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Ten Ways Jo Kelly Coaches People To Become Great Actors--Online

May 4, 2024

Jo Kelly isn't your average acting coach.

In reality she does not use the phrase "teacher" at all "I do the opposite of giving people instructions on how to behave" she says. "I assist people in not acting."

Through exercises that are experiential, Jo coaches mainly actors and other artists of every kind in addition to non artist "seekers" about how they can find inner freedom and become their authentic self. In this way, actors can stop acting and start acting and becoming. "I prefer to think of myself as an acupuncturist more than a coach, because I aid people to return to their truth and get renewed," she explains.

She believes the success for an actor is their fulfillment and ability to devote themselves to the character they play. "When your character is protected fully, the story and the audience are impacted" she says.

In her unique style of guiding performing artists, she assists them in tapping into their childlike imagination, fascination and fun. What does this mean? They deliver authentic, live, and raw shows.

In 2016, Jo transitioned from in-person coaching and started an online company through . Since that time, she's led three consecutive experiences and served over 8,000 people. The group has had amazing results since joining Jo and also have secured jobs at the largest studios, including Netflix, HBO, Disney, Showtime, ABC Studios as well as many more.

This is how she created an online enterprise that she's passionate about:

Skip ahead:

She conducted her own research

Jo took a different route to becoming an actor.

Born in Belgium She earned her MBA after which she specialized in the field of human resource management as well as psychosystemic psychology. After that, she worked in corporate coaching. "The corporate environment never felt exactly like the one I was used to," she shares. "I chose to quit everything and move to Paris to start afresh. ."

A big part of her new beginnings was to try her hand at acting, which she fell in over. She was dedicated, diligent and put all her energy and resources in acquiring the skills to be the very best actress she could be.

Despite her commitment to her craft her mother says she was a decent actor, but not an outstanding actress. As with many actors, she had stage fright. "Most of my acting colleagues suffered from similar issues," she says. "We had all been so passionate, but when it was our turn to perform the part, we were scared. ."

The actress was curious to know the factors that prevented her, and other actors from becoming great actors. "My fascination turned into an obsession" she says. "I would like to understand the reason actors who are committed and devoted shrink when it's time to act ."

Over the course of several years, she investigated the reasons why actors feel trapped. Her research led to an understanding that when children play, they're at liberty. Whereas when adults play it's like they're losing their freedom due to the societal norms. "When I discovered that, I spent the rest of my days helping actors overcome their stereotypes so that they could show up and be themselves in the same way that they once had," explains Jo.

She began as a coach

Jo's experience-based research prompted her to study various techniques for somatic healing that she later tried on other people through private and group coaching sessions in the beginning of 2000. After a few years, she named her business To Be Or Not To Act.

Soon, she realized that her students were lacked commitment. "No regardless of how committed my colleagues were, they weren't able to be consistent in their attendance every day. Even if we met three times a week however, there wasn't any accountability during breaks. It was common for people to drop the ball easily when they weren't with me." explains Jo.

The idea was that online classes can help students remain consistent in their practice. She describes her online classes in the form of "journeys," and the first journey she takes people to is The Reset: From Resistance to Freedom--which she developed in 2014. "I began to design The Reset so that I could be able to hold hands of people during the 33 days of The Reset," she explains.
 "Since the site is online, users can access it on their own time and set their own agenda."

It's Jo's belief that we have a natural nature, but our society's conditioning forces us to act, think, and feel the way we do. According Jo, the aim of The Reset is for people to go through daily exercises that allow them to shed the conditioned and return to their instinctual nature. Each day in The Reset, Jo offers recordings of exercises. Additionally, she offers two Q&As as well as two hours of working in groups via pods and a second semi-Q&A in which Jo answers frequently asked questions on an exclusive Facebook group.

Having the flexibility of an online adventure allows Jo's members to do the sessions at any point at any time, whether they get up, prior to when they fall asleep, or whenever they have free time during the day. "The most appealing aspect is the fact that you can tailor them fit in with their daily routines," she explains.

She created an online company which gave her the flexibility to lead a life style

When Jo first began her website Reset journey, she was able to log every single session held posted on her website. A couple of years later she changed to Reset after being encouraged to join the site by her coach. "You guys know the way to go, but I don't" she laughs.

After moving into the online coaching space Jo's lifestyle has changed. In the moment of her interview with us, she called from the hospital, where she was spending time with her daughter. "Eight years ago, my daughter was born with a genetic specification and requires hospital treatment every month," she says.

" It allows me to become a mom and take care of my own life, while maintaining an online business operating, even while in the hospital as my daughter gets her monthly transfusions," she continues. "Working online allows me to care for my child in the way I'd like to and stay in her home all the time for her. I can travel for hospital needs, while still being able to be a part of a profession I'm enthusiastic about and not having a stressful ."

Her subsequent travels were her own creations.

When people are done with The Reset, they have the option to go into A three-month program named The Aimful Actor. The program offers a daily three-hour session for 12 weeks. "The students here are a little more on their own when it comes to responsibility and showing up for themselves. There are still some things to follow every day however they aren't able to rely on my energy to do it; they have to think of their own motivation, which is the point." Jo shares.

Jo will also be hosting Q&A sessions through the journey of The Purposeful actor that occur each week for three weeks. After having successfully completed the Purposeful Journey you can choose to sign up for a year-long membership known as BAMF Actors In Action, that stands for Bad-Ass Mother of F***king Actors In Action. "I made this membership in order to help people who had finished the two journeys wanted to continue practicing on this pathway," she says.

The program has been in operation for four years and it offers a content-based session a month, group work via weekly pods, a every month Q&A sessions with Jo the host, as well as a 6 hour summit every three months. "The membership helps people determine the best way to get out in the world to be the person they're meant do, get connected with industry professionals, write the content they want to create, and raise the bar on their instrument," she explains.

She has coached musicians of all sorts

According to Jo she believes that the majority of her clients on her journeys include actors. However, there are also other types of artists, including dancers, writers storytellers, and singers, along with regular people who "want to move through their bodies," such as mothers as well as professionals such as pro athletes, TV hosts, and therapists. "Freedom is a concern to anyone who wants to be fully expressed," she says.

Because the tours are conducted in English and in English, they draw people from all over the world. "We have people from all continents, but mostly America, Europe, and Australia," she shares.

Most of her audience is aged between 20 and 50. Some of her audience members are who are in the third phase of life join, and it's not unusual to see her welcome people who are in their 70s or 80s to join her on her journeys.

Her clients did all the talking

When it comes to marketing her journeys, Jo says the word has spread mostly via word of word of.

On the home page of her site, she's included an online testimonial reel. This provides proof of social status and gives credibility to her efforts. Visitors to her website can sign up for the newsletter she sends out on her site. To gather email addresses, she offers two workshops for free to attract leads such as Stop TRYING TO BE A Good Actor to Give Yourself the Chance of Being Excellent and The Instinctive Actor. These trainings not only help her capture her audience's details, they also offer participants a glimpse of the how she coaches.

She also posts on her Instagram page--which has over 10,500 followers. Her page also receives press coverage from interviews on various podcasts, blogs, and magazines.

She opted for a price that is affordable.

Jo tries to make her journeys accessible to everyone, particularly because actors earn a fluctuating salary. "If you visited an acting school once per week, it would cost you between $300 to $400. The majority of time, you'll sit down and watch other people do the scenes, and at times it's a chance to take the opportunity to play," she adds.

"These online travel options are a much cheaper alternative," continues Jo. "The value of our journeys are 10x what we sell the journeys for." ."

The Reset is priced below $1,000 USD. Purposeful Actor is $1,250 USD. Membership cost $270 USD for a month.

She was in the zone of the greatest genius

Even though she is the chief executive officer at To Be Or Not To Act, Jo is firm in wanting to only spend the time she needs in her area of excellence, which is coaching and making the content. Jo isn't tech-savvy and prefers to remain "in in the flow" doing her best work. "The remaining tasks that run a business, I'm not interested in because this isn't my field of genius," she says.

Jo attributes her success in the beginning to a coach she hired early on. In the end, when it came time to develop evergreen experiences Jo took the risk and purchased a course for $20k in order to master the art of doing it. "It was a big stretch, and I had to borrow half of the funds. However, I'm happy that I made it happen," she shares.

She believes for anyone to create an online business that's successful. But, she advises that it's not easy.

"It requires dedication and perseverance It's also important to have a passion for what you're working on. In my case, this is all I've ever been doing since switching careers in my twenties, and it's all I'll ever do. This passion makes it so that when it gets tough when it gets tough, I stay with it ."

She created from the heart

She advises online creators to be honest about the difficult work they'll have to put into building an online business--and recommends that they only do it when the subject they're teaching is a subject that's near to their heart.

"The problem is now that the moment you join social media, everyone is a coach and everyone will tell you how easy you can make millions in two minutes, and that's just not true," says Jo. "It is a fact that if you hold something you are passionate about and you want to share it with the world's largest audience than that of your neighbors. However, it requires effort and it takes falling and getting back up. The process involves coaching and investing your time and money until your foundation is built ."

Like Jo When you create a business from your heart, it provides you with the strength to keep going despite difficult times.

"An online business isn't just a job opportunity to make profits. It should be developed from your core--from what you're meant for doing. If you don't, you'll drop the ball as it'll feel too hard." She explains.

"If you're doing it for the right reasons, you'll be ready to face the obstacles. If you're out there for a quick money grab and you're not able to accept these challenges. I suggest you apply what is very dear to you. You have to excel at your job because you're facing an intense level of competitors. It is essential to be confident in what you're doing. ."

Her integrity was maintained with her art

If asked about the how we can expect to see in 2024, Jo believes there will be to be an excess of online programs. She says that the main differentiator between the "McDonald's" courses and the "gourmet" courses will be the ones that have been designed by a professional with integrity.

"When you have an overabundance of something, there'll be two kinds of online work. There will be McDonald's style courses and then there'll be reliable and gourmet classes. Everyone is going to have plans to achieve the opposite of your life, but it won't be out of a genuine source And then there will be those who have been going at it for quite a while," she says.

In order to create the gourmet style of course, her recommendation is to go back to the core.

"There is incredible potential to anyone with a firm foot in their heart wanting to give back," she continues. "The people who will need what you have to offer will come across that you ."

"I'm thankful for this, which allows us to connect as humans for what matters to us. It's incredible."