Becoming a comedian can be difficult. It can be tough to break into comedy, but in the end, once you do the hard work will pay off quickly. Even the best comedians in the world, the most celebrated celebrities of comedy earned their placement and status by performing and following specific tips that helped them to find their success. One thing is for sure, if you want to be a comedian, there is nothing magical that you can do to replace hard work.
Stage time is the only way to truly master stand up comedy, but here is how to use time on and off stage to your advantage.
- Take Advantage Of Any Stand-Up Comedy Opportunities
- Practice Your Set On And Off Stage
- Stay True To Your Own Brand Of Comedy
- Record All Of Your Stand Up Comedy
- Listen To Your Sets To Find Your Voice Faster
- “Steal” Comedy From Real Life
- Always Have A Way To Record Ideas
- Study Comedians And Comedy Specials
- Make Your Comedy About What You Think Is Funny
- Learn Brevity And Economy Of Words
Take Advantage Of Any Stand-Up Comedy Opportunities
The first thing you have to do to make it in the comedy world is to get on stage. It can be scary and challenging at first, but if you are not putting yourself out there, you are not going to get very far in the world of comedy. Look for every stand-up comedy opportunity that you can find — the more that you are on stage performing, the better that you are going to become.
Every show, every minute you are on stage is a chance to earn timing, stage presence, and perhaps even find another gem in your jokes. Take every chance you can to get on stage, even a bad show is better than no show. It does not matter the venue, crowd, or setting, If you can get stage time, take it. If not someone else will and you will be home not doing stand up and wishing you were.
Practice Your Set On And Off Stage
Many people sing along to their favorite songs in their cars, and their showers. This repetition helps them to hear the tone, the pauses, beats and rhythm of the song. Stand up is just like music. You have a rhythm to the way you speak, the beats in a joke pattern and the tones in how you deliver your setup will usually and should try to be different than the tone you deliver your punchline.
Practicing your set in your home and finding a place you can treat like a stage is a great way to learn to deliver your jokes. When I practice a set I setup a mic and mic stand in my living room in front of my couch and treat the couch like the audience. I record my set so i can play it back later and I act as if I am coming to stage, removing the mic, moving the mic stand and then deliver my set. I have increased my stage skills so much faster this way and many people have complemented me on the noticeable difference.
Stay True To Your Own Brand Of Comedy
As you get started, you will want to find a point of view and create your brand. Keep working those old jokes, and do not stop using your old material, work to improve it to get the most laughs. It should go without saying but, you can never borrow jokes or comedy from other people. Stealing comedy is not the way to become a successful comedian. One great rule of thumb is to be yourself.
The best comedians have found their own brand and voice. If you tell someone the name of a famous comedian you like they will know what type of humor or what that comedians “shtick” is and that’s called branding. If you have a favorite comedian it is probably because you like their style which is what their entire brand of comedy is based on. Finding your style is the key to developing your brand.
Record All Of Your Stand Up Comedy
When you are on stage, you might not notice what jokes are getting the most laughs. You also might not notice if you are acting odd or uncomfortable. Tape yourself performing your stand up comedy. This can help you to see the areas where you need to improve as well as identify the areas where you are doing your best. By seeing yourself performing and studying it afterward, you can improve yourself to become a great comedian.
Every comedian has something they do that limits their success. It may be your timing, your delivery, or even your movement. When I started I paced the stage like a lion looking for prey which made audiences uncomfortable and cut my laughter short. Had I not seen a video of myself on stage and made myself uncomfortable I might still be pacing the stage today.
Listen To Your Sets To Find Your Voice Faster
Recording your set is only one half of the power of doing so. Listening is the hardest part of that combo. No comedian likes to hear their set. However it is the ones who listen and study their sets that grow the fastest. Just like athletes watch game day videos comedians should be listening to and if possible watching their sets.
If you watch or listen to your sets and study them you will hear things that you might not have ever even known you do or say. Maybe you repeat words in a setup which kills it for the punchline. Maybe you say your setup line loud and your punchline low killing the laugh. Maybe you don’t pause after a punchline and the next joke or tag. These little things can have a huge impact on your stand up. Listen and learn.
“Steal” Comedy From Real Life
Well stealing is kind of a misnomer. You can’t steal things you say in real life that make people laugh from yourself. But what about those funny things others say or you over hear in the world? That’s not stealing either. Think about all the times you have been somewhere and someone has said or done something funny and you find yourself laughing about it later. Guess what that could be comedy gold.
Some of the best jokes comedians have told come from real life experiences that they refine and shape to make a joke on stage. Listen to things around you and when you hear them record them in a notebook, on your phone, or in some other way. Which brings us to…
Always Have A Way To Record Ideas
One of the easiest things that you can do with comedy is always to have a notebook on hand. This will allow you to write down things that you see that are funny as well as to record funny jokes that you might pop into your mind. You should be writing every single day if you want to become a comedian, so having a notebook to write your comedy in when you are not home is a great way to ensure that you are always perfecting your routine.
Having a way to capture the silly, wild, or even mundane ideas you have will jump you ahead of many of today’s comedians. By writing things down even just a word or two you are building a rolodex for future jokes, bits, and sets. Maybe you won’t use a line or word for years but when you do use it you will be glad you wrote it down all that time ago.
Study Comedians And Comedy Specials
Everyone wants to be as big or famous like Seinfeld, Chris Rock, Kevin Hart or whomever your favorite comedian is. That’s great use them to motivate AND educate you. Stand up specials are like watching the Super Bowl for athletes. You get to see all the hard work and trials pay off in one show.
While stand up has changed there is still something to be learned from any comedian and comedy special. Whether it is delivery, brevity, alliteration, rhythm, timing, or nay number of things there is a nugget to be found. The more you study the more you will gain. Specials and Albums are like sitting at the feet of a master and allows you to hang on every word. Then rewind and hang on it again.
Make Your Comedy About What You Think Is Funny
One of the most common and worst traps that a comedian can fall into is trying to write comedy that they do not personally think is funny. Do not write for the audience, write for yourself and for the audience that you want to gain. If you are not writing about what you find funny, you are going to lose inspiration. Plus, you are going to lose out on finding the right audience and fans for yourself.
Remember how I said mentioning famous comedians to people make them know exactly what type of comedy they do? Well that applies here. When you write for you and what you find funny you come across as authentic and develop your own voice, style, and brand. At first you may imitate other comedians but eventually you will find your authentic self which will propel your career forward.
Learn Brevity And Economy Of Words
You probably just read that heading and thought. You just wrote thousands of words to give ten tips on comedy. What do you know about brevity and economy of words? Well first you are write I did write a lot of words, and also every one was useful. I could have written more. And just like when you write a joke you can always make your setup longer but the short your setup the faster your punchline comes and the more laughter you get.
I’m not good at math but the idea is this punchline/half + punchline = <laughs. I think that’s right. Basically for every word you can cut in your setup you can speed up the amount and how many laughs you get on stage. Quick fast punchlines, without stepping on already occurring laughs, is better than long punchlines that end with one punchline. If your setup is more thank two sentences, start cutting.
I know what you’re thinking. I tell stories. Great for every line you speak find a punchline to insert. Not only will you get more laughs on the way to your big punchline but you will also build a linger bit faster. Win-Win. You are welcome.
If you follow these tips, you are going to find that you will have better luck at succeeding in the world of comedy. No successful comedian was above doing the hard work to get where they are today. When you put in the time and effort, you too can get to the point where you are among the greats of stand up comedy and you’ll do it much faster than those who don’t put in the off stage work.