Today's podcast is my 150th episode. I'm doing a quick look back on some of the episodes and encouraging you to listen to them. I'm also reminding you of a second podcast I'm co-hosting with comedian Frank King titled Over Fifty and F'ing Funny - interviews with working, non-famous comedians.By Comedian Jan McInnis

This episode on "Burning Lunch" is a quick story on something that happened many moons ago and still kind of mystifies those of us involved today. It happened over a year while I was doing 40 comedy shows for one group. We asked ourselves, What makes a good lunch, and why would you not like a sandwich for lunch? As we kick off the new year, give so…

Sure comedians remember things like their first time on stage or the first time they worked with a big star. But sometimes the firsts in comedy are things that are even bigger than those. In my podcast this week, I talk about 3 comedy firsts that I vividly remember that impacted me and kept me excited about my new career. And they aren't firsts tha…

Yes comedians get asked weird questions. Probably because people aren't used to meeting comedians, so they just blurt out stupid questions, but also I think that people hat since we talk about ourselves on stage, people think we're okay with answering pretty much any questions off stage. But that is not really true. Here's a few of the weird questi…

Golfing and cops usually don't mix, unless you lived in my neighborhood. The place I called home when I first move to LA was pretty dicey, and full of cops. This week I'm telling a quick story about my run in with the law when all I wanted to do was golf.By Comedian Jan McInnis

All you've got to do to get famous is get on one of those shows like Last Comic Standing, and do really well - right? Well maybe or maybe not. Here's a short story about my auditions for these kinds of shows. Yeah, this episode went over 5 minutes. . . and I could have stretched this to 2 episodes, but I didn't. Enjoy this peak into comedy competit…

Not spending the holidays with your family because you don't want to kill them with a virus is one thing, but missing family get-togethers because you're working on the road as a comedian is totally different. In this episode, I talk about a couple of depressing, memorable times where I missed holidays with my family in order to do comedy.…

This is a really short episode today but this story has just stuck with me. A lot of bar gigs were hard for me, and this one just kinda summed up all of those bar gigs. When you go through stuff like this, and still do stand-up comedy, you know that you really want to do stand up comedy.By Comedian Jan McInnis

Prop comics are entertainers who use props; anyone from stand-up comedians to magicians, hypnotists and the like can be considered prop comics if they include humor in their act along with something visual. There are good and bad things about being a prop comic, and I've worked with a few in good and bad situations. Here's a couple quick stories.…

Performing comedy in front of zoom may be one of the hardest things to do. But as a comedian and keynote speaker it's something I HAVE to do now. So I've come up with 5 quick tips that have helped me do comedy on zoom SUCCESSFULLY. Hopefully these will help you regardless of if you're doing comedy or just giving a quick presentation.…

Yes, I've done my comedy at a resort for gay men . . . and it went great for ME. Not so great for the other 2 acts. This week's podcast is a short story about that show and what I learned.By Comedian Jan McInnis

Writing jokes for specific audiences is so much fun because you learn about the group, and the jokes usually help you connect right away! When you're working comedy clubs, you can't interview the audience ahead of time, but you can still do a little customization. Here's a few tips I've picked up along the way for customizing a comedy show . . . or…

Being live on hundreds of radio shows is a learning experience for sure, and one that has helped me even today with my virtual comedy events today. I'm not sure I learned from every show, but there were lots of strange experiences. Like the time they booked me and my clean comedy at the same time they booked a guy talking about swingers. It was too…

Some comedians don't know when to stop with the jokes! Maybe you know someone like this who isn't even a comedian! But for me, I feel like we don't have to be "on" all the time - it's annoying. Here's a quick podcast about a couple guys I know who just can't stop with the jokes.By Comedian Jan McInnis

Our Baby Boomer Comedy Show is a hit! Or at least it is a hit give or take COVID. I'm sure we'll be performing it again in theatres soon, but this week's podcast focuses on how we got started with the show and a few of the hurdles we had to jump to get it up and running.

If you were around in the 70's and 80's you might have heard about a nifty type of programming called Cable Access. The cable companies were new, and as such they were required to allow anyone to put together a TV for free using their equipment for free. In my podcast this week, I talk about working on a couple of these cable access shows. They wer…

How often does my comedy act change? That's a question that comedians get asked a lot. In this episode I talk about writing new jokes versus using the standard jokes for my act.By Comedian Jan McInnis

Should actors be comedians and comedians be actors? Well, that can happen, but just because you're one doesn't mean you can be the other. In today's podcast, comedian Jan McInnis talks about a few random acting classes and auditions she's done, and her thoughts on acting.By Comedian Jan McInnis

People go to comedy clubs all the time to celebrate, birthdays, weddings, even winning a million bucks. True! Here's a few stories of times when I've been on stage when some celebrations were taking place. I always tried to participate fully in the celebrations, even when they were annoying.By Comedian Jan McInnis

Is it better to have a small crowd or a big crowd at your comedy show? In today's podcast, Jan talks about how comics treat small crowds differently, and what her experience has been with small crowds. Listen in and see if you agree!By Comedian Jan McInnis

Being the designated driver is a nice thing to do, but sometimes you get taken advantage of! I learned this on several occasions when I showed up to the gig with a car, and the other comic needed a ride. I'm still happy to give rides, but now I put some limits on it. Here's a couple quick stories of getting and receiving rides.…

Many keynote speakers and motivational people will tell you to, quote, find your passion! But that's hard to do! Sure some of us have found it, but you might not really know what your passion is. So instead, I have a couple of quick tips on how to find your passion organically, without all the searching. Enjoy today's podcast.…

I've worked with some big name headliners, which has given me the opportunity to watch how they treat other comics and the audience. Some are great, and some are not so great. Here's a quick story about 2 big name headliners, and the differences I saw. One of them was great, and one of them was not-so-great.…

Comedians are offered all sorts of "deals" in comedy in order to get booked. Some deals are great, and some are less-than great. Here's a quick story about a time that I was offered a GREAT deal . . .for $3500. Would you take it? I was amazed that they even had the guts to call me with this "deal." Once I got over being stunned, I came up with a pl…

Everyone has fans, and even unknown comedians like me have a few. And I'm a fan of other people's work as well. But what happens when people don't appreciate having fans? Here's a short story about a few times that I've reached out to people to say I'm a fan.By Comedian Jan McInnis

Moving from doing only comedy shows to doing humor keynotes that had comedy and a message was hard. I was used to constant laughs and now I was going to add in some more serious stuff to make a keynote. I talked to my buddy Frank King and got a great transition line, and then I practiced a lot. Here's a quick story about how I went from doing only …

I've talked about comedy condos and how they, sometimes, weren't that great. But in this podcast episode, I talk about some of the things that were good about them. Many of the club owners tried to make a nice accommodation for us comedians, so that we could arrive at the comedy show fresh and ready to perform.…

Today's episode is about the reasons people use to NOT book you for an event. I do understand that my keynote and comedy may not fit for everyone, but getting feedback on why it wasn't a match is sometimes really hard. Listen here for the most over-used reason for not booking a comedian or keynote speaker - it's annoying!…

Corporate Comedian is not a new term or an old term. It's a made-up term that I made up. And I've been a corporate comedian for over 20 years. On today's episode, I share a quick story on how I came up with the name and why I came up with it.By Comedian Jan McInnis

. People love that joke because they can relate to it. And this week I'm talking about the reasons you should use humor in your business and personal communications. Today's tip – use humor because it gives you an instant connection with others, and it makes you approachable. Don't you love that ah ha moment when people "get" your humor? It's an in…

That joke is one of my most memorable jokes and I get a LOT of people telling me they love it. This week I'm talking about the reasons you should use humor in your personal and business life, and today's tip . . because it introduces you. Listen to the humor that people use, it'll tell you about them. If someone makes a snarky comment, then you kin…

I wish I could remember everything from my comedy career because I've had some fun experiences. Names and faces are the worst for me because I just don't have the knack for them. Here's a story about meeting a famous guy, having lunch with him, and now I can't remember all the details. My advice in this episode is something I wish I'd have taken lo…

Do you have rules for your business? Regardless of whether you're self-employed or working for a big corporation, you should write rules that reflect your values and what you will or won't put up with. Having rules helps guide you when you're faced with a decision that you're not sure about. Here are four rules that I made up for my comedy business…

Having a bad show for a comedian is part of the gig because not everyone likes your humor. But my buddy comedian Frank King had someone who overreacted BIG time to not liking his jokes. So I'm turning this podcast over to him to tell the story about having a bad show.By Comedian Jan McInnis

Whenever you move into something new/different there are new/different worries that come with it. And as I went from marketing employee to comedian full-time, there were LOTS of things to worry about. Here's one thing that helped me take the sting out of the worries. Maybe it'll help you too.By Comedian Jan McInnis

Hecklers are one of the things that scares people away from trying standup comedy. They visualize being on stage and being skewered by a heckler, and yes, that happens, but not as often as you think. Most comedians have figured out how to handle hecklers and keep the show moving. I haven't had a lot of experience with hecklers, but here's a few way…

This is a short episode about how I met my 1 international friend! LOL. I don't travel internationally much, but I'd love to do more. For the moment though, I'll have to settle for my one friend whom I've only met once but have been friends with for over 20 years.

I haven't lost my temper much in this comedy business, but when I do, it's memorable! Here's a quick story of a time that I got so angry at the LAX Hilton parking garage manager. The hotel pulled a really bad trick on me, and I was furious. I get mad just thinking about it. I hope you enjoy this story and what I learned from it. This is a useful fo…

When you think of entertainers and comedy, you think of big makeup. Comedy and makeup tend to go together. But that's not my style. Sure I wear it onstage, but not so much off stage. If I ever got famous, the Tabloids would have a big scoop getting a picture of me wearing it, not without it. In this week's podcast, I'm talking of a time that I actu…

Most comedians are really nice, but with all professions, sometimes you run into some jerks! In this episode, I list a couple of the tricks that comedians have pulled on either myself or some other comedian. Thanks for listening! Check out my main website at TheWorkLady.com Check out Jan's books here: Jan's Books…

My first electronic rolodex was a big deal, but not because I could finally get rid of the scraps of paper. No, this first rolodex saved my sanity. Here's a quick story about it.By Comedian Jan McInnis

Nothing stinks more than having your car broken into. Here's a quick story of what happened to me at New York New York casino in Las Vegas years ago. And yes, I see the irony in having my car broken into at that particular casino!By Comedian Jan McInnis

The term "slow pay" in comedy is a nicer way of saying that you're not getting paid on time. Slow pay has happened to me a couple times, and it's not good. This week's episode is a quick story about a time when I avoided the dreaded slow pay!By Comedian Jan McInnis

Why should you write a book on comedy writing or on comedy travels? I had no intention of writing any books when I started out, but I just sort of fell into the book writing thing, and it worked out well. Here's a short podcast on how I became an author.By Comedian Jan McInnis

I've performed at a few country clubs, and they've been great audiences. Sometimes, though. there have been a few funny things. Here's a couple quick stories about my experiences.By Comedian Jan McInnis

By Comedian Jan McInnis

By Comedian Jan McInnis

By Comedian Jan McInnis

By Comedian Jan McInnis

By Comedian Jan McInnis