A Few More Steps

Wednesday May 7th, 2008 - Lake Villa, IL

Another day of positive accomplishment. I made some more small steps but they’re in a good direction. I mapped out my list of bookers to contact in the next little while and I am very excited about that. It’s like doing a huge load of laundry that’s been stinking in a pile for a long time. The stink is gone plus there’s also usable space where the pile used to be.

I really have been lax in my booking maintenance lately. It’s like a sales route. If I don’t reach out to my base of customers on a consistent basis they will forget about me even if I have a product they can use. There are a lot of comedians out there and it’s a matter of me making myself available to get one of the limited spots. Talent has nothing to do with it.

It’s a part of the business that most performers thoroughly despise and although I’m not all gung ho about it I don’t hate it either. It’s like fishing. A little nibble keeps you hooked and coming back for more. I’m not a fisherman but I do enjoy hauling in my limit of gigs.

Part of my problem has been that I’m competent enough to have bookers contact me for work. I do strong shows and don’t have a drug or drinking problem and I am able to show up for my gigs on time. Well, usually. There are enough of those people that I don’t really have a pressing need to seek out new work and that’s where I’m making a stupid mistake.

Those people already know me and I have their trust. I appreciate the work but it isn’t a smart business move to only stay in the same circles over and over again. I have expanded my range of bookers all over the country but there are still quite a few I don‘t work with.

It will take a few months to make the rounds again and get in a groove but I really need to make that a priority. The plan was to get Uranus Factory Outlet up and running so I can hit the road and go on radio and TV and get publicity for it. I can still do that but it will be a lot more complicated than even I imagined. I can do it though if I will just stay focused.

There are too many things that distract me. With doing two radio projects and hosting at Zanies on Mondays and trying to reshape my comedy classes it’s all overwhelming. I also want to put out a new CD or two because I’ve got the material already recorded. I have an ever growing number of spinning plates and it’s getting to be a lot more than I can handle.

I still have to get the movie script done but I did take some time today to at least get that on the launching pad again. I went over the remaining scenes that need to be finished so it isn’t so overwhelming. We already have 80 pages done of the third draft so it’s not like it hasn’t been worked on it just hasn’t been worked on in a while. I blew the dust off today.

I’m still trying to touch on everything and keep momentum but I admit that I’m totally a mouse in a maze at this point. I think there is some cheese but I can’t actually see it. I can smell it. I think. I just have to keep cranking out little chunks of work like I’ve been doing the last couple of days. I’m doing what I love to do and if I will just think ahead and make a smart plan I can make good things happen. But I know myself - I’m WAY too scattered.