How Long Can You Keep Doing Stand Up?

I think about this all the time, especially when I am driving to a gig hours away from home or after a show that did not go well, hours away. Or when I look at line ups where I am the oldest comedian. I started comedy later in life, after two other careers, in my mid thirties. Most of the “class" of comedians I started with are just hitting their mid-thirties.

Mentally, I think I can sustain the road work and comedy life. I know my self worth is “worthy” even if I don’t have great show because of my prior jobs and what I bring to the table for family and friends. Physically, I have the discipline to avoid bad habits like drinking too much and I am pretty strict on staying active with work outs nearly every day.

The question really is relevance. How long can I write and stay relevant to an audience willing to pay to see me do comedy? Can I fill rooms at 55? 60? I don’t know. People say “Well you can always go back to practicing law” which is true but I won’t do that. I would love to have a job that is comedy adjacent where I can use my skills from stand up and podcasting to interview and entertain people. I also love writing comedy.

So I guess thats like 6 years unless I go viral before that. LOL.

Come see me live this weekend in Minneapolis, Duluth and Janesville so I can keep doing comedy!

 #standup #comedy #careerchange