Mikey

Chris Rock goes to a place called “Stress Factory.” It’s a comedy club in New Brunswick, New Jersey. For Rock, it’s a proving ground. He’ll show up unannounced. In the audience may be 50 people. He’ll carry a yellow legal pad of notes and go on stage for 45 minutes. And he’ll test new material. Rock will do this for *months* as he prepares for a new show. • He’ll fumble through lines • He’ll stop in the middle of jokes • He’ll write notes while talking Sometimes, he’ll forget what he’s saying and reference his legal pad. If you didn’t know him, you’d think he’s an amateur. This is how he becomes the guy you see on Netflix. *** Lesson: Nobody’s a finished product Rock is one of the highest-paid comedians in the world. He’s a legend in his industry. He’s an otherworldly comedic talent. You’d expect him to always be polished. But that’s not the case. Even legends are on the hunt to improve. There’s no such thing as a “finished product.” *** Lesson: It takes humility to be great Audiences at Stress Factory get Rock in his rawest form. • They get new jokes he hasn’t tried yet • They get to see him honing his craft • They get to see him struggle Rock doesn’t have to do this. He could work out ideas in front of a few friends, then take more polished stuff to an audience. But that likely wouldn’t make him as good. If you want to be great, you need the humility to look bad in front of strangers. *** Lesson: The process never ends How many jokes has Rock delivered in his life? 100,000? More? At 57 years old, he’s had a *lifetime* of reps. And yet, here he is randomly showing up at small clubs. Over and over and over and over again. It reminds me of a quote: “Success is not a continuum.” The past doesn’t guarantee the future. We’re not entitled to future success. It must be repeatedly earned. *** Follow @TMitrosilis for more content like this.