By Alexandra Sims

Better than a lion tamer

We’re on to portfolio brief five but number three’s just been handed in. Yeah, welcome to juggling school. No, really. I still need to learn how to actually juggle or I’ve been assured I won’t make it as a creative.  Anyway, let’s stick to the figurative sense for now.

At SCA you have to be worthy of the world’s best circus. Able to juggle work, juggle hobbies, juggle opinions, juggle ideas, juggle emotions and a life outside of it all.  When you’re learning, another one shouldn’t be added into the rotation until you’re confident you can catch the ones you have but sometimes you don’t get a say on what’s thrown at you. So you had better learn fast and be prepared for more than you think you can handle.

We’re back from intermission and the thought of performing is making me sweat a little but I’m starting to understand the part I’ll play in the show.  

I have to be prepared for jeers but I should be able to defend my work. Sometimes the critics can’t see where it’s going so don’t be afraid to take it a little further and make them sit back. (Your scamp probably wasn’t as clear as you thought and there’s not a mentor in mindreading so speak up.)

I need to keep practicing because attaining a skill isn’t the same as retaining one. If I just stand in the spotlight with the tools in my hand, I’ll look like a clown and that’s not the role I’ve been chosen for. (Re-read your notes and feed your book with propositions. Quantity leads to quality.)

I should stop making it more complicated than it needs to be. I’m already handling seven things, one of which is on fire, so I don’t need the tightrope. (Don’t get dragged down, separate your thoughts and once you know what you’re trying to say don’t lose your way.)

After writing this scab, I found a post from last year that made the same comparison but it’s brief and doesn’t commit to the metaphor as hard so I’m not changing my act. After all, to be good at juggling you don’t think about dropping the ball, you just keep going and eventually the crowd will stop yawning.