Entertainer Fraud Warning

When all the gigs disappear suddenly, entertainers get desperate and they’ll do whatever they can to survive. We can get very vulnerable to bad decisions when we are living in a narrative that drives fear. We can get ripped off … by ourselves.

Don’t jump into doing shows on Zoom. Don’t immediately start a Patreon.

As I see entertainers trying to figure out how to pay the bills, I see one thing they may be ignoring which is weighing in on their unhelpful choices. Imposter syndrome!

Everyone in and out of the arts at some point feels like they don’t fit the role that they are playing in life. That’s because we don’t fit roles. Roles are stereotypes without bounds that are impossible by nature. A person is never a role.

Many entertainers are now facing a lot of who they are in this moment. We usually think of imposter syndrome as coming up when we get the big gig, and that’s why I’m warning to be extra cautious of it now.

Think about it. Do we really deserve that $30,000 gig that got canceled or were we tricking them into it? Did we somehow get a block booking on a tour when we are offering just as much or less quality than the band that’s sitting at home?

If these thoughts are coming in, firstly, we’re probably wrong. Secondly, these thoughts are gonna really screw up our ability to…

  • see our value in the future
  • make a career change to something that pays us
  • figure out the next tools to learn
  • be nice to people around us
  • serve the world the awesomeness of us

We don’t have to fix imposter syndrome.

Step 1 is to adjust to imposter syndrome. See it. Understand that it’s a part of the human mind.

Step 2 know that it’s going to affect decision making. Just like when I’m angry at Bob’s Gyno & Gun Shoppe, I notice it and calibrate. Slow down and talk to Martha carefully to make sure I’m kind. She deserves it.

Step 3 remind ourselves or alert ourselves to the value that we bring — why did we get paid so much for IRL shows? A lot of the time it’s just being there. It’s not because we can plié better than every other pliér, it might be because we show up for every single dance rehearsal with energy, and a smile and people love working with us. That’s super valuable! All the things we do that make our clients/ customers/ directors happy are true value.

Step 4 while we’re pivoting to our new careers, think of how to bring that disembodied value and all the intellectual capital from our stage gigs into this new thing. Let it our minds stew.

The result might be “I do really great magic tricks that are perfect on a camera, I look attractive, and not much else.” If that’s the case, maybe you’re a zoom show person.

Our result might be “I build relationships with my audience members and they love giving me money over and over again.” Then go for Patreon or Youtube and digital downloads

Our result might be “I help people in corporations bring employees together in a safe environment.” We might pursue sending emails to people and offering them help.

There are a million possible ways to create our new careers. I want to encourage everyone to not put blinders on. We don’t need to do a show because that’s what we’ve done. The show part might be a very small part of the value that we bring… but if we were paid before, you do have value. Let’s use it!

Written for folks who want to attract and energize groups

Scot Nery is an emcee who has helped some of the biggest companies in the world achieve entertainment success. He's on an infinite misson to figure out what draws people in and engages them with powerful moments.

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