Sabotage is a rather dramatic word, don’t you think? The mere mention of it stirs up thoughts of “intentional acts to overthrow someone else.” or spy novels.

The actual definition of the word is: “Any underhand interference with production or work; any undermining of a cause.”

Consider that your “cause” is your career, and being aware of the ways that you might be sabotaging yourself is crucial to your success. The craziest part of it is, some of these actions might be so ingrained in you already that you don’t even realize you are doing them. Yet, they are working against you right now.

Here are the top three ways actors sabotage themselves:

1. Not being prepared for auditions. This might sound like a no-brainer. But believe it or not, you would be shocked at the number of actors who come in to the audition room unprepared. Yes, I know that sometimes they give you 30 pages and two full songs to learn by tomorrow, and then, in the audition, they ask you to simply sing something from your book. Yes, it happens all the time. But that's the gig. It's your job to prepare the material they give you. I recently had a fellow actor friend say to me, “If they want me to learn that much material for an audition, they can pay me.” Unfortunately, not only did they not pay him, but he didn’t prepare, he didn’t get the job, and his agent got a call from casting saying that they will never call him again. Trust me on this, prepare even when it seems excessive. (P.S. Remember, this does not mean memorized without book in hand… it just means be very familiar with the material.)

2. Being unable or unwilling to take adjustments. In the audition room, bring in your best, well-prepared self, but when the director gives you an adjustment, listen and take it. Actors often get so set in how they have prepared the material that there is no room for a director to see how they’ll be to work with. Most actors don’t intentionally NOT make the adjustment (Well, actually, some do!), but make your best effort to listen to the notes. If you don’t understand them, ask questions. A director would much rather have you ask a question to clarify so they can see that you listen and can adjust. No matter what, make some kind of clear adjustment in your work. Most of the time, they are just testing you to see if you take direction.

3. Not believing you can really get a part. The number one way that actors sabotage themselves is by having underlying beliefs that tell them they aren’t good enough or they suck at auditions or they’re too young, too old, don’t have enough credits, etc. It’s hogwash! But, if those are the thoughts you have running in your head while you’re doing your work, you are thwarting yourself at every step. Discover those disempowering beliefs running in the background and create new ones. Be sure to check out my article The 6 Stories That Are Killing Your Acting Career for an in-depth look at some of the most popular actor thoughts that could be hindering your career.

As you go forward this week, look to see if you've been sabotaging yourself without even realizing it. Look at each of the three most common ways above, and ask yourself if you are guilty of any of them. If the answer is yes, don’t beat yourself up. Simply decide to break the pattern so you can show up powerfully going forward.

Leslie Becker is a Broadway actress, Billboard artist and best-selling author of The Organized Actor^®. Since 1994, her teachings have empowered thousands of actors to be strong individuals so the highs and lows of the industry are balanced by a strong belief in themselves. As an actress, she has appeared in 10 Broadway and National Tour productions, and she has starred in over 50 regional shows. She offers free tips for actors at www.OrganizedActor.com.