I was listening to a podcast last week featuring John Crist. He was sharing his professional journey, including work he did while trying to make it as a stand-up comedian. Some advice he offered (paraphrased) to anyone making ends meet while chasing a dream was:
Don't work against your skills.
In other words, if you have to take whatever work you can get until you land the work you really want, make sure you're still honing and perfecting your existing talents. Keep getting better at the thing you're great at.
There is no other pathway to doing what you dream of doing. Make sure whatever route you take keeps making you better.