Meet Cinzi Lavin

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Cinzi Lavin a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Cinzi, thank you so much for opening up with us about some important, but sometimes personal topics. One that really matters to us is overcoming Imposter Syndrome because we’ve seen how so many people are held back in life because of this and so we’d really appreciate hearing about how you overcame Imposter Syndrome.

Imposter syndrome gets an awful lot of press these days, which is unfortunate, because it’s quite ridiculous if you think about it.

You’ve probably heard about how ironic it is that those who can sing well are too modest to sing loudly and those who sing terribly have no trouble belting out a song. Imposter syndrome is like that. For every person who worries that they’re not good enough, not worthy enough, and not experienced enough, there’s someone else who is incompetent but flush with self-esteem.

Friends in the medical field tell me that it’s slowly becoming accepted for doctors to express uncertainty. It’s simply not possible for every single doctor to know every single bit of information. When my doctor says he’s not sure about something, I appreciate his honesty. Meanwhile, I’ve had doctors in the past who wanted to create the impression that they were omniscient, when in reality, they were woefully ignorant about basic tenets of medical care.

When we discuss imposter syndrome, we have to ask what standards we’re setting for ourselves. It might be wise to also ask what standards we’re setting for others. Having been around many people who are experts in their fields, I’m often surprised by what they don’t know or can’t do. Put another way, they’re regular people–they’re not superhuman. And of course, when we start applying that yardstick to ourselves, of course we’re going to feel inferior.

I have no formal education in music, and yet, in 2010, I was invited to perform at the White House, I can assure you, I didn’t ask myself if I deserved to be there; I asked them what time to show up. Years of successful musicianship convinced me that I would do well. In fact, far from being nerve-wracking, it was probably the most relaxed performance I ever gave, because I felt like I could achieve anything!

Figure out a reasonable definition of your career, lifestyle, or relationship. Make sure you have your basics covered, and then get as busy as you can getting experience. Through repeatedly experiencing success, you’ll discover that you’re exactly who you’re meant to be.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

I’m a playwright and musical dramatist; I’ve also written several books, both fiction and nonfiction.

Earlier this year, one of my plays opened in Ireland and another is opening next week here in the states. I recently received an award for outstanding contribution to the research and interpretation of history, since much of my work is about uniquely American subjects.

My latest book is a resource for creatives and entrepreneurs who want to achieve more with less. It’s called Making Bread Out of Straw: How to Succeed with Almost Nothing by Helping Others, Thinking Creatively, and Ignoring Obstacles. In it, I explain how my career developed and offer practical strategies anyone can leverage to achieve their goals.

It’ll profoundly change the way you think!

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?

First, a willingness to follow my own path was invaluable. I wanted to become a playwright, so I joined a local play writing group. People took turns reading their plays aloud and having others critique them. It was the most pointless thing I’d ever seen. I stopped going after about three sessions. What did I do instead? I stayed home and wrote. Within a year, my first play was produced. As it so happened, I didn’t care what other playwrights thought of my work. I was more interested in getting it out in front of an audience.

The second quality that gave me success was ambition. I’m always amazed at how afraid some people are to dream big. To me, success is huge and limitless; there’s plenty for all of us, and the more of us that enjoy success, the better! Ambition made me willing to devote myself to my work because achieving my goals wasn’t something I wanted, it was something I needed.

Finally, I made sure that every aspect of my career was exactly the way I wanted it to be, not the way someone else had imagined it. So many people live life on someone else’s terms–doing things because they think they “should,” or defining success by someone else’s standards. If what you’re doing works for you, who cares if nobody else does it that way?

My advice for anyone starting their journey is to send their dream out into the world and see if it makes friends, because that’s really all success is.

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?

I’m offering a collaboration in which anyone can take part. Here’s how it works:

In the theatre world, the royalty costs for putting on plays are becoming increasingly expensive. Small theatres, in particular, are hurting because of this. Meanwhile, there’s a reluctance to do new shows because of concerns that people won’t be interested.

In response, I’m offering my new plays at vastly reduced rates.

So where do you fit in?

–If you’re a theatre manager, contact me about seeing some script samples.
–If you’re an actor, contact me about seeing some script samples, then tell theatre directors you would love to play a role in one of my plays if they’ll produce it.
–If you’re a resident of a town with a theatre or if you have ties to a local theatre, tell them about my idea and have them contact me.
–And if you’re a theatre-goer, help prove how great it would be to see new material by being willing to sample new plays as well as old favorites.

There’s nothing wrong with liking familiar things, but I’m sure we’ve all noticed that everyone’s playing it safe by doing sequels and repeats. This is what happens when “bottom-line thinkers” cast the deciding vote in choosing shows.

Let’s do our part to change that. Contact me: Cinzi at Cinzi Lavin dot com.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.cinzilavin.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CinziLavinOfficialFacebook/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cinzilavin/

Image Credits

Anna Zuckerman-Vdovenko @AZV PHOTO/MEDIA