstrengthscenter.com)