As a comedian, when you hit that 2nd milestone of a “tight 10 minutes” (the first, being a tight 5 minutes) of material, I think it’s a good idea to hit the road and travel a bit with your ten if you can! Go to nearby cities and hit up their open mics and bring your “best”. Usually they’ll give out of towners more time, so you want to wait until you can do more then 5 comfortably. Another good idea, if you don’t mind spending a little money, is entering into comedy contests.
Many comedians don’t like comedy contests for very good reason. Humor is 100% subjective. What’s funny to you may not be funny to me, and vice versa. Also, standup comedy is an art, and the beauty of art by nature is also subjective. So the minute you try to make a competition over anything that is subjective, people get a little antsy.
The best advice I ever got about the competition part of comedy contests was given to me at the booker of a contest in Knoxville TN. He said the following.
“All Comedy Contests are Bull Sh*t.”
And graphic language and self censoring aside. He was 100% correct! Contests are left up to judges who have their own biases and preferences, like literally every other human that exists, so to stock all of the merit of your material on the judges, or the contest, is really an exercise in self sabotage. And yes, this is coming from someone who has lost more comedy contests then he has won.
However, there is a LOT of merit to comedy contests that have nothing to do with the actual winning of it. First, the networking with other comedians is invaluable. A contest usually attracts comedians from all over so it’s a great way to meet comedians from different states, become friends with them, and then maybe get to perform with them on shows later on. I have lost contests in the first round before, and been booked on another comedian’s show, who I met at said contest, which ended up paying for the contest I lost and then some.
Additionally, usually contests are held on better stages then you can easily get access to, especially when you’re first starting. Some contests happen in comedy clubs or a theater, and they make a great “leg into the door” to meet the bookers and also to perform in front of a big live audience. So that’s a plus too! And if the contest is recorded, or if you record it yourself, that’s a good video that you can use to potentially get more work or at the very least impress your friends and online fans.
Lastly…Comedy contests can be FUN! That’s right, I said it. There’s something fun about trying to be the best of the night, and normally all the comedians showing up are bringing their best so you are going to be able to listen to a hilarious show.
All that being said, now I want to tell you about the time I went to one of the best comedy contests of my life!
So it was 2014…I think…and I went to perform at a comedy contest at Theatre 99, in Charleston South Carolina. I don’t think they do this particular comedy contest there anymore, otherwise I would be recommending it to every comedian I know. The best part of this particular contest, like most of them, wasn’t at all the competition but the venue and crowd we were able to perform in front of. I have performed at Theatre 99 a few times, and their crowd always is friendly and they come ready to laugh.
And every comedian, every one of them, was bringing the heat. Each 5 minute act felt like it was the best 5 minutes the comedian had ever performed. There was just something special about this show and this moment we were all sharing together. There were about twenty performers, and every single one of them got up and killed. (That’s comedy for, “did incredibly well”)
I have definitely performed better since 2014, but I can remember getting off the stage and thinking, “That’s the best I have ever performed in my life” and I remember other comedians saying the same thing about their set.
So I did my set, and exited the stage with roaring applause. As I was leaving the green room, I turn to the comedian who is coming onto the stage and tell him, “Good luck man…that crowd is great, and I am sure you will do awesome!” And I’ll never forget his response.
He said, “Oh, I already know I am going to win this.”
And then the comedian went up, and killed just like every other performer…because this was one of the best shows ever, that hardly anyone has ever heard of.
At the end of the competition, all the comedians are brought back on stage and they were going to announce the big winner of the night, who would return on a different date to challenge three other comedians for a spot at a big comedy festival in Charleston. I had two thoughts.
- “I really want to win!”
- “Please don’t let that really arrogant guy win!”
Sadly, only one of my dreams came true. I did not progress, and neither did the comedian who went after me. I remember not being really discouraged by it, because there was some real comedy magic in the air that night. I know this sounds cheesy, but everyone who performed and the entire audience were the winners because it was one of the best comedy shows ever. And 5 minutes of it, was because I did the best set of my life at that time.
After the competition I had the opportunity to talk to all the performers, and they had a very similar experience. We were just blown away at the awesomeness that occurred. All the performers, except one. The guy that went after me, who was so sure he was going to win.
He was ranting and raving about how he was robbed. About how he should have won, and he knew the judges personally had a problem with him. To be honest, I had just met him and I had a problem with him. So maybe he was right?
I remember feeling so sad for this guy because he was so caught up in the competition part of the show that he missed out on the beauty and amazing experience of the night…We had all just put on one of the best comedy shows of our lives, and were able to hear other comedians in the zone, AND were able to gift that to a full house of a “real audience”…and this guy totally missed out on that joy, because he was pissed that he didn’t win some contest that years later I have to admit…is a dime a dozen.
I left Charleston that weekend with a very important lesson that I would like to leave you with on this blog entry. Don’t ever let pettiness prevent you from fully experiencing the moment you’re in for all that it’s worth. Winning is all a matter of perspective. Yes, we can be bummed that we didn’t get *first place*, but don’t let the lack of first place make you feel like a loser. To quote Star Wars, “Only the Sith deal in absolutes.”
So to my fellow comedians, don’t let losing a contest make you resent being in the contest. Don’t let not being the headliner, make you resent being on the show. Don’t let not being booked at certain places cause you to not enjoy the places that you are booked at. Give it your best, keep trying to accomplish your goals, but remember to enjoy the wins when they come your way! Don’t be so distracted by the “losses” that you don’t appreciate the victories. If you do that, you’ll be such a happier person!
To non comedians, the same advice reigns true. If you play a sport, don’t let the fact that your team lost the game take away from the amazing game YOU played. If you don’t make the team, or get the star role in the play, or get hired for that job, or whatever, don’t let it take away from the fact that you got off your butt, worked hard, maybe tried something new, and gave it your best. As you work towards your goals and dreams, don’t get so distracted by struggles of moving up that you forget to appreciate the journey itself.
I promise if you do that you will 100% not feel like a loser no matter what the outcome. I honestly believe that being defeated by something is a choice. You’re never defeated if you keep going. To quote Alfred, from Batman Begins, “What do we do when we fall? We get back up.” Notice the butler didn’t say, “We stay on the ground, cry about it, blame everyone else, and just be miserable.”
I am so glad I met that comedian 8 years ago so I could have a better idea of the kind of comedian I don’t want to be. And that’s the story about the time I went to one of the best comedy contests of my life!
Do you have a story about an amazing comedy show, or big event that you’d like to share? What was one of the best moments of your life and what did you learn from it? Or, what was one of the roughest moments of your life and how did you learn from that? Feel free to share below in the comments section! Thanks for reading!
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