My husband used to work in advertising, doing graphic design for a company.

"Advertising is designed to make you feel bad about yourself."

He gives Cosmopolitan magazine as an example, with phrases on the cover such as "Have the best sex of your life!" -- well, suddenly one questions..."AM I having the best sex of my life?  I don't know now, maybe they know something I don't"...and then one buys a copy.

So, this might surprise some people in the industry, but I'm unsubscribing to ALL the "helpful" actor newsletters and emails that have been inundating my Gmail Promotions inbox.

I signed on to so many of these services over the years, for some good reasons -- to learn more about the business side, get tips and feedback, maybe even get some inspiration.

But now it's just too much:

"How to Make an Agent Need You"
"Are you driving your day or just along for the ride?"
"Make money on TV"
"She Booked a Series Regular with No Television Credits"
"Actors Should Be Blogging" (hahaha)
"[INSERT AGENCY], [INSERT CASTING DIRECTOR], and [INSERT TYPE OF MOVIE]!"

That's just from the last 24 hours.

They're making my head explode.

Look, I know these things.  I'm working every day to achieve all these goals -- but man, the constant reminders, primarily just to get me to start using X service or go to Y class...maybe this is working for some actors -- I used to think so for me -- but now, I'm over it.

It's hard to focus when I'm getting essentially attacked in my inbox on all the things I "Should" be doing or taking.  It makes me anxious that I'm not doing enough and down when I simply don't have the money to afford these "career-changing solutions."

"Advertising is designed to make you feel bad about yourself."

So I starting clicking "Unsubscribe."

Maybe I'll lose out on some random tip or class that will suddenly get me the goals I've always wanted.

Or not.

Maybe by erasing this form of negativity on my mind, I just might feel a bit happier, stop worrying so much, and start trusting myself.  Maybe I'm doing pretty well already, have learned enough, and can start taking over the ride from here.

--Kimberly