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Get the Call(back)

Shannon Malkin Daniels
Mar 24
3 min read

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about the moments when we step outside our comfort zones and take chances, especially when we don’t know what’s going to happen.

This is something I talk with my clients about on a nearly daily basis, so I wanted to share a story that taught me an invaluable lesson about showing up authentically and putting yourself out there.

When I was 19 years old in college, I auditioned for a Whose Line Is It Anyway-style improv show. I’d never done improv before and had never auditioned for anything like this. To be honest, what scared me the most was the "funny" part.

I never saw myself as someone who was “funny,” and I’d been told one more than one occasion that I was decidedly NOT funny (I love dad jokes and I'm not afraid to admit it). But I realized that I could often make people laugh in day to day conversations by just being my sarcastic, snarky self.

So, I thought, why not? Even if I didn’t get the part, I’d at least learn what this whole auditioning process and improv thing were all about.

So there I was, standing in line with hundreds of other hopefuls, waiting for my turn to go up on stage. They called us up in random groups, gave us a scenario and told us to go for it with very minimal guidelines.

I watched as some nailed it and others...well, not so much. And I couldn’t help but feel nervous about my own turn. But when it was finally my moment, I decided to just enjoy it. I told myself that I’d do my best, have fun and that if nothing came of it, no big deal.

And you know what? I surprised myself. I added my usual sarcastic, snarky flavor to the scene, threw in some unexpected one-liners, and made both the producers and other hopefuls laugh.

I showed up as my authentic, unapologetic self and it worked (who woulda thunk it)! Best of all, I got a callback! Out of hundreds of people, I was one of the few selected to return for a second audition.

I never actually made it to that second audition. Life threw a curveball, and I had to choose between the callback and an important job interview (my parents had a thing or two to say about that choice). But it didn't really matter. What matters is that I took that first step and put myself out there.

I did something that terrified me, I embraced who I was, and I shocked myself with the outcome. It gave me confidence, reminded me that I’m capable of more than I realize, and taught me a lesson that I carry with me to this day.

As Wayne Gretzky so eloquently put it, "You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take."

So now I shoot my shot. Sometimes I make it, other times I miss...and that's okay. When I look at the bigger picture I recognize that many of my successes would have never come if I hadn't taken the shot. And I've learned and grown just as much (if not more) with each miss.

What about you? What’s something you’ve been wanting to do but haven’t taken your shot at yet?

Maybe it’s applying for that speaking gig, speaking up in a meeting, recording a video for social or conquering that fear of public speaking.

Whatever it is, you can’t get the call(back) if you don’t put yourself out there and show up as the real you.

So put yourself out there. Shoot your shot. And know that I'm in your corner cheering you on!

Speak Success,