In this concise monologue, Aaron Marcus—an actor, commercial model of 26+ years, author of How to Become a Successful Commercial Model, and founder of howtomodel.com—shares practical advice on traveling from his home outside Manhattan to New York for auditions, go‑sees, and jobs. He outlines his background, the logistical challenges of commuting, and the variety of transport options (train, car, Megabus, BoltBus). The core lesson is a cost‑saving ticket‑purchase strategy: because many tickets are cheaper when bought far in advance but are non‑refundable, he now waits until the night before he is certain he will travel, even if the price is slightly higher, to avoid losing money on cancelled engagements. He concludes with contact information (email and Facebook community) for further questions.
Chapters
Hi, my name is Aaron Marcus. I've been making my living as an actor and a commercial model for over 26 years. I've written How to Become a Successful Commercial Model. I do online acting and modeling coaching, as well as giving in-person workshops. I've done over 500. I've traveled to 4 different countries doing that, and I'm also founder of howtomodel.com. Many years ago, I decided that I did not want to live in Manhattan. Wanted to work there, just didn't want to live there. I didn't think it would be a great place to raise a family, and I like living in a smaller environment, having more land and a house and things like that. So because of that decision, that meant that when I would work in New York, whether it's an audition, a go-see, or a job, I would have to travel there. And generally, it's my responsibility to pay and to make sure that I'm there. So throughout the years, I've tried it many, many different ways, sometimes by train, sometimes by driving, sometimes a combination of the two, and sometimes I take a bus. There's, there's a bus called the Megabus, there's the Bolt Bus that runs primarily on the East Coast, and I've learned a lesson that I wanted to share with you. Typically, the further in advance that you purchase the ticket, the less expensive it is. And what's happened to me a couple of times recently is purchase the ticket maybe 3 or 4 days ahead of time, and then the day before I'm supposed to travel, either the audition gets canceled, the job gets canceled, maybe this is a go-see and then I book a job in another area for that particular day and I have to cancel. And unfortunately, you lose money if you don't If you don't cancel within a certain time period, you don't get a refund. So what I decided to do after unfortunately having to pay for a ticket that I couldn't use, I decided to wait until the night before where I knew I was going to actually use the ticket, then purchase it. And if it's a little bit more expensive, it's well worth it, and that way I'm not just throwing money away. So anyhow, just wanted to share that with you, and if you have any questions at all, You can always email me at aaron@howtomodel.com, and you can also join my acting and modeling community at facebook.com/howtomodel. Okay, looking forward to talking with you soon. Bye. Bye.
