The trouble with Angela Lansbury

When things appear to be stacked against you, think again

Since the death this week of actor Angela Lansbury, there have been tributes, articles, and stories about her life. Not surprising, given her decades-long career that touched generations of loyal fans.

She was an award-winning movie, television, and theater actor, as well as the voice of Mrs. Potts, the talking tea pot in the animated film, "Beauty and the Beast."

In reading and listening to the tributes, I was struck at how often her looks were mentioned. ... by her and others.

One article stated, "She may have lacked the classic good looks and voice of her era, but ...."

And another quoted Lansbury: "I wasn't very good at being a starlet," she said. "I didn't want to pose for cheesecake photos and that kind of thing."

Works for me, I don't like cheesecake.

And evidently, it worked for her.

By all accounts she was a successful and respected actor. But she was also passed over for roles and awards she hoped to win.

But she didn't give up.

It can be so easy to judge ourselves against the expectations of others. What's beautiful, who's pretty. Who has won awards, who hasn't.

And to think or worry that it matters.

It's hard to know how Lansbury really felt about her looks and how she was judged. But in the end, as she said, "I was a primarily an actress and not a pretty face."

She was an actor who wanted to act.

And she did that by taking roles that came her way. By doing the work. Because you never know where it might lead ... and because it may, as Lansbury said, "turn out to be the thing that will lead you to the role which is sublime."

I found all the commentary about Lansbury's looks discouraging. But now I see that in her willingness to talk about her looks and how she was perceived, she taught us something.

Whether you yearn to act, paint, write, cook, sew, sing, hike, run, or swim, focus on doing just that.

Ignore the naysayers ... and the looks and success of others.

Do the thing you want to do ... it's the best way to get to where you want to be.