More than funny | Michael Jr. | TEDxUniversityofNevada

Thanks, man. I'm excited about being here. We're gonna have some fun. My name is Michael Jr. I'm gonna do some jokes. Yet, at the same time, I'd like to explain to you how life, well, how comedy works. So, uh, let's jump right in. I actually like the city of Reno a lot. Um, I was here once, I was here once, uh, I was keynote speaking for a corporation and, uh, something really kind of strange happened when I was here. So, uh, normally I'm the type of person, I like to be on stage alone. I don't need any help, anybody. So the CEO of this large company introduces me and he has the microphone and normally we have two different mics and he leaves and then I'm there. That's the plan. Dude stays there. I'm standing right next to him with no mic and then he looks at the audience and I'm standing there and he says, first, let me, let me explain this. Um, I'm the type of comedian, like I'm very, I'm observational. Um, like I pay attention to things like college students. Take somebody who goes to a nice school, like the University of Southern California. Ask them what school they go to. You get a nice, quick answer. What school you go to? USC? New York University. You get a nice, quick answer. What school you go to? NYU? Ask somebody to go to community college. You get a much longer response, don't you? What school you go to? Well, see right now, what I'm doing, uh, I'm gonna get a couple credits, right? Then my financial aid is supposed to come through. Then I'm gonna transfer, man. They say school kills creativity anyway, man. I feel vulnerable. Is Brene Brown around, man? I feel really vulnerable right now. Let me tell you a little more about me. I have, uh, I love being a dad and I have five kids. Yeah. And, uh, and I travel a lot, you know, so I can see them all. Um, I'm just playing. I don't see them. I don't see them. No, I do. I have five kids. They're all with me. I live in Dallas now. Um, my kids are awesome. Uh, the thing about having a big family is you always have to figure out ways to save money. Um, and we wanted to get our family pictures taken. That stuff was expensive. So we did to save money, right? We all got in the front seat of the car, looked both ways and ran a red light. That's what we did. That's what we did. Um, two weeks later, the picture came in the mail, but my son blinked. So we had to do it again. We had to do it again. I was doing that joke in prison recently. Um, I wasn't in prison like, Hey, I'm funny. Get off me. It wasn't like that. We go to home whenever we're doing a big live event, like we're doing one tonight in Reno. Whenever we do a large ticketed event, a concert in a city, we always look for a homeless shelter or a prison abuse children's facility to go to during the day, do comedy. So I'm doing a prison this time. And, um, yeah, it's a TED talk. I don't got that much time. You don't got clap. It's okay. So we're doing this prison and I do the joke about the red light and 75% of the prisoners laugh. The rest of them, nothing. Then I realized what was going on. Some of them had been locked up for so long. The dude next to him had to explain the joke. He was like, see, nowadays, when you run a red light, they send a picture with a ticket in the mail. Then he looked at the dude next to him and was like, a red light is what they use for traffic when you go down the road. And then he said, a road is what they use. Where am I at right now? So I'd like to explain to you how comedy works. This is how comedy works. Uh, I mean, really all comedy. Anytime you laugh, this, this formula is taking place in one way or another, but specifically with regards to standup, this is how it works as well. Um, first there's a setup and then there's a punchline. Let me explain. The setup is when a comedian will use his talents and resources to seize any opportunity to ensure that you, the audience, are moving in the same direction. The punchline occurs when he changes that direction in a way you're not expecting. When you catch on to this change, you've received the punchline. The results are revelation, fulfillment, and joy expressed through laughter. Let me give you an example. A few summers ago, I took my, uh, family on vacation to Mexico. Um, the first two days were rough cause the people there kept calling me a Negro. Uh, the third day I realized they were saying amigo and it was all cool. That was cool. So did you see what just happened right there? So when I was a child, um, I used to struggle with my reading. I used to really have a hard time reading. Um, it just, I don't know what I just, I just struggle with. I read now just fine. Like the signs over the door say excite. I can read that stuff. When I was a kid, I used to struggle with my reading. Like I couldn't sound a word out phonetically. It just didn't work. Uh, so now looking back at it, I realized I developed like seven different ways to look at a word to determine what the word was. And I'm talking about, just started noticing this really in junior high. So I would look at the, the font size, the color, the positioning, what's in front of it, what's behind it, how people responded to it. I got really good at looking at words differently to the point in high school, people didn't know I wasn't really reading. I was just working it out really, really fast. Now as an adult, I read just fine, but I still have this ability to look at words and people and situations seven different ways. Almost immediately. In fact, it's the primary place where I pull my comedy from. So that very thing from my past, it looked like it was a setback. It looked like it was some sort of handicap. Turns out, uh, I'm actually able to use it for what I'm called to do now. So just like you, you've probably had some sort of setbacks, but if you would in a way embrace it, you'll probably find there's more opportunities out there. Now I find comedy all over the place. At the airport today, a little white kid walked up to me, asked for an autograph. I was like, Hey buddy, what's your name? He said, I'm Tanner. I looked at him. I said, no, you're not. His mom was cracking up. He was like, I am Tanner. Trust me. You're not. Or I'll notice stuff. Like I saw this dude with a muscle shirt. Don't you ever see a dude like a muscle shirt, like a white tank, like a, but he ain't got no muscles. I'm like, what is that? A wife threatener? Depending on where you're from in the country, you understand that joke better. And his friend had on a shirt that said, if you don't speak English, leave the country. Um, but it was written in English. So, so I walked up to him and I said, you're dumb. I said it in Spanish though. So he, so I'm able to find comedy in a bunch of different places as a result of embracing what seemed like it was a handicap from my past. I noticed even what people say sometimes, have you ever heard the phrase, boy, I wish I could have been a fly on the wall. Every time I hear that, I walk up to the person and I say, and then what? No, no, no, no. You want to be a fly on the walls. You can hear the information that was in the room. Well, I've done the research. Um, flies don't have ears. Yeah. You would be just as ignorant as you currently are, but you would be a fly. Nobody even listens to a fly. I mean, let's say you're a fly that could read lips. What are you going to do with the information? And you got two days to live. You're making bad choices. Or people will sometimes say stuff to me like Michael Jr. Where are you from originally? I'm like originally, huh? Well, uh, I was conceived in Michigan. Yeah. Before that I was with my dad. Yeah. And then there's a swim competition, right? And I won, which is crazy because currently I don't swim at all. I used to be pretty good though. Apparently I am not politically correct. I'm just going to tell, I know I do comedy, but I'm not, it's just too much work. I'm just telling you, um, you got to watch the news and know the language. I just believe if you put the right stuff in your heart, the right stuff will come out. So I'd never try to, I'd never try to be politically correct. Some people work hard. I'm at a coffee shop. There's a white guy in front of me orders a coffee. The lady in front of him is like, Hey, how do you want it? He looked back at me and was like, um, African American, please. I was like, cool. Uh, let me get the Caucasian mocha. Let me get that. I could just get the Caucasian mocha. I guess I'm trying, trying to learn. I'm trying to learn. Coaches would say some stuff too. You ever hear your coach say something like the stuff I'm teaching you here, it's not just about this game. You can apply it to life. Here's the thing, people. That's not true. I thought it was true. Straight out of high school. One of my first jobs was, was I used to park cars. One of the cars was really nice. So I took it for a little spin. The company found out my boss lost the account. He was yelling at me and screaming. I didn't know what to say or do. I thought back to my high school football coach. I looked at my boss. I was like, you know what, man, you win some, you lose some man. You can't let this one loss get you down. The important thing is I went out there and I had fun and I got fired, man. I got fired. I actually play, I do play some basketball. I didn't want to perpetuate stereotypes, but it's true. But basketball is supposed to run and jump. I don't really feel like doing both all the time. So some friends recently took me ball hunting. Some people call it golf or whatever. I shot a 121. That's what I shot at 121. And then we had lunch and it was like, Hey, we're going to do the other nine holes now. Um, I was like, I'm not going back out there. I'm not going. Cause they lied to get me to go. They was like, yo, the greens are awesome. I was like, cool. I showed up with some cornbread. I was like, all right. I don't know how to say cornbread in German. I'm sorry. I just did that just for Germany. I've never really been there before. I do think working out is important. I was at the gym the other month. Um, I was going to do some cardio, right? But they moved it upstairs. I ain't going up there, man, please. And I get recognized at the gym. I got recognized this, um, I'm working out this lady. I was like, Hey, how you doing? She was like, you don't understand Michael Jr. You're my favorite comedian. Every time I see you, I laugh my butt off. I was like, uh, keep laughing, you know, laughing. So there's a club in Los Angeles when I moved to Los Angeles and I was brand new in comedy. There's a club there that, uh, it's, it's like the best club in the country. It's called the comedy magic club. It's actually in Hermosa beach. This club is extremely hard for a comedian to get into. The way I got into this club is a guy named George Wallace saw me when I lived in New York. He knew I was funny and clean. So when I moved to Los Angeles, he took me to the Connie magic club and he couldn't get me on stage because it's way too prestigious of a club. They have to know you are so, so he got me into the green room. I'm in the green room and suddenly brand new in town. And I find myself in a green room with some soldiers in comedy. There's, um, George Wallace, Gary Shanley, Jay Leno. I'm brand new in town. And at the time, a football player got hit in the eye with a flag. And, um, he lost his vision one night and he was soon to leave for $400 million. Now all of these guys are helping Leno on that joke subject for the monologue for the tonight show on NBC. I ain't saying nothing. I'm just happy to be in the room, sharing french fries with these dudes, but your gift will make room for you. So then it got quiet and they all looked at me and I'm thinking, Oh snap, this is an opportunity. So I was like, all right, let me see if I got this right. He got hit in the eye with a flag. He lost his vision one eye and he's soon to leave for $400 million. Oh, he not going to see half of it like for real. So here's the thing. How did I get that joke that fast under that much pressure? The truth is it wasn't as much pressure as you might think because I had been practicing since I was a child in the form of a kid who was having a hard time reading. I was practicing just like you've probably been practicing. You just didn't know you were practicing. I'm here to let you know you've been practicing. And for a lot of you guys, it's game time. It's game time. So now I'm in the club, like I'm in the club and I'm performing there. Um, this was probably like seven or eight years ago. And right, I'm headlining at the club. And right before I get on stage, I had a change in mindset about comedy. Most of the time when a comedian gets on stage, he wants to get laughs from people. And I felt a shift take place. Instead of going up there to get laughs from people, I felt like I was supposed to give them an opportunity to laugh. I did a little prayer and I clearly felt like I was supposed to give an opportunity to laugh. This changed everything because now I'm not looking to take, I'm simply looking for an opportunity to give. This is why we now go to the homeless shelters and all these places. In fact, that very night when I leave the stage, I'm outside. People want autographs. We're hanging out, taking pictures. And I look across the street and I saw a homeless guy. I had never seen a homeless guy outside this club before, ever. But that doesn't mean he wasn't there before. That just means before my mindset was to get laughs from people. So why would I even notice them? But now I changed my mindset and I see this homeless guy and I have the thought, what about him? How could I give him an opportunity to laugh? And that's when we started doing homeless shelters and prisons and making laughter commonplace in other non-common places. So now as a result of doing that, we went to this one place. We went to Montrose, Colorado. It's a facility for children who are being abused by their parents. And I'm hearing all of these stories and this grandmother tells about her grandson who was so afraid of his mom because he's on drugs. She's been abusing him and one of the things she's been doing is she's been pulling out his toenails. So I hear this story and they bring all these kids inside and Spider-Man is sitting right up. This little boy is so afraid of his mom, everywhere he goes he wears a Spider-Man costume. He's sitting right up front at the show. If my mindset was still to get laughs from people, there's no way I would have been able to do the show. But my mindset changed and so now I have to do the show. So I get up on stage and people start laughing slowly but surely. 20 minutes in it I hear a voice come from right here and the voice says, my name is Ronan. And this little boy pulls off his mask and introduces himself to me. In a way, and I can't even tell you what it meant to me. And he started talking to me for like nine minutes like I wasn't doing a comedy show at the time. But it was all because I made this shift. I made this change and I said simply, instead of trying to get, I'm going to see if there's an opportunity to give. If you can make this adjustment, it will change your life for the good. If you're a mechanic, you may think you get paid to fix vehicles. But if you can make this shift, you will recognize you help people reach their desired destination. That will put your alarm clock out of business. My senses are, there's a lot of people out there still hitting the snooze button. Before I bounce, bounce means to vacate the premises. I'd like to explain to you how life works, at least from a comedian's perspective. First there's a setup and then there's a punchline. Your setup is your talents, your resources, and your opportunities. And most of the time we use our setup to ensure that the people around us are moving in a direction that serves us. Which means the punchline occurs when you change that direction in a way they're not expecting. You actually use your setup for other people. The results are the same yet multiplied. Revelation, fulfillment, and joy. But it's not just for the one receiving your punchline. It is absolutely for you as you deliver the punchline. In fact, if I ask the question to everyone here, everyone watching, if I ask you this question, how many people here know what your setup is? Every one of you would be able to tell me. Because your setup is the fact that you have a house, a car, you've been married, you went to school. Your setup is about what you've received. But what if I ask the question, what is your punchline? Because your punchline is about what you're called to deliver. And if you only know your setup and not your punchline, you'll make the mistake of trying to add more setup. If I could just get another degree, if I could just get married, if I could just lose weight. But what you really need is to know your punchline. Again, because to know your setup and not your punchline is an uncomfortable place to live. Let me give you an example. How many people are still thinking about the story of me and the CEO on stage? The reason all you guys are still thinking about that story is because all you have is the setup. You don't have the punchline. Yet we've moved on and allowed ourselves to be entertained like there wasn't something missing. So we'll go to a comedy show or a football game or a concert, even though there's something missing. And that's just the story I told you 10 minutes ago. What about your story? You've been living it your entire life and if all you know is the setup and not the punchline, you are living in an uncomfortable place. And please be clear, just like when I had a hard time reading as a child, your setbacks are part of your setup so you can deliver the punchline you're called to deliver. Much like a slingshot, the further you've been set back, the further you're going to reach. But what are you going to aim for? Everyone has a setup and everyone has a punchline. You need to find your punchline and deliver it. I'm Michael Jr. I love you. Oh, you guys are awesome. Stand in ovation. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. Get up, dude. You too.