One Lesson From Stand Up Comedy

Stand Up comedy requires you to have 'balls' I know this, I have them and I am a girl. To get up on that stage and literally expose who and what you are (sometimes even when YOU do not have a handle on that yet) requires either stupidity (think Michael Richards) or brilliance (think, Richard Pryor)

The same kind of moxie is required for speakers to step up on stage! When you prepare your presentation, and the important point here is that you PREPARE, you are putting yourself out there, for judgment, praise, applause or boos.

In order to bring your 'A' game, in order to speak to the 'A' type demographic, I suggest that you utilize this lesson from the world of stand up comedy. The lesson is PASSION. I can think of a number comedians who bring passion to their brand of stand up but I will name four: Robin Williams, Lewis Black, Dave Chappelle, and Lisa Lampanelli. These comedians are authentic in their performances! They bring their 'A' games everytime.

Your audience knows when you are passionate about, love, delight in, cannot wait to tell, etc and so forth, about your topic/subject or presentation. THE AUDIENCE knows how you feel about what you are speaking of based on the passion you bring to the subject and the electricity that they, the audience connect to and feed off. It is as simple and as complex as that.

In order to be passionate, not only know what you are talking about, feel it. Be excited with something to tell or share. Stephen Rosenfield of The American Comedy Institute in New York City would tell me, "Adrienne, when you go on stage you really have something great to tell them" (the audience) when he coached me for a set at Caroline's. His wisdom still holds true. I would preface his wisdom with the need for authenticity. People want to believe you. People want to believe in something, anything good. Be that.

Focus on what your subject matter means to you. Did it change you? Make you better? Make you worst or complacent? Make you wish you did not have to work so hard at this speaking profession? That is the same energy you will bring to your audiences!

AUTHOR, ADRIENNE ZURUB is a cardiothoracic surgical nurse with over twenty-five years of experience on the open heart/heart transplant team at Cleveland Clinic. She is a CNOR (certified nurse operating room) She is The Nurse Whisperer! She is a speaker/actor/pOet/and stand up comedian. As a comedian she has performed in clubs in New York City and LA. In theater she has written and performed her solo performances pieces at Cleveland Public Theater. She performed at the historic Karamu Theater as part of Arenafest. She belongs to Toastmasters Club 6500, NSAOhio, AKA Sorority,Inc., and volunteers in the Greater Cleveland community as a speaker with the Cleveland Clinic Speakers Bureau.

She is the Author of 'Notes From the Mothership ~ The Naked Invisibles' due out 11/2007, a nonfiction work that coalesces some of her experiences on the open heart team with the randiness of many aspects of her life!

http://chasewunderlickpublishers.com.cn - http://thenursewhisperer.com - http://adriennezurub.typepad.com Find her on:twitter,facebook,livejournal,Librarything and ning.

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