We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Elise Baughman a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Elise, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?
Finding my purpose was quite a journey. I currently am a screen actor, voice talent, TV host, voice over coach, on-camera coach for executives, and a speaker. But let’s back up to where I started.
I majored in accounting and earned my MBA. My first job out of college was working as a financial analyst in the defense industry. While I loved the people I worked with, I did not love my job. At all. My best friend from high school gifted me an acting class for Christmas because he knew I had expressed an interest in acting. The rest is history.
Long story short, I loved my acting class but, as mentioned, did not love the work I was doing. I felt VERY passionate about turning acting into a career. And moving forward, I made many sacrifices to make my acting career happen. So now, one thing I feel very strongly about is talking to people about their passion(s) and helping them pursue it—whether they can pursue their passion as a career or as a hobby that fulfills them.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I love what I do! The variety of things I do in my career keeps things exciting. While it sounds crazy busy, my work actually allows me the flexibility to spend time with my husband and son (who’s in elementary school).
As an on-camera actor, I work in film, television, commercials, and corporate videos. As a voice over actor, I’m best known for anime and video game roles, but most of my work is voicing national & local commercials and corporate videos.
As a voice over coach, I’ve had the privilege to help so many people get started on their voice over journey or enhance their current career. I teach group and private classes over Zoom and Skype, so I work with people all over the country. I have had amazing teachers during my acting career, so it’s nice to now pay it forward to others. My voice over coaching info can be found at https://elisecoaches.com/.
As a coach for business executives, I work in the corporate arena and teach teleprompter, on-camera presence, and interviewing skills. My clients range from entrepreneurs to high level executives who want to enhance how they present themselves through on-camera media.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
The three qualities that have been most impactful in my journey have been (and still are!) intentionality, determination, and faith.
Intentionality – When my husband and I met with our pastor for our pre-marital session, his best piece of advice was simple yet profound, “Be intentional in all that you do as a couple and as individuals.” We really took that to heart and have tried to make decisions in our personal and professional lives that are intentional and purposeful. We have set goals and action items every year, and that’s something I encourage my acting students to do.
Determination – From the beginning of my career until now, I have been very determined. As mentioned earlier, I was working as a financial analyst when I decided to purse acting. I knew NOTHING about acting! So, I was determined to do everything I could to make it happen. I took classes, I asked questions, I researched, I asked everyone I knew if they knew someone in the business. I worked hard…and the list goes on. And it happened (after lots of hard work)! To this day, I still work very hard. But I love what I do!
Faith – In life, my faith has always been the biggest inspiration and what has pulled me through tough times. My family and my friends inspire me. I feel like with faith, family, and friends, I’ve had a solid foundation for celebrating the successes and surviving the struggles. Faith in myself has also been important throughout my career. I feel like you need to have belief in yourself, your abilities, your capacity to grow and learn, and your resilience in the face of challenges.
Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?
The On-Purpose Person is a book written by Kevin W. McCarthy, a motivational speaker and author, about being on purpose and living a balanced life. This book has played a major role in my life, and I’ve probably read it 4 or more times already. I’m even going through it this month with my ongoing voice over students.
Some impactful nuggets of wisdom include:
– Ask yourself, “Am I on purpose right now?” Am I doing things that help me reach my goals? Being on purpose could even mean relaxing on the couch after a tough day at work–as long as it’s intentional.
– If you’re overwhelmed with a long list of things to do (or a long list of wants), write them all down and play a tournament – that looks much like the NCAA’s Basketball Tournament Bracket. Narrow everything down to one thing. Then you’ll know where to start (or know your biggest “want”.) I’ve used the tournament many, many times.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://elisecoaches.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elisebaughman/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EliseBaughmanActress/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elisebaughman/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/elisebaughman
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/animeadventures
- Other: Actor Website – https://elisebaughman.com/ Voice Over Website – https://www.elisebaughmanvo.com/ Merch Website – https://www.shopelisebaughman.com/
