Ready... Set... Funny!One of the key things I’m learning (and I think it applies to any endeavor) is the balance between pushing yourself full throttle but also carefully enough so you don’t trip and fall so hard you hurt yourself irreparably. Falling now and then is unavoidable (and honestly, I think healthy). If you’re in the gym and you lift a weight that is clearly beyond your strength level, you’ll hurt or kill yourself. But always lifting a light, or even manageable, weight will do nothing to improve your strength and conditioning. It’s too easy. The key is knowing what you CAN do and being cognizant of how far you can push yourself just enough to maximize your growth. Last night for me was a good gauge of where I am. It was the first time I peformed at Caroline's in Times Square. I’d been there twice before, once to see Jim Norton and another to see Dave Attell (two of my absolute favorites). It’s easily a three hundred seater (if not more) and for that early show the room was only a fraction full, I’d say no more than 40 audience members. I’ve taken shits in front of more people. As I sat there waiting to go up… something about the room, the name “Caroline’s” on the back wall, the fact I’d be walking on the same stage as some of my heroes, the added pressure of the show being a competition (based on audience voting)… made me more nervous than I’d expected. I never get nervous before a show anymore. I thought I was over that phase. I guess not. A combination of all those (and other) things took me out of my best game. I was fine once on stage, but those crucial moments right before you get on, I’ll admit, I wasn’t in the right head space. I ended up remembering all my jokes, got them all out clearly, even killed on my last bit… but alas I lost my “head-to-head” match up. (Comedy competitions suck beyond anything I can imagine. I don’t know ONE comedian who gives these stupid things ANY merit whatsoever… but we all do it for the stage time and possible exposure. Ugh… Whoever has the most fans will get the best reaction and thus win the “competition”. By contrast, that’s the beauty of sports; a road team can enter hostile territory and actually WIN the game. Can you imagine if the Boston Red Sox walked into Yankee Stadium and the Red Sox’ fate was determined by the fans’ voting? Gee, I wonder how THAT would turn out.) Regardless of my excuses, I made rookie mistakes and didn’t capitalize on some really easy freebies. I’m kicking myself today for all those missed “easy lay ups” (in honor of the NBA playoffs, which ironically I’m missing every night because of doing stand up). You’re never as good as you think you are. Last night was a nice little stumble and fall. Now to get back up…
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