Survival jobs for actors are necessary. As Mo’Nique always says, “I love us for real”. Now that I let you know I love you, I want you to get a job. I speak from experience. I will not tell you anything I have not already been told by others and stuff I told myself. Over the years I have worked many jobs. At one point, I considered myself a professional job hunter because I couldn’t find work, but I wouldn’t stop looking.
Heart broken, embarrassed, broke, tired, and depressed I found myself in and out of all sorts of jobs. I did this because I was told to, “get a real job” because acting is a hobby. I wasn’t encouraged to pursue acting. In fact, I wouldn’t tell my parents I was at an audition if they asked how my day went. I was anxious about what they would say when they found out I drove from Raleigh to Atlanta to audition for AMDA. Bottom line is that I have always known that I needed a real job until acting could sustain me.
I took a hiatus from acting and only crept out to do a few shows at The Henegar Center. My hiatus was for more reason than financial. For the purpose of this blog, I’ll focus on the financial. I make no apologies for growing up in a financially stable home. Both my parents paid their dues for us to have what we had and still have. My mom has been teaching for 3 decades. My dad is a retired Army Ranger. Not familiar with the Rangers? Google them. Trust, dues have been paid. Living a life of poverty is not on my agenda. It’s one thing to be struggling and another to be stable then make conscious decisions that lead to you struggling.
My fellow actors again, I love us, but we need to get jobs. I understand that working traditional hours takes away from our time to audition and be on set. I get that. I understand that everyone is not going to join the military as I did. Heck, that’s not going to happen in the general public either. What I don’t understand is why more actors aren’t taking advantage of internet marketing, direct sales, and freelancing to bring in the extra cash.
Some survival jobs you can do:
- Affiliate marketing
- Online tutoring (many of you didn’t go to college for acting, you went for something else so put that knowledge to use)
- Refurbish furniture and sell it
- Clean houses
- Dog walk
- Pet sit
- House sit
- Babysit
- Tutoring in music or dance
- Open an Etsy shop
- Instacart
- Drive for Uber or Lyft
- Copywriting
- Errand running
- Customer service jobs
- A job in whatever your degree is in…stack your money then quit
- Military reserves. Hell yeah, I said it. Join the reserves and pocket your money.
- Lawncare
- Dropshipping
- Sell eBooks (Write your own or sell PLR)
- Create a course and sell it (Don’t get greedy and sell some dumbass course for $397. You’ll eventually be outed that your course ain’t worth $397 and the money will dry up.)
- Monetize a YouTube Channel (Click here to learn how)
- Go through your belongings and sell everything you no longer need, want, or can’t fit. Let it go!
- Resell things you find in thrift stores. You’d be surprised by what people toss out. Go to thrift stores near the rich side of town.