How and when to plan the future of your show.

I’m going to make a little wager.

If you’re reading this blog, then I’ll bet that you’re a planner.  Come on, admit it . . . you’re an organizer, with to-do-lists, and date books, and Trapper Keepers, and all sorts of gizmos and gadgets to keep you on track for achieving your daily, yearly, and lifetime goals.

Most successful entrepreneurs are, whether they’re actors or artists or Broadway Producers.

So face it.  You’re a planner.

And that means you’ve probably got all sorts of big plans for your Broadway show.  Right?  You probably know what theater you want, and who you want to star, and who is going to direct, and what month it’s going to open . . . and what the t-shirts are going to look like.

Am I right?

That’s what I thought.  Pay up.

Planning and dreaming is great.  And it is an essential part of entrepreneurship (not to mention, The Secret).  You pick your goal or your destination.  And you plan what you think is the best road to get there.

But sometimes, since Broadway Shows or Anywhere Shows take such a long time to put together, plans can change, whether you like it or not.

Think about it this way.

When you were a kid . . . did you plan your life?  “I’m going to be married by the time I’m X years old.  I’m going to be a millionaire by the time I’m X years old.  I’m going to have X children.  I’m going to live in X.”

Did you make those statements?  I did, and a heck of a lot more.

And some of them came true.  But others didn’t.  And some of them, I didn’t even want to come true anymore.

Because things change.  I changed.

And over the course of its gestation period, your show will change.  And you too will change.

Maybe Broadway won’t be where you end up.  And maybe Spielberg won’t be able to direct.  And maybe the t-shirts will be red instead of yellow.

Does that mean you shouldn’t plan?  And shouldn’t dream?

No.  You should.  But as a very smart person once said to me, “It’s ok to fantasize . . . as long as you’ll be ok if that fantasy doesn’t come true.”

Sometimes what you think is the best road to your destination doesn’t turn out the be the best.  But that doesn’t mean you still can’t get to where you want to go.

 

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Ken created one of the first Broadway podcasts, recording over 250 episodes over 7 years. It features interviews with A-listers in the theater about how they “made it”, including 2 Pulitzer Prize Winners, 7 Academy Award Winners and 76 Tony Award winners. Notable guests include Pasek & Paul, Kenny Leon, Lynn Ahrens and more.

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