The Freedom in Becoming Yourself: What My Agent's Rejection Revealed

Welcome to Episode 20 and the Season 1 finale of Essence Embodied.

Today I'm sharing a story from my entertainment career that still makes me laugh—and cringe—a little. After putting myself on tape for a television pilot that felt perfectly aligned with my real-life experience as a new mom, I received an email from my agent saying they no longer wanted to represent me.

Here's the twist: the very audition my agent didn't believe in led to a callback with the director, writer, and producer.

That experience became one of the greatest reminders that not everyone is meant to understand you —and that's okay.

In this episode, I reflect on some of the biggest themes we've explored throughout Season 1: rejection, authenticity, embodied self-worth, and trusting that the right people, opportunities, and relationships will recognize who you truly are. We talk about why rejection hurts so deeply, how to avoid making emotional decisions in difficult moments, and why what feels like rejection is sometimes divine redirection.

Whether you're navigating auditions, career uncertainty, the end of a relationship or friendship, or simply wondering why something you wanted didn't work out, I hope this conversation reminds you that not every closed door is a loss. Sometimes it's protection. Sometimes it's preparation. And sometimes it's simply making space for the people who truly see you.

Thank you for being part of Season 1 of Essence Embodied. Your support, messages, reviews, and time have meant more to me than you know. I can't wait to share what's ahead in Season 2.

Thank you so much for being here! If you are enjoying the show, it would mean so much if you please follow Essence Embodied, share it with someone who needs it, and leave a rating and review! Thank you!

You can keep up with Tyne on instagram here:

https://www.instagram.com/tynestecklein?igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ%3D%3D&utm_source=qr 

View her website here:

https://tynesteckleinartdesigns.com/

Join Tyne's email list here: https://shy-band-100.myflodesk.com/mrxyszsu5h

I'd like to say a massive thank you to my editor and dear friend, Nikki Dalonzo, for supporting me on this journey! 

Transcript

Season One Finale And Setup

Tyne Stecklein 0:00

Welcome back to Essence Embodied by Tyne Stecklein. I'm your host, and believe it or not, this is episode 20 of the podcast. The time has flown by, and whether this is the first episode you're listening to, you've been here for a few, or you've listened to every episode so far, I'm so grateful you're here. This is actually going to wrap up season one, and I will be taking a break over the summer to honor my authenticity, something we talk about all the time on this show. I'm already planning big things for season two, so don't worry, we will be back, and this break can give you some time to catch up on episodes you've missed or the ones that you really resonated with that you want to listen to again. I have a really good story from my entertainment career for you today. I'm a dancer and actress, and I've been primarily in the TV and film industry for two decades now. Throughout this time, I have had multiple agents. I've changed dance agencies more than once, I've changed theatrical agencies more than once, and I've had a couple managers within that time frame. This is totally normal, by the way. Most of the time when I changed agencies, it was because I just wanted to bring in some new energy. I just wanted a fresh start. Nothing was wrong with the current relationship. I just thought that some new energy could feel really beneficial for both myself and the agents. One time, however, that is not what happened. This story is so good. I cannot wait for you to hear it. And this episode is gonna tie in a lot of the themes that we have touched on through season one of the podcast. This episode is about rejection and why sometimes it is a blessing in disguise, how we can't always see the silver lining when something challenging happens to us, but it's always there. If there's a relationship or a job opportunity or an agent that isn't working out for you right now, this episode is going to help remind you how to stand in your worth, own your authenticity, and know that the right people, relationships, job opportunities, connections are out there for you and they will be aligned purposefully when we trust that everything happens for our benefit, that everything happens in divine timing. Let's dive in.

A Self Tape That Felt Perfect

Tyne Stecklein 2:26

I had recently signed with a new theatrical agent, which is an acting agent. They get you acting auditions. And I was really excited about this. A friend had introduced me to the agent, and even though they didn't know me, they were more of a cold contact. They didn't know me and my work. They wanted to work with me, which was really exciting. So I had been auditioning with them and just finding my flow. I get an audition for a pilot for the first episode of a new series that is hoping to get picked up for television. And I am so excited when I read the breakdown for this character because it is exactly what I have been going through for the last 18 months. It is about a new mom who is breastfeeding, who is trying to juggle all of the things, work, and mom life, and she is flustered. And that is real. If you're a mom listening, you can relate. This is so real. Breastfeeding in itself is a very challenging thing, or it can be. There's a lot that comes along with it. So I knew that struggle, which was also a part of this character struggle. So when I saw the audition, I was like, this is mine. I was so excited to put it on tape. I had a self-tape audition, which is how things started auditioning after the pandemic. You would make a tape at home, you would send it in. That's still how things audition primarily, by the way. So I set up, I made this tape, I made my husband and my 18-month-old get out of the house so I could have quiet, I could have focus. I was so excited for this. And I crushed it. Okay. I was sweating profusely. I could feel my actual engorged boobs filling with milk as I was filming the audition because that was a real thing and that was actually also in there for the character. So I was like, this is so perfect. And I'm flustered and I'm sweating and I'm like, I am crushing this. I might book this. I send the audition to my agent, who, as I mentioned, was a new relationship, and I couldn't wait to hear back from them. A lot of times the agent will email you and maybe give you feedback, something you could do differently next time, something you can keep working on, or they'll say, that was great. Or if you send them two takes, they might say, I'm gonna choose this one, or I loved how different they were. I'm gonna send both. So I was anxiously awaiting how good my work was for this audition. What do I get in response? Not how good my work was, not how you nailed this. Wow, you're a mom who can really relate to this character. I actually get an email saying, I no longer think we should work together. I'm not going to

The Agent Drops Me Afterward

Tyne Stecklein 5:00

represent you as an agent after this audition process finishes. I was shocked, you guys. I was devastated. I was confused. I thought I had just given one of the best self-tape auditions of my career. And not only did the agent not compliment my work, they said, I don't want to represent you anymore. I was absolutely baffled. And I didn't respond right away because I didn't know how to respond. I was so confused. I was so upset. And life note, we shouldn't respond when we are emotionally heightened to things like this, right? If we can take a little bit of time, which we're allowed to do that, life is so fast-paced. We have our phone, everything comes in text, email. It feels like we should respond immediately. We don't have to do that. We can take a moment for ourselves and allow ourselves to process the emotions, to move through them, to see how we feel so we can respond with clarity, not emotionally. I was working through that process, had not responded yet. And a day goes by. The next day, I get a phone call from the agent and I see the name pop up and I'm really flustered because I'm like, oh, I didn't respond to this. Now I have to get on the phone and hear how they don't want to represent me. This is going to be really embarrassing. I answer the call. You'll never believe what my agent had to say. So, Tyne, I didn't want to submit your audition because I thought it was bad, to be honest. I didn't understand it. I did not think the work was good, but I did. And guess what? The director, writer, and producer want to see you for a callback. They loved your tape. And you are one of just a few girls that they're considering to shoot for this pilot. Okay, this is fantastic news. I felt very validated all of a sudden in the work. And then I was waiting for this agent to say, so I take that back. Let's keep working together. We clearly can move forward from this. That's not what they said. They said, so actually, I still think this means that I shouldn't represent you as an agent because clearly I just don't get you. I just don't understand it. This was a comedic scene, and I didn't get how you were playing it, but they loved it. So that means that someone else should be representing you because I don't understand you as an artist. Again, I am shocked and very confused by this. Wouldn't this agent want to represent me knowing that I just got a callback for this and they really enjoyed my work and maybe we can book a lot of things together? But no, still don't want to represent you. That was a hard pill to swallow. And I don't think I swallowed it well. I was angry, I was confused, I was upset, did my callback, felt good about the callback, did not end up booking the job. That's not the point a lot of the times, because to be able to get these opportunities and then even get the callback and find out that you're one of a couple people, at that point, they want someone authentic that feels like the essence that they want for the character. So if you know that you're up for it, you have done your job. Unless you totally bomb the audition, right? I didn't do that. I had a good audition, I had a good call back, it didn't go my way. So then I was left without this job and without an agent. And at the time, it was so upsetting. Most of these stories that I share on the podcast happened a long time ago, like this one. This was six years ago.

Why Rejection Can Be Alignment

Tyne Stecklein 8:37

What I'm able to take away from this is that that agent was correct that they should not have been representing me. They didn't understand me. They didn't get the artist that I was, as they told me on the phone. We want people in life, be an agent that's representing us and our work, or a partner, a relationship, a friendship. We want people in life who understand us and support us and will cheer us on and are in our corner to back us up. To continue working with an agent who is on the other end thinking, I don't know what this actress has to offer, would make zero sense for me and my career and the opportunities that I wanted to get. So this is a massive life lesson learned. I think the most profound lesson from this story is that you are not here to convince everyone of your worth, of your art, of your outlook on life. You are here to become fully yourself, to come home to yourself. And the more you do, the more some people will not understand you and won't align with you. And that is a good thing because it's making space for the ones who see the real you, the authentic you, the embodied you, that has such a unique, incredible, beautiful essence to offer the world. It's so important to remember that art is subjective. This was the same audition, the same delivery from me, the artist, the actress. One person did not like it, another person really did. That is art. That is also life. And it's our job to keep showing up in life fully with authenticity, with presence, and with connection. So anytime we have this feeling of rejection, if we can just take a step back and move through the feelings of hurt, of anger, of sadness, and then be open-minded to the fact that maybe there's a blessing in this, that maybe there's a better agent for you, partner for you, friend for you. It can be so hard to view these challenges from the glass half full or the silver lining when they happen. And I know that better than anyone. This happened so many years ago. I did not have this perspective then. But I'm working on that now in my life when the challenges happen. If I can just give myself a little space, find my breath, listen to the episode about meditation, which is super helpful in regards to this. I can so much sooner start to see how maybe this is meant for me, not to hurt me. And I hope that me sharing this story can help you on your pathway as well.

Summer Break And How To Support

Tyne Stecklein 11:45

As I mentioned, this is going to be the end of season one of Essence Embodied. And I am so grateful that you've listened with me. While we take a break over the summer, I hope that you too can honor your authenticity and really take ownership of your self-worth, stand bold and confidently in who you are, and allow the world to see that person, to accept that person, to embrace it and to help it shine. I've already lined up an incredible guest list for season two. It's going to be so good. I can't wait. And in the meantime, if you could continue to share the show with a friend, leave a rating and review if you haven't on Apple Podcast and Spotify. It would mean so much. I'm so appreciative of you and your time and that you're spending some of it with me. Thank you so much to all of my guests from season one. I took away so many profound things from every episode, and I hope you did too. Have a beautiful summer and remember to embody your unique essence. This is Essence Embodied by Tyne Stecklein.