At my second comedy gig, much like James T Kirk doing the Kobayashi Maru* test, I skewed the odds in my favour (by inviting a lot of my friends). There were so many of them that the venue was at capacity, and they probably made up two-thirds of the audience. I did it because I was arrogant enough to want to do well at any cost, and I was afraid of failing. Very afraid.
I love superheroes; the central theme of Christopher Nolan’s first Batman film** was fear, repeated throughout the script.
For a public speaker – and stand-up comic specifically – the fear can be overwhelming. And much like Bruce Wayne, standing up in the centre of a maelstrom of bats, I had my moment when I embraced my fear, and accepted it. I had applied myself repeatedly to the task, and finally, after many attempts, my reward came.
You can achieve precisely the same revelatory experience, with hard work, plain and simple. Just keep going.
Ker-Pow!
* (As featured in JJ Abrams’ first Star Trek movie; an essential example of creative thinking.)
** (I think this series is really very good indeed. I mean really quite exceptional, particularly for a series based on a superhero. It just doesn’t get better than this, never mind Avengers Assemble – yes I went there).
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