I'm finding
meditation invaluable at the moment, when it comes to settling my frantic brain.
Another thing I apply in huge doses is selective deafness. While there have been a lot of positive advances in my work and with my attitude this year, the first half of 2016 hasn’t been without its setbacks. There are plenty of niggles that could overshadow the good stuff if I let them.
Take last week’s run on the Brighton Fringe: on the plus side, it was a huge advancement on the show I wrote and performed there the previous year. My first extended foray into solo stand-up was understandably tentative and careful, whereas this year’s show is already more confident, more varied and – I think – funnier than the one before. I’m prouder and more sure about it, despite my inbuilt and instinctive insecurities with what I do – yet sadly, no-one reviewed it thus far. Consequently, I’m set to enter my first solo Edinburgh Fringe with a couple of scathing reviews still lurking at the top end of my online presence, that aren’t representative of where I’m at.
At least I’m getting better at ignoring negative thoughts that don’t help my work grow. Another ying / yang experience was this month’s preview at Mostly Comedy. I performed over an hour of new material to a good response considering most people inevitably booked to see the high profile headliner, yet despite holding my own, a cursory glance at social media after the show suggested I hadn't even been there. Such is the curse of not being on the telly (save a couple of adverts back in 2004).
Another thing I can’t think about too much is the effect on my finances. Hence the reason I won’t delve into it in this paragraph; it's selective deafness in action.
Moaning like this doesn’t help; if anything it allows the negativity to linger. It’s good to release the pressure-valve a little, but you don’t want to fixate on the bad stuff. This is where meditation helps; that and ketamine.
Another thing I apply in huge doses is selective deafness. While there have been a lot of positive advances in my work and with my attitude this year, the first half of 2016 hasn’t been without its setbacks. There are plenty of niggles that could overshadow the good stuff if I let them.
Take last week’s run on the Brighton Fringe: on the plus side, it was a huge advancement on the show I wrote and performed there the previous year. My first extended foray into solo stand-up was understandably tentative and careful, whereas this year’s show is already more confident, more varied and – I think – funnier than the one before. I’m prouder and more sure about it, despite my inbuilt and instinctive insecurities with what I do – yet sadly, no-one reviewed it thus far. Consequently, I’m set to enter my first solo Edinburgh Fringe with a couple of scathing reviews still lurking at the top end of my online presence, that aren’t representative of where I’m at.
At least I’m getting better at ignoring negative thoughts that don’t help my work grow. Another ying / yang experience was this month’s preview at Mostly Comedy. I performed over an hour of new material to a good response considering most people inevitably booked to see the high profile headliner, yet despite holding my own, a cursory glance at social media after the show suggested I hadn't even been there. Such is the curse of not being on the telly (save a couple of adverts back in 2004).
Another thing I can’t think about too much is the effect on my finances. Hence the reason I won’t delve into it in this paragraph; it's selective deafness in action.
Moaning like this doesn’t help; if anything it allows the negativity to linger. It’s good to release the pressure-valve a little, but you don’t want to fixate on the bad stuff. This is where meditation helps; that and ketamine.