We were lucky to catch up with Anna Hashizume recently and have shared our conversation below.
Anna, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.
I think confidence and self-esteem are always a work in progress and I definitely have moments of vulnerability where I doubt myself. But overall, I think a lot of my confidence and self-esteem come from the hard work I’ve put into my craft. I feel the most confident in my abilities as a singer and an actor because I’ve put in the work. I always tell my students, you can’t be confident in something if you don’t know what you’re doing. Competence leads to confidence.
Other than that, I’m a big believer in the outer affecting the inner. I love expressing myself through clothes, and if I’m wearing something that I love, I’m going to feel more confident when I walk into a room. I don’t think it has to be the most “fashionable” outfit or the most expensive, it just has to be something that makes you feel amazing and like your most authentic self.
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
I often classify myself as a singer-actor because “performer” feels to broad. I went to school for opera and have both my bachelors and masters degrees in vocal performance. I love opera, but I didn’t love how the industry made me feel about myself. I didn’t feel like I could be my most authentic self when I was auditioning for and working with larger opera companies. So, I went back to my first love of musical theater and theater. Now, I do a lot of cross-over work. I’ve refound my love of opera on my own terms and I incredibly at home as a performer in this way.
I started teaching voice about six years ago and built up a private studio from the ground up. I never really thought of myself as a teacher when I was in school, but as soon as I started teaching, I realized how much I love it! I learn so much about myself as a singer while working with my students.
I’m really proud to be able to sustain myself doing the things I love!
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
It’s hard to narrow it down to three! But I think the first three that come to mind are:
Self-discipline – this is a tough one because I think the concept of “self-discipline” in our society can often be taken too far. But I think, for someone who works mostly freelance, being able to manage your own time, set your own deadlines, and understand what kind of pace you have to work at is incredibly important.
Leaping before you feel ready – this one is huge! The idea that we have to be fully “ready” before starting holds a lot of us back. A lot of life is learning as you go and being ok with the little fumbles that happen along the way. I started teaching before I necessarily felt “ready” but if I had waited until I was “ready,” I don’t think I ever would have started.
and
Choosing joy – it’s easy for us to get stuck. I was stuck in an audition loop while pursuing opera. One day I woke up and I thought, “I don’t want to do this anymore.” It was one of the scariest feelings ever, because I had invested a lot of years and a lot of money in pursuing this, but I knew I had to choose joy first. I wasn’t happy, so I made an adjustment. It sounds simple and it most definitely isn’t but I think if we could all remember that we should be enjoying our lives, we’d all be a little happier.
What would you advise – going all in on your strengths or investing on areas where you aren’t as strong to be more well-rounded?
This is a tricky question because I think it can be helpful to be specific in what we want but perhaps broad in how we achieve that.
What do I mean by that?
As a performer and more specifically a singer-actor, if I just knew how to sing and act, I wouldn’t get very far. I need to understand how to view myself as a business, I need to negotiate contracts, I need to navigate various personalities in a rehearsal room, I may even be asked my opinion about a project and if all I knew was how to “sing and act” I wouldn’t really be able to do all of that successfully. On the other side, as a voice teacher, I’m not just teaching voice but I’m also running a small business. So while my focus is specific, I like to think of my skillsets as being broad.
All of this being said, it’s important to be a beginner at something – it helps with brain elasticity. So, finding a new skill to develop for fun keeps things fresh! I love to sew and taught myself how to do it during the pandemic shutdown.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.annahashizume.com
- Instagram: @annahashizume @sing_with_anna
Image Credits
John Borge, Dan Norman
