Your First Steps In Stand-up Comedy

Stand-Up Comedy: Why Finding Stage Time Matters

One of the very first things a prospective comedian should do is find out where every possible performing opportunity is in their area.

The reason I say that is simple: without audiences to perform for, it is basically impossible to develop a stand-up comedy routine.

Let me put this another way:

While most of what a comedian does to develop and deliver a stand-up comedy act happens before and after they hit the stage, it is on the stage where a comedian develops their skill and ability as a comedy entertainer.

The Goal

Every comedian has the same performance goal, which is to “kill” the audience. In concrete terms, “killing” the audience means generating an average of 4-6+ noteworthy laughs every performing minute.

More accurately, the 4-6+ laughs a comedian generates should equate to an average of 18+ seconds of collective audience laughter each performing minute.

It is when a comedian approaches, meets, or exceeds this level of laughter generation that they begin to be approached for more advanced or paid performing opportunities.

Interestingly, most new comedians are completely unaware of these verifiable performance levels, much less how to develop and deliver a stand-up comedy routine that even comes close.

Creating a powerful stand-up comedy routine that generates noteworthy laughs is a process with 4 primary parts:

1. Develop stand-up comedy material designed to generate an average of 4-6+ laughs every performing minute, right from the start.
2. Prepare to deliver stand-up comedy material in a professional way that enhances laughter frequency and intensity.
3. Perform for audiences and use the stage to fine-tune the act.
4. Adjust, edit, or eliminate material after performances to ensure the tightest, most laugh-inducing routine possible in the fewest number of performances.

The speed at which any comedian will progress in stand-up comedy is directly related to the effectiveness and efficiency of this process.

Most new comedians do not have a solid process when they start, which means their results are hit or miss.

You need only sit through a couple of stand-up comedy open mic nights to fully understand what I’m talking about.

This is one of the reasons why many comedians spend 5+ years before they can generate noteworthy laughs on stage.

Related Article: Does It Take 5 – 10 Years To Get Good At Stand-up Comedy?

But that’s not the only reason it takes new comedians so long to get anywhere in stand-up comedy.

A Big Mistake New Comedians Make

I started this article by saying that you need to find out where all the performing opportunities are for new comedians to take the stage.

What you also need to know is that no matter where you live, there’s usually a long line of folks trying to get on stage to develop their stand-up comedy routine.

If you don’t take anything else away from this article, know this:

Stage time for new comedians is a precious commodity that is limited in the beginning.

New comedians are usually afforded only 3-5 minutes on stage at a time. Unfortunately, most new comedians squander these precious opportunities.

In other words:

• They don’t know how to develop and structure stand-up comedy material that reflects their talent.
• They don’t know how to prepare to deliver their material to an audience.
• When they get on stage, it’s mostly talking with few, if any, laughs.
• When they leave the stage, they don’t know how to evaluate or adjust their material to enhance its laughter generation power.

In essence, this approach is a waste of valuable stage time.

Accumulating more performances under these conditions just extends the time it takes to develop even a small amount of material that consistently gets laughs.

Important Considerations

For those who have comedy talent and want to capitalize on that talent, know this:

Every single comedian has complete control over the process they use to develop and deliver a stand-up comedy act.

While stand-up comedy is most certainly a challenging adventure, it’s not difficult to stand head and shoulders above other new comedians in a relatively short period if you have a process that works for you.

Related Article: Is Stand-up Comedy Competitive? Not Even Close…

Here’s another thing to pay attention to as you embark on your journey:

At open mic nights, you get to observe what does NOT work on stage, as demonstrated by the majority of new comedians. Use this to your advantage and avoid the mistakes others make.

Another Big Mistake: Wasting Stage Time

One of the biggest mistakes that new comedians make is squandering the limited stage time they have. When you only get 3-5 minutes on stage, every second counts. But new comedians often use that time to ramble, tell disorganized stories, or deliver jokes with no timing. The result? Few, if any, laughs.

The truth is, the stage is not the place to “wing it” and hope for the best. The stage is the place to execute a plan. And that plan is your well-prepared, tightly-structured comedy material. Even with limited time, tight material can make a huge difference.

If you’re just talking without direction, you’re not giving the audience what they came for—laughter. You’re wasting the opportunity to test, refine, and prove your talent. This can stretch out the learning curve unnecessarily and keep you in the “open mic” phase longer than you need to be.

Stand-Up Comedy is All About Efficiency

Stand-up comedy is an art form built on efficiency. The goal is to get the biggest laughs in the shortest amount of time. This is why pros can deliver 4-6+ laughs per minute—they’ve mastered how to use their time wisely.

When you’re starting, it can be tempting to try and fill the stage time by talking more, but the secret is actually in talking less but saying more.

AI tools and structured writing systems can assist in speeding up this process, giving comedians confidence in their material before even stepping on stage. They offer a process to cut down the guessing work and let you focus on delivery rather than constantly reworking the material.

Take Control of Your Comedy Journey

For those who have talent and want to accelerate their progress as comedians, understand that every comedian has complete control over how they approach the craft. It doesn’t take 5-10 years if you’re actively avoiding the mistakes that hold new comedians back.

New comedians who lack direction usually rely on “trial and error,” which often results in them taking far longer to improve. But by applying a proven process, you can avoid these unnecessary pitfalls and see results far more quickly.