The first time I tried stand-up, I was terrified. I was sweating. I was a nervous wreck. I couldn’t eat or drink. (Even today, before shows, I still don’t like to eat.) I had decades of teaching, preaching, and conference speaking under my belt. I’d stood in front of scores of people and cameras without breaking a sweat. But this was different.
And truth be told, I realized the distinction pretty quickly. As a manuscript preacher and speaker, I always had the written words right there in front of me. With stand-up, I had a set list, but that consisted of one word per joke. That’s right, one word. When I first started stand-up, I was a word-for-word comedian. I was fixated on having every word right. Then I made a switch that changed everything: I realized it’s way easier if I simply know the keyword, which recalls the joke in full.
When I made this switch, it was huge. The show became more natural and conversational. It freed me up to engage the crowd without freaking out. It allowed me to have more fun. This is when I realized I needed to get a sort of pre-show ritual together, too. So, over time, I developed five pre-show rituals that have transformed my relationship with my performance anxiety:
1. Keep a set list in my back pocket: It’s kind of ironic but the fact that I have a set list on me during a show, is also the very reason I don’t need to look at it. Just knowing it’s there provides a huge psychological release.
2. Run through my set list backwards and forwards: Doing this gives me confidence that I know my set well. It also reminds me ahead of time that, if I get lost in my set or interrupted, I’ll be able to easily find my place and know exactly where I left off. This is a major confidence boost. It’s the old saying about knowing something backward and forward. If I do that, I know I’ve got it down.
3. Run through my set: On the drive to my show, I’ll do a mental rehearsal before the physical performance. If I get it without any issues, this brings quite a bit of confidence.
4. Deep breaths while shaking my hands and legs out: I engage in the physical release of built-up nervous energy by doing this. It’s kinda like rock climbers do when they’re working they’re way across a rock face or up a wall. Also, during this time I remind myself that what appears to be “nerves” is really just adrenaline, which is way less terrifying and gives me immediate control.
5. A short prayer of surrender: This one’s different from the others. I’m a Christian, and I think the Christian life is captured in a single word: surrender. The first thing I do when I wake up each day is surrender the day and myself to God. The last thing I say at night is a prayer of gratitude and the same prayer of surrender I started with. I try to pray that prayer throughout the day, too. And I do it before I perform stand-up.
I find these 5 pre-show rituals super helpful. I’m sure they’ll change over time but they’ve given me lots of relief. When I was just starting comedy, my worst-case scenario was simple: I’d butcher the joke, nobody’d laugh, I’d be embarrassed, and I’d get booed off and asked to leave the venue. Has that ever happened? No! (Except in a game show where the audience booed the losing contestant off after each round, which still kinda sucked. Lol.)
Anyway, I also realized at one point: if these people came to laugh, they want to be here. They’re rooting for me. They want me to do well so they can laugh. They’re not here to watch me or others crash and burn. So, that gap between perception and reality was massive. Once I understood the audience was on my side from the start, my pre-show ritual shifted. I wanted to have fun with them and give them a good time. When that’s the focus rather than bombing, you’re good to go. I don’t remember when I first bombed a joke, but what I do remember is the thought: “That wasn’t that bad.” Honestly, it’s way less traumatic than it seems most of the time.
These rituals prepare me for a catastrophe that, if/when it actually arrives, will turn out to be manageable. And, as always, as long as I think the jokes are funny to me, I’m good. If they’re funny to others, that’s just a bonus. I can’t please everyone and many won’t like me or my style. That’s fine. I’ll be okay. But I do want to make the point that these rituals don’t eliminate anxiety. They do, however, transform it into something useful. So, having a pre-show mindhack is totally worth it.
By the way, if you have any interest at all in learning to write some jokes or doing stand-up comedy, check out my online joke writing course, “The Joke Writer’s Lab,” HERE.