Dr. Janet McMordie, a fellowship-trained sports medicine physician based in Toronto, Canada, has always been driven by a passion for helping others.
However, during the pandemic, she found herself at a crossroads. Her medical career had begun to consume every aspect of her life – to the obvious detriment of her physical and emotional health. So, in a bold move towards self-discovery and balance, she embarked on a career pivot that led her from the exam room to the stage, where she stepped into the new roles of actor, voiceover artist, and improv and stunt performer.
Dr. McMordie’s path to acting began when she stumbled upon free online comedy shows offered by The Second City Toronto for healthcare workers. She recalls being captivated by the performances and feeling an “overwhelming desire to perform like that, too. I was getting more and more burnt out as the pandemic raged on, so I started searching for an outlet… something creative. Something completely separate from medicine.” She found “an escape” in acting classes, where she relished the opportunity to explore her creativity. A pandemic bonus was the convenience of learning online: she could immerse herself in acting studios in both Toronto and New York without ever leaving her home.
After a showcase, an agent reached out to her. After signing with them, she began to audition and book roles, and even reconnected with her local community theatre, where she participated in productions for the first time since high school. The more she delved into her creative pursuits, the more she discovered a community of like-minded individuals who had also made major career transitions into acting. Inspired by their stories, she decided to start the Second Act Actors podcast, a platform where she celebrates and engages in intimate conversations with people who have successfully pursued acting as their second act in life. “Starting a new career, especially one in the arts, can be very lonely,” she admits. “I like that I have started a community of Second Act Actors. I love getting messages from people who have discovered my podcast and are thrilled to find others like them!”
Alongside her podcast and acting, Dr. McMordie continues her small sport medicine practice and works in the operating room at her local hospital. Perhaps surprisingly, she finds that her acting has influenced her work as a physician. “Actors are storytellers, and storytelling is one of the only ways we develop empathy and emotional intelligence,” she explains. So it makes sense that building trust and rapport with her patients has become easier, as she incorporates skills honed through acting. She credits improv as having the most substantial impact on her medical practice: since improv is all about “thinking on your feet and being creative,” it has enhanced her ability to think creatively and find innovative solutions for complex medical problems. Additionally, improv has proven to be an invaluable stress reliever: “Not only do I feel this relief after a stressful day at the hospital, but I feel I can handle the stress during work significantly better,” she notes. “I feel like I have more mental clarity, resilience, and an improved ability to stay calm and focused.”
Launching a podcast was another leap into the unknown for Dr. McMordie, who had no prior experience with podcasting. As an avid fan of various podcasts, she drew on her passion for the medium. She conducted extensive research, which was guided by four deceptively simple questions:
- What is my podcast about?
- Who is it for?
- What is the problem they face / What benefit are they getting from listening?
- How do you help them solve it / Why should they listen?
Ultimately, she determined her answers . . . and decided that “there is truly no better teacher than just getting out there and doing it! ‘Learn by doing’ is a medical school motto, and I 100% did that when starting my show!” she beams. She stresses how much she has learned since launching her podcast, and how it continues to improve with each episode.
When asked to offer advice to those who are considering starting their own podcasts, Dr. McMordie reverts to her core questions about purpose and target audience. She encourages potential podcasters to be clear about the impact they wish to make – whether that be prompting laughter, provoking thought, or educating and entertaining listeners. Her bottom line? “Start yourself off with a clear ‘why’, and your passion will shine through.” She advises not getting mired in statistics and data, and reminds aspiring podcasters that even a single listener represents an impact: “We have a weird brain-shift with virtual likes/numbers/downloads, so it’s important to remember that there are real, living humans listening to your show, and they matter.” Finally, to ensure an optimal listening experience, sound quality is crucial: “The biggest reason a listener will turn off your show is if the sound quality is bad,” she points out, so investing in a high-quality microphone and a quiet recording space is key.
One last tip is to develop a great “elevator pitch” that captures the essence of the podcast. Her own is, frankly, inspiring: “Second Act Actors is a podcast that celebrates people who have made a major career pivot, transitioning from one profession to acting. From lawyers to doctors to teachers, these guests share their inspiring stories of taking a leap of faith and overcoming challenges to find success in the entertainment industry later in life. If you’re looking for inspiration to make a change in your own life, or simply want to hear some amazing stories of resilience and determination, Second Act Actors is the podcast and the community for you!”
Thanks to her pivot to acting and podcasting, Dr. McMordie’s life is fuller and richer – though still a work in progress: “These days, I’m trying to find a better balance between my medical career, which provides me with financial independence and scientific curiosity; and my creative career, which provides me with colourful joy and emotional challenge.”
And with the growing popularity of Second Act Actors, she is well on her way to building a community of individuals seeking the kind of creativity, resilience and balance that have, gratifyingly, taken centre stage in her life. If Dr. McMordie’s elevator pitch strikes a chord for you – perhaps because you’re pondering a pivot of your own – inspiration and community await at Second Act Actors.
© Arpita Ghosal, Sesayarts Magazine, 2023
