I had a good conversation with some actors tonight, and I brought up the idea of how artists have to be Antifragile to develop sustainability. The term comes from the book "Antifragile: Things That Gain From Disorder" by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. In a nutshell, for something/someone to be antifragile, the object/person has to become stronger when exposed to stress. It's analogous to how your muscles rebuild themselves stronger after being worked out. So this is how it pertains to your career. Unlike the accountant who chooses a "safe, stable career", you are actively choosing a career that is unpredictable. Most days you wake up unemployed, wondering when your next job will arrive. Over time, this makes you more resilient. You will actually develop a more "stable" existence than the accountant. Why? Just think of what happens when the accountant gets let go after 15 years of working hard? Sadly, many people face that reality, especially during financial crises, and they don't know how to move on. They remain truly unemployed for months or years, without a firm grasp on how to transition to the next phase of their life. Not you! Being unemployed is your JOB! You interview every day of your life! And when you DO get the job, it may only last 1 day, and then you're back to being unemployed. So embrace your antifragility. It makes you stronger every day. It prepares you for life's ups and downs, and makes you more resilient. So now the next time your college-buddy-who-became-an-investment-banker mocks your lifestyle as an artist, you'll secretly know you're better off than they are...
Acting : Are you Antifragile? by Matthew Cornwell
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Alle, the term Antifragile is used because there is no appropriate English word to describe the opposite of fragile. And I understand your semantic argument for actors never being unemployed. I was merely crafting an argument that what we experience as artists is unimaginable to those who choose "safe" careers. They get lulled into a false sense of security, and then WHAM! They get laid off out of the blue and are not equipped to handle that upheaval in their life. But thanks for the passionate reminder that actors need to always be working to further their own careers.
Alle, I'm not sure you get my point. I think we're talking about different concepts. I'm merely talking about the idea that if your failures don't make you stronger, you won't be able to sustain. Do you agree? If so, that is the very definition of antifragility. So YES, being antifragile is an extremely important part of the equation.
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Fragile is used to define something that is easily broken or damaged when exposed to a stress. Antifragile is defined as something that becomes STRONGER when exposed to the same stress, not necessarily unbreakable. Your muscles are antifragile (they get stronger after you stress them), but breakable (you can tear them if you stress them too much). The airline industry is antifragile (every time there's a plane crash, measures are taken to avoid that same type of crash, and the whole industry gets stronger). So if a person decides to become an actor, they will unavoidably be exposed to stress in the form of failure (not booking 90% of roles they audition for) and the overall unpredictability of the industry. Hopefully we can agree on that. Failure is part of the game. You can change the word failure to something more psychologically appealing if you want, but I'll continue to use it for now. Now if the actor becomes a victim of that failure, to use your term, then they likely gravitate toward a job that has more "stability". The actor that survives or thrives will become stronger and more resilient as a result. The whole basis of my original post was to argue that as artists, we are more prepared for the vicissitudes of life, because we get tested on a regular basis with this industry. Those that choose "stable" careers are much more fragile because they won't know how to adjust to sudden stressors like job loss. To use an example, let's harken back to the financial crisis of the recent past. As an actor, the crisis had no discernible impact on my daily life. I'm so used to the random nature of this business that I didn't panic about finances or stability. However, think of the countless number of people who lost their jobs, and 2 years later were still unemployed. Why? I'm sure there are myriad reasons, but some of it can be attributed to the fact that their "stable" careers lulled them into a sense of security, and they were unprepared to handle sudden unemployment. I'm not saying those folks were mentally fragile, but I'm labeling their ability to react to sudden stressors as fragile. Or let's use a fun example from The Princess Bride. Wesley spent several years slowly building up an immunity to iocane powder. By being exposed to the powder in small doses over time, his immune system became resistant. By definition our immune system is anti fragile (not unbreakable). So when Vizzini drinks from his goblet, he immediately dies because the sudden shock of iocane is enough to kill him. In the end, I think the word antifragile is creating confusion. Look up the book I referenced in my original post and read excerpts on Amazon for free. He explains it much better than I have...
I like what you're saying but you still don't understand what I'm arguing, so we'll put this to rest. You're misunderstanding my use of the word fragile, and since antifragile is a word without a synonym, its meaning is getting lost as well. If you're truly interested in what I'm arguing, my only solution is to read the book as I've suggested before. In the end we agree on just about everything, we're just not having the same conversation :)
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Matthew, I think your point is poignant and valid beyond the remit of acting. It applies well to screenwriting too. In fact I'd go as far as to say it's a universal truth of progression. The terminology is tricky. I'd describe it as a case of "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger"
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I like how you posted this. And I loved reading through the debate you had with Allie. But in a sense, there is a lot of truth to it, and I am anti-fragile and proud of it.
Amen to that brother!
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Thanks Mathew for sharing this inspirational truth. I'm going to get this book!
This anti fragile is spot-on. I meet people who cannot embrace change or impermanence , and look at it as scary business. Whereas I see the comings and goings as the colorful part of my work life. I get opportunities to meet more cool people, have really cool experiences , travel and stretch the acting canvas with each ebb and flow. It keeps me super resilient in life as well. I think it's easier to face personal changes with the attitude that , hey it's just another change.