How do you know if a role is right for you?

Hi everyone,
Today’s blog topic is this:  How do I know if a role is “right” for me?
That is a wonderful question!  Daniel Day Lewis once said, “Every time I accept a role I ask myself ‘can I do this?’”  When I read that, I was thrilled because over the years most every role I’ve accepted there’s a little doubt.  “Am I up for this?  Can I really pull this off?”
First of all, I think it’s very natural.  That’s the beauty of having craft; that’s just insecurity burping up right at the start and you get a little scared and nervous.  “Maybe they screwed up by picking me.  I sure hope I don’t let them down.”  But when you have craft it doesn’t take long once you start going to work to say, “I know what I’m doing.  I can do this.”  
I’m going to be directing a feature as soon as we can raise the funds.  It’s going to be about a million and a half dollar budget.  It will be the largest film budget-wise that I’ve directed, and at first I felt inadequate to do it.  I don’t anymore, but I did.  By reaching out to people I admire and respect, they looked at me and said, “Jim, hire a great DP and half the job is done there.  Hire a great sound person, surround yourself with really talented people and you’ll be just fine.”
Even though it feels over your head, take it.  Are you kidding me? My goodness, what a tremendous opportunity to grow and learn. That’s my advice.  And if it’s a role that just feels so awkward and uncomfortable then ‘no.’  Shakespeare…for those of you that are our students or former students, you know my feelings about Shakespeare.
It just doesn’t resonate with me.  I also don’t like opera, that’s me too.  I’m not a big fan of most musicals, that’s me too.  I don’t like soccer, it bores me to death and it doesn’t mean I’m right.  These are just things that don’t resonate with me.
What I’m trying to say is, back to Shakespeare…Sandy didn’t like Shakespeare either, it didn’t resonate with him and he never did it. But he had great respect for it and he used to say that the American actor should spend five years in classical training (diction, language, movement, etc.) before they even touch Shakespeare because so much of that is part of it.  That’s my opinion of why Shakespeare is so painful, even community theatre is doing Shakespeare.  
It’s done in high schools because it’s fun and you get to put on big costumes and it’s “big.”  But I’m telling you if somebody offered me a role in Shakespeare I would turn it down immediately.  It is way over my abilities and I don’t care enough to bridge the gap.
 
I HAVE A GIFT FOR YOU
I’d like to invite you to check out my Artistic Family Newsletter. These newsletters are for any actor in the Bay Area, Los Angeles, New York, Europe, and beyond because my goal every week is to empower, inspire, and educate any actor living anywhere who has the burning desire to really do this.
I believe these newsletters are the best of what I do as an acting teacher and it’s free to you, so join our family today by going here and signing up.
 
ANOTHER GIFT FOR YOU
When you register today I’ll also send you the link to my Q&A Webinar that was held a few weeks back. This hour long video Webinar was a wonderful exchange between myself and dozens from our Artistic Family members so I hope you’ll enjoy the information as much as I enjoyed sharing it.
Ok, see you next Wednesday so until then my very best to you,
Jim