Over the past week I’ve realized (and began to address) a challenge I’m experiencing; I’m too comfortable. During the past two years of traveling I was always chasing some mad dream which kept me intimidated and motivated. Surfing, Jackarooing, FIFA World Cupping, SCUBA Diving and all this ruckus was aggressive and motivational. Lately life has been comfortable and placid. I’m addressing this issue…
I’m exploring two things that literally scare the bejesus out of me: fighting and public speaking.
Fighting: It just so happens that there are a few muay thai/ju-jitsu gyms nearby. I took a free introductory lesson at city kickboxing last Wednesday and I loved it. There are some other MMA gyms around so I’m exploring all available opportunities.
Public Speaking: The adrenaline activities always have the highest paying returns, and public speaking is the most gut wrenching, heart thundering, get bloody terrified thing I can imagine. I’ll ski off 100 ft. cliffs and surf 8 ft. hawaiian surf without skipping a heartbeat, but when forced to present to a crowd, my blood pressure will raise roofs.
So what is the most intense way I can kick up the public speaking? Yes, stand up comedy.
I’ll be exploring this over the next month.
We went to the Raw night at The Classic (321 Queen St. Auckland) for an introductory survey of the comedy scene in Auckland. I loved it, but the idea of actually signing up and trying to go on for 5 minutes is like rocket fuel in the veins.
Rob Callaghan did an excellent job at warming up the crowd and keeping us supple for the young comedians. A few of which were good, a few were alright, some where not so great. Overall, it’s not an overly daunting scene for me to get up there and embarrass the hell out of myself.
I don’t consider myself to be essentially funny, but I think I could develop some important skills from the experience…
After we got home, my roommate and her Uni friends were filming a short film for their film class. It involved the beers and the TV I posted for the featured image. I twisted the layers to make it look arty. It reminds me of The Wall by Pink Floyd.
I’d love to hear your comments below. Salud. ian