Meet Effie Spence

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Effie Spence. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Effie, first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.

I dealt with imposter syndrome a lot throughout my career, especially being interested in multiple mediums of expression, the thought of, “what gives me the right to,” comes up a lot. As I kept observing my peers I realized something profound; none of us really know what we’re doing or who we are. That freed me up a lot because I realized we are all imperfect humans trying to make sense of things and woke up to the fact that we have a finite amount of time here, so why would I spend any more energy into feeling lesser than when I can just commit to the things that just make me happy. I listened to this YouTube video with Ethan Hawke where he encouraged artists to give themselves permission. I realized art is subjective, so I can simply decide I am good at what I do. Whether it’s dance, film, poetry or acting, obviously, training helps fight imposter syndrome, but trusting in my training, the experiences that shaped me and my taste I have developed is enough.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I was one of those kids that stepped onto their first stage at four and knew what I was; an actor. My full name is Efthemia Zgonis, I am a first generation Greek, and go by the stage name, Effie Spence. Every year, I always tried to think of other career paths but I always came back to acting. My parents had humble beginnings, both being born in villages in Greece and building the American dream with their three girls, so when it came to Hollywood, no one knew where to start, so from a young age, I trusted my instinct. I am blessed to have parents that said yes to any improv, dance, or theatre club. I made my mom drive me to Boston multiple times to be seen by casting and at sixteen I booked my first background job on a huge Hollywood set. I knew I would pursue this for my life and so when I went to college I ended up wanting to focus on my back up plan instead of pursuing my art. I gave biology a go, and loved it, but my dad saw I wasn’t fulfilled. After my first semester, he asked what I planned on doing after college. “I’m going to move to LA to act,” I said. He responded, “so what the f*ck biology have to do with acting?” I broke down, I was given a full blessing to pursue my art. I studied English, Dance and Film. After college I pursued acting and dance in Melbourne, Australia, where I met my husband, Daniel Spence, a black belt and owner of Waves Jiu Jitsu. Hollywood wasn’t what I expected, it felt like every time I learned how to cope, things would change. I’ve wanted to quit multiple times. I had this deep burn to perform but I froze when it came to actually getting myself out there. The application process and rejections and work to find work exhausted me and felt hopeless. It wasn’t until recently where I gave myself full permission to pursue making films, being “vain” enough to write, star and direct myself in films and publish my own poetry that it all started clicking for me. I realized that that “yes” my dad gave me in college to pursue everything I want, I had to say yes to myself. I currently have a book of poems out on Amazon and local bookshops around LA and am in post production on two short films I created that will have screenings soon. My first documentary, Waiting For His Hand is available on YouTube and am working on my next documentary project now. Thanks for reading a snippet of my story. I hope you give yourself permission to share yours.

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 most important skills I have learned is how to schedule my work as if it is already making money. We can get really stuck on the grind, but banking on yourself and putting in the hours is huge. Daily meditations also have hugely helped. I spent of a lot of time mentally spiraling and starting my day with a clean slate of positive self talk is imperative. I think the idea of the starving artist or we must suffer for our art is old hat, I make my best work when I feel safe and grounded. Lastly, surrounding myself with people who inspire me and making time to enjoy their company is vital to making good art. If we are the company we keep, then be incredibly discerning about your inner circle. If you are early in your journey, I encourage you to read “The War of Art” and “The Artist’s Way” and prioritize how you want your dream life to unfold and live that reality as much as you can, now. Fiercely protect your time, trust yourself implicitly, and love what you do. Don’t waste your time being cruel to yourself.

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 am always looking for great people. Best way to find me is instagram @effiespence

Contact Info:

• Website: https://effiespence.com
• Instagram: @effiespence
• Youtube: @actorholic

Image Credits

Eve Rydberg
Alexa Najers
Madison Stonefield