It's not always what you left out, sometimes it's what was already there.

Character work.  It's not always what you left out... sometimes it's what was already there that is causing a separation.  Judgment can be our own worst enemy, but observation is our best.  Human beings are creatures of habit.

Understanding the primal need as a human being can take you to the truth.  Start there.  When your objective stems from a primal need it will be come stronger.

Every human being has a soul, an aura, an essence of who they are.  Don't leave out the soul or you have only created a character not a human being.   Find out what that human being breathes for, what makes him or her tic.  What feeling do you get when you step into the shoes? You have to make those shoes your own. Your choices have to be strong, but let me follow that by saying they have to stem from the truth!!  Don't make your character based on things you made up out of the blue.  Everything has a reason.  Find it.

What inside you is it that is stopping you?  That could be a number of things.  If you are working on a character that may be gay and you have some issue about being gay, then you can't find the truth. If you are taking on the part of a prostitute but you can't get past thinking prostitutes have to be sluty, then you will not create a human being.  If you create a human being based on one word like "slutty", "mean", "dumb" or anything that sheds a negative light on that character, then you are going to create a one-sided character.  Others can call you these names, but not many people call themselves those names.

Take your EGO out of the equation.