As far as tools for actors go, I think a P.O. box is often overlooked: they’re useful and can even solve a few problems…
- Concealing Your Personal Address
I don’t know about you, but I don’t really want to hand out my home address to every potential contact, actor, CD, Agent… I
meet or find online. Considering how easy it is for an email containing a snail mail address to get passed around, I think it’s a pretty reasonable precaution to give out the address of my P.O. box, rather than my home. I haven’t had a problem yet, but I don’t particularly want to, either. And for those of you who are easily recognized by the public, having papers and cards with your home address on it might not be a bright idea either.
- Keeping Your Money Safe
I’ve lived in neighborhoods where it was crucial to get the mail out of the mailbox immediately. If I didn’t, I couldn’t be sure that I’d actually get all of my mail — and that includes the checks paying for my work. And as incidents of identity theft have gone up, it’s not just checks that I worry about. Between contracts and tax forms, so much personal information passes through my mail box that I feel safest when no one without the right key can touch it. Even if your agent or accountant handles most payments, or does direct deposit, it can be useful not to have bank statements come in.
- Protecting Your Packages
The same problems with receiving your mail are only intensified when it comes packages. With a P.O. box, the post office will just hold any packages that come your way (although they won’t accept packages for you from other carriers). With one simple step, you can eliminate the chance that the postman will just drop a box on your front step, out where anyone can grab it. You also don’t have to worry about having to sign for anything in your mail: if the post office needs confirmation on a certified letter or package, they’ll get you to sign while you’re picking up the rest of your mail.
- Eliminating changes of address
If you find that your home address is less than stable — maybe you move apartments every so often, maybe you take extended trips, and we all know about those 3 month shoots in Timbuktu..— a P.O. box can guarantee that you don’t have to try to update your contact information every time you move. And if you’re on the go regularly, you don’t have to worry about arranging for
someone to pick up your mail — just let the post office know that you’ll be gone and they’ll just keep stacking the envelopes in your box.
Getting Your P.O. Box
In most countries, getting a P.O. box is just a matter of contacting your local post office or checking online. The U.S. Post Office, for instance, lets you do all the paperwork for setting up a P.O. box online. You’ll probably be asked to pay for six months or a full year at a time: for a small box, about $20 per six months is normal. Don’t forget to keep your receipts, by the way. A P.O. box is a business expense and deductible on your taxes as an actor.
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