It should go without question that the single most valuable asset you can bring to the table as a comedian is your already-developed comedy talent.
I’m talking specifically about the exact same comedy talent you use day in and day out to make others laugh during casual conversations.
So in this article, I want to discuss comedy talent as it applies to you and your stand-up comedy endeavors.
First, let me define comedy talent so that we’re on the same page as I move forward:
Comedy talent: The combination of qualities, attributes, and expressive characteristics that gives an individual their ability to cause others to laugh.
The part of that definition you should pay close attention to is the combination of qualities, attributes, and expressive characteristics—because…
What gives you the ability to make others laugh in casual conversations with one or more people is the natural integration of multiple factors such as your sense of humor, attitude, physical attributes, expressive mannerisms, vocal traits, speaking style, and many other attributes specific to you.
In other words, there is much more involved in verbal communication than just words.
And for many, it’s the recognition of their ability to generate laughs during everyday conversations—or from the speaking podium—that moves them toward taking a shot at stand-up comedy.
A Big Problem Begins Here
While the information I’ve presented so far about your comedy talent may seem obvious, it’s very important to note that:
The vast majority of people looking to try stand-up comedy are largely unaware of all the qualities, attributes, and characteristics involved in causing others to laugh—and the reason is simple:
Most of what a person uses to generate laughter during conversations happens spontaneously and automatically.
Only a split second of forethought is needed before a person naturally expresses—with confidence—a comment, experience, or observation that causes others to laugh.
When this happens, an individual is naturally applying all of their comedy talent—the seamless integration of the qualities, attributes, and characteristics they possess (in addition to the words and phrasing they use) to give them the ability to cause others to laugh with ease.
But here’s what’s most important to understand about your comedy talent:
Your comedy talent represents a personalized skill set developed over years of countless in-person verbal interactions with literally thousands of people throughout your life.
It’s during this time that a person not only develops their sense of humor, point of view, and perspective on the world around them—but also learns how to express that sense of humor using all of the individual qualities and characteristics that give them their comedy talent.
It would also be accurate to say that the comedy talent you have right now is the direct result of personal interactions with live “audiences”—individuals or groups—you’ve entertained by making them laugh.
In other words, the comedy talent you have now was not developed by handing written “jokes” or other comedy material to the thousands of people you’ve interacted with over the years and expecting to generate laughter from them reading that material.
This is a very important distinction to make—as you’ll see in just a moment.
IMPORTANT: In any live audience environment, whether it be:
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A casual conversation among one or more people you know or meet
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A speaking podium or teaching situation
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Performing as a comedian delivering a stand-up comedy routine
The primary mechanisms for generating laughter are exactly the same. In other words, there is no “special” mechanism a comedian uses that is not used in everyday conversations to generate laughs.
Where Comedy Talent Gets Lost
Common sense would dictate that, in order for an individual to have the best possible chance of success in their stand-up comedy adventures, they would want to use and apply all of their already-developed comedy talent when they hit the stage as a comedian.
This usually does not happen because the vast majority of new comedians attempt to substitute the process of “writing” for the process of “talking.”
I believe I cover the reasons for this extensively in the first lesson of my online course.
But suffice it to say that—outside the use of words—“writing” and “talking” couldn’t be more different. Specifically:
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Writing is formally learned and follows standard grammatical rules. Talking is informally learned and isn’t bound by grammar.
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Writing only involves words. Talking incorporates a number of other significant attributes, qualities, and characteristics in addition to words.
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Writing is intended specifically for consumption by an individual reader. Talking is intended for consumption by an observer or group of observers.
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The skill set for writing is very different from the skill set for talking.
Interesting note: No one seems to suffer from “talker’s block” when communicating with others—unlike the infamous “writer’s block” that comes with producing written content.
Needless to say, talking is a heck of a lot easier than writing anything.
If you have any doubt that writing and talking are completely different and unique forms of communication, you only need to run a search engine query—you’ll find tens of millions of pages confirming the differences.
The Bottom Line:
Writing (as you’ve been taught and trained to do) will never reflect all of your comedy talent—the same talent you use to make others laugh in everyday conversations or will need to use on a stand-up comedy stage.
Don’t get me wrong—yes, your comedy material should be written down.
But there’s a huge difference between:
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Writing down and tightly structuring what you want to say and express in a way that generates frequent laughs by incorporating all your comedy talent, and…
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Trying to somehow “write” or fabricate jokes from thin air on a blank sheet of paper, designed for an individual reader—not a live audience.
The two Success Primer lessons about your comedy talent included in this course provide another version of the same core info found in the articles within this SCF Module.
Why?
Because whether or not someone recognizes their real ability to make others laugh when they talk and express themselves will determine how easy—or how painfully hard—it is for them to develop a stand-up act that actually kills.
So here’s the question you might want to ask yourself:
When did the unique comedy talent you already have—and already use to get laughs—become not good enough for stand-up comedy?
Mainstream comedy experts don’t even mention your comedy talent. They head straight for the “joke writing” process as the one and only way to succeed as a comedian.
So it’s not your fault—it’s an absence of information that causes people to make inaccurate assumptions.
And those inaccurate assumptions are what cause them to flop at stand-up comedy.
Here’s the Bottom Line:
If you believe that “writing” in the conventional sense is the best way to reach your goals of developing a stand-up act that actually generates big laughs…
Your best bet is to stop reviewing this course and go seek out the more “traditional” methods—the same ones proven to help comedians flop over and over again.
Don’t believe me?
Sit through any comedy open mic night and pay close attention to the new comedians who aren’t getting any laughs.
The Big Takeaway
Like I mentioned before:
The comedy talent you have right now was not developed by handing people written material and expecting them to laugh by reading it.
Your comedy talent involves much, much more than just the literal words you use when you talk.
Most people already have more than enough comedy talent to excel in stand-up comedy—if they know how to capture, develop, and structure their already-developed comedy talent for the stage.
But if you want to take the road most traveled—and try to approach stand-up comedy using a skill set designed for a reader (writing) instead of a skill set designed for live audience experience (talking—which, again, is far easier than writing)…
That’s 100% your call.
Just reflect on this article when you hit the stage… and the laughs don’t roll in like you wanted them to.