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10 ways to get your act together Jo Kelly Coaches People To Be Great Actors - Online

May 4, 2024

Jo Kelly isn't your average acting instructor.

In fact she does not use the word "teacher" even once "I am not teaching people how to act" she says. "I help people not act."

Through experiential exercises, Jo coaches mainly actors and other artists of every kind and non artist "seekers" on how to discover their inner peace and be their authentic self. In this way, actors will stop acting and become becoming. "I would like to be a midwife more than a trainer, as I aid people to return to their authentic self, and become reborn," she explains.

She believes the success of an actor depends on their ability and satisfaction to devote themselves to their character. "When your character is protected fully, the story and the audience are impacted" she says.

With her distinctive style of coaching performers, she assists them in tapping in to their childhood fascination, curiosity, and play. What does this mean? They provide authentic, lively and honest performance.

In the year 2016, Jo transitioned from in-person coaching and started an online-based business through . Since, she's created three consecutive educational journeys, and she's helped more than 8,000 clients. The group has had amazing successes since they worked with Jo, and have landed roles in some of the most prestigious studios, including Netflix, HBO, Disney, Showtime, ABC Studios, and more.

Here's how she built an online business that she's passionate about:

Skip ahead:

She did her research

Jo took a different path into acting.

Born in Belgium She earned her MBA after which she specialized in the field of human resource management and psychosystemic psychology. After that, she worked in corporate coaching. "The corporate world never felt exactly like the one I was used to," she shares. "I took the decision to leave everything, move to Paris, and start over ."

Part of this starting over was trying her hand at acting. She fell in love with. She was a hard-working, passionate person, and put all of her time and money in learning to become the most effective actor she could be.

Despite her commitment to her craft, she says she was an excellent actress but not a great actor. Like other actors, she was plagued by stage fear. "Most of my acting colleagues suffered from the same issue," she says. "We had all been extremely passionate about acting, however when it came time to act the part, we were scared. ."

She was interested in the obstacles that were preventing her and others from becoming excellent actors. "My curiosity became an obsession," She says. "I would like to understand why actors who are so committed and devoted reduce their perform. ."

Over the course of several years, she investigated the reasons why actors feel blocked. Her study led to an understanding that when children are playing, they're in control. When adults engage in play it's like they're losing their freedom because of societal pressures. "When I realized this I spent the rest of my life helping actors unlearn their conditioning to allow them to perform and show their true selves with that childlike energy that they had previously," explains Jo.

She began coaching

Jo's experiential research led her to explore various techniques for somatic healing, which she then tried with other clients through private and group coaching in the early 2000s. After a few years, she named her business To Be Or Not To Act.

Then she realized her students were lacked accountability. "No regardless of how committed the people I worked with were, they weren't able to attend every day. Although we would meet at least three times per week, the accountability wasn't there between sessions. People would drop the ball without a problem if they were not with me." Jo says. Jo.

She decided that online courses can help students remain consistent in their practice. She refers to her online courses in the form of "journeys," and the one she first guides students through will be The Reset: From Resistance to Freedom, which she created in the year 2014. "I started designing The Reset so that I could be able to hold hands of people during a 33-day journey," she explains.
 "Since the site is online, users can do it at their own pace and create their own schedules."

Jo believes that we have a natural core, yet societal conditioning asks that we behave, think, and feel in a particular way. According Jo, the aim of The Reset is for people to go through daily exercises to help them get rid of their conditioned behavior and revert back to their instinctual nature. Every day during The Reset, Jo offers pre-recorded exercises. Jo also offers two Q&A sessions and two group work using pods as well as a semi-Q&A session where she responds to questions that are frequently asked in an exclusive Facebook group.

Having the flexibility of an online journey lets Jo's participants take the classes at any moment in time; when they wake up, before they fall asleep and whenever they find free time during the day. "The most appealing aspect is the fact that you can tailor the sessions fit in with their daily routines," she explains.

She created an online company which allowed her to live a more flexible lifestyle

When Jo first began her own online Reset journey, she was able to log every single session held posted on her website. After a few years she switched over to the platform after being recommended to the platform through her trainer. "You people know what you're doing, and I don't" she laughs.

In the last few years, since she entered the online coaching space Jo's lifestyle has changed. When she conducted her interview with us, she called from the hospital, in which she was accompanied by her daughter. "Eight years ago my baby was born carrying a genetic specification and requires hospital treatment each month," she shares.

" allows me to be mother and be in charge of my own life, while maintaining a business running--even while I'm at the hospital while my daughter is receiving her regular transfusions," she adds. "Working online lets me care for my daughter in the way that I want to and stay home at all times to her. It allows me to go to hospital for medical needs while still being able to have a career I'm passionate about without it being stressful ."

She created subsequent journeys

Once people complete The Reset, they have the choice of joining A three-month program called The Aimful Actor. The Purposeful Actor journey is a three-hour session for twelve weeks. "The students here are a little more independent when it comes to responsibility and showing up for themselves. There are some routines to follow every day however they aren't able to rely on my energy to do it; they have to come up with their own goals, and that is the point." Jo shares.

Jo also offers Q&A sessions during the Purposeful Actor Journey that occur every three weeks. After having successfully completed the Purposeful Journey and are ready, they can opt to join a yearly membership called BAMF Actors In Action, which is a reference to Bad-Ass Mom F***king Actors In Action. "I created this membership because people who had finished these two walks wanted to pursue their training on this pathway," she says.

The membership program has been operating for the past four years. it includes one content program every month and group sessions via weekly pods, a every month Q&A sessions with Jo, and a six-hour summit each three months. "The membership lets people decide how they're going to go out into the world, accomplish what they're supposed to be doing, to connect with the industry, create their own content and raise the bar on their craft," she explains.

She worked with performers of all types

According to Jo she believes that the majority of her clients in her journeys include actors. There are different kinds of artists like writers, dancers, storytellers, and singers, as well regular people who "want to get rid of their conditioning," such as mothers as well as professionals such as pro athletes television hosts, pro athletes, and therapy professionals. "Freedom is a concern to anyone who wants to be fully expressed," she says.

Since the journeys are offered in English the journeys attract travelers from all over the globe. "We have people from all continents, but most of them are from America, Europe, and Australia," she shares.

A majority of her clients are aged between 20 and 50. Some of her audience members are who are in the third phase of their lives, and it's not unusual for her to invite those in their 70s and 80s into her journeys.

The client let her do all the talking

In terms of marketing her journeys, Jo says the word has spread mostly via the word of word of.

On the home page of her site, she's included the video reel of her testimonial. This adds social proof and adds credibility to her efforts. Additionally, visitors to the website can subscribe to her newsletter via her site. To gather emails, she gives two workshops for free as lead-generators such as Stop TRYING TO BE A Great Actor to Give Yourself the Chance of Being Excellent as well as The Instinctive Actor. Not only do these trainings help her capture her audience's information, but they also provide participants a glimpse of the her coaching style.

She also has an Instagram page--which has over 10,500 followers--and gets external press by interviews on various blogs, podcasts, and in magazines.

She opted for a price that is affordable.

Jo is determined to ensure that her travels are cost-effective for everyone, as actors typically earn a fluctuating salary. "If you visited an acting class once per week, you'd be paying between $300-$400. Most of the time, you just sit there and watch other people do scenes and sometimes, you get an opportunity to take a turn" she adds.

"These online trips offer a lower cost alternative," continues Jo. "The value of our journeys is 10 times what we offer them for ."

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

She never left her area of genius

Even though she is the chief executive officer at To Be Or Not To Act, Jo is firm in wanting to only spend time in her zone of genius--which is coaching and creating content. Jo doesn't think she's tech-savvy preferring to stay "in the flow" doing what she does best. "The other aspects of running a business aren't my forte because this isn't my field of genius," she explains.

Jo attributes her success by hiring a coach from in the beginning. When it was time to create evergreen journeys and she decided to take a chance and bought a $20K course in order to master the art of doing so. "It was an enormous amount of money which meant I had to take on a loan of half the funds. It was a good thing I made it happen," she shares.

She believes that it's possible for anyone to create an online course that is successful. But she cautions that this isn't an easy task.

"It requires dedication and perseverance, and you have to have a passion for what you're doing. For me, it's all I've done since switching careers in my twenties, and it's all I'll ever undertake. The passion for it is the reason that when it gets tough when it gets tough, I stay with it ."

She created from the heart

The author advises creators of online businesses to be honest about the difficult work they'll have to put into building an online company. She also suggests they do so only if the topic they're teaching is a subject that's near to their heart.

"The risk now is when you go on social media, everybody is an expert and everybody claims that it is to make millions in two minutes, which isn't the truth," says Jo. "It is true that if you have something dear to your heart and you want to share it with people who are bigger than the people in your local area. It takes effort, and that includes falling down and then getting up. The process involves coaching and investing your time and money until your structure is built ."

Just like Jo When you create an enterprise from the heart this will give you the determination to keep going despite the tough times.

"An online business isn't just an opportunity for you to earn profits. It should be developed by your heart, based on the work you're supposed to be doing. If you don't, you'll drop the ball since it'll be too difficult to handle." she explains.

"If you're really serious then you'll be able to face the obstacles. If you're out there to make a quick buck and you're not able to accept these challenges. The best advice I can give is to stick with your passions to you. It is essential to perform at the highest level in the job you're doing because of such a huge amount of competition. It is essential to be confident in what you're doing. ."

Her integrity was maintained with her work

When asked about how we can expect to observe in 2024, Jo thinks there will continue to be a surplus of online programs. She says that the main distinction between "McDonald's" classes and "gourmet" courses will be the ones that have been designed with integrity.

"When you have an overabundance of things, there will be two types of online jobs. There will be McDonald's type courses, and then there will be the reliable and gourmet classes. Everybody will have an agenda to accomplish something or the other with your life, but it won't be from a place of integrity And then there will be people who have been going at this for years," she says.

For creating the gourmet style of course, her recommendation is to return to your heart.

"There is an incredible opportunity to anyone with a firm foot in their soul and aspires to give back," she continues. "The people who will need the services you can provide will find you ."

"I'm grateful to which enables us to bond as human beings with what is important to us. It's incredible."