Every Saturday night my Facebook feed goes from a stream of non-comic friends posting their dinner pics to a late-night stream of comics letting the rest of the world know that they did a show (which is fine, show people you’re working). However, a select number of comics always accompany their gig pictures with news of how they killed, slayed, or whatever ridiculous verb they can come up with. Stop doing that. No one believes you. Bookers aren’t scrolling through their Facebook feed searching for your own Yelp review of your show. Ever see any of the headliners you look up to post about killing it? No. (If so, stop looking up to them.)
If you’re at a club and the manager asks how your set went, be honest. If it wasn’t your best show, it’s best to let them know you’re aware that you didn’t do well. The thing is, they already know how you did, they’re seeing what you consider good enough. If they hear you lie about it, they’ll either think you’re delusional or have set the bar too low for what is acceptable. Raise the bar on yourself.
It’s okay to admit when you have a bad set. Last week I wrote about not meshing well with the headliner’s crowd. Most of you understand that yes, there are bad bookings. However, one Facebook thread went on and on about how “it sounds like this happens to this guy a lot. It’s never the crowd’s fault!” Yes, new readers… I wrote last week’s blog to share with the world how much trouble I always seem to have. Ignore the 100+ blog entries where you learn from my mistakes in 14 years of experience. Instead, take away from it that I’m not a good enough comic. I had to revisit my entry about ignoring negative crap.
For other tips on how to gain respect from other comics as well as the bookers who’ll make sure you have a career, read my book Don’t Wear Shorts on Stage. (Available on Kindle, iTunes, Nook, and Amazon)
Don't Wear Shorts on Stage 