We were lucky to catch up with Dr. Kerry Szymanski recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Dr. Kerry thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

Stand-up comedy is a rush! There is no better feeling in the world than when an audience laughs at my jokes. I fell in love with stand-up comedy after I took a class at the Improv in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. My intention for taking the class was to increase my confidence on stage and become a better public speaker. I was preparing for some speaking engagements to promote my marketing book, “Seduce Your Customers – An Entrepreneurs Guide to Marketing”. After I finished my first performance and the laughter filled my veins, I knew I found a new calling. To become a stand-up comedian takes a lot of hard work, dedication and tenacity. I spend hours every week watching, learning, writing and performing stand-up comedy.

Since discovering comedy, I have immersed myself in studying the mechanics of stand-up comedy. As an academic, I take a studious approach to learning the craft of writing comedy that is the foundation of good or bad performance. But writing is only half of the craft. Performing on stage takes a lot of confidence, energy and the ability to be in the moment. To become better on stage takes practice. I perform at open mics, comedy shows, conferences, business presentations, community organizations and in line at the grocery store practicing my jokes to anyone who will listen! It takes one or two decades to become a great comedian. I am enjoying the journey and understand the process is a marathon and not a sprint. As I look back from where I started, I’m proud of my progress. The confidence that I have gained in stand-up comedy has overflowed into being a better leader in the workplace. I am more confident in my public speaking abilities, more resilient in challenging situations and a better communicator.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

After publishing my book, Seduce Your Customers – An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Marketing, I was invited to speak to a number of trade shows across the country. To prepare, I signed up for a stand-up comedy class at the Improv of Fort Lauderdale to become more confident in my speaking abilities. After the first class, I fell in love with stand-up comedy. Since then, I have performed at clubs and comedy venues across the state of Florida. The joy of laughter fills my soul. It has taught me the importance of laughter to maintain a joyful life. Stand-up comedy has taught me to be a better leader by improving my creativity, vision, communication and resiliency skills. Every situation in life, positive or negative, is the foundation for a joke. As a stand-up comedian, I have learned how to find the humor in any situation. Through my talk, Leading Through Laughter, I have spoken to businesses, organizations, colleges, chambers of commerce and community groups about the power of humor in workplace settings. My goal is to speak and provide coaching services about the power of humor that has on leadership, resiliency and confidence building. I am most proud of my recent appearance opening the Women’s Conference of Florida in front of 1,500 people at the Tampa Bay Convention Center.
I have experience in corporate marketing, higher-education and entrepreneurship. Working for companies such as Harry & David and Bally Total Fitness and launching entrepreneurial ventures SassyBB boutique and Kerry Communications has given me a broad view of small and larger scale operations. For more than 18 years, I have taught undergraduate and MBA courses in marketing, strategy, branding, leadership, management and entrepreneurship. My education includes a DBA from Argosy University, MBA from the University of Oregon, and BA in International Relations from Syracuse University.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Stand-up comedy has taught me a lot about resilience. Each time I perform it is a different experience, a different city, different venue and different audience. I never know if the successful show I had last week will repeat again this week or I will experience the uncomfortable feeling of bombing. Bombing in comedy is when a comedian fails to illicit laughs from the audience and experiences an awkward silence throughout their set. It is an unpleasant feeling and makes me wonder why I put myself through the stress of getting up on stage. But this is part of comedy- taking a risk of telling jokes to a group of strangers that may or may not laugh at my sense of humor. When the audience does laugh, it’s the best feeling in the world. It makes taking the risk of getting on stage all worth it. The beauty of bombing is that it has encouraged me to take risks, face fear and increase my resiliency muscle in all aspects of my life. Failure is an excellent teacher about resiliency. We all bomb sometimes in our personal and professional lives. The experience of bombing on stage as a stand-up comedian has made me a better leader in business because I know how to take risks, accept failures and become more resilient during difficult situations.

Is there a mission driving your creative journey?

Laughter for me is healing. It has taught me to find the silver lining in any difficult situation whether it’s at work, at home or in traffic! When I lost my hearing in my right ear a few years ago, I was very sad and finally understood why I had trouble hearing the television, conversations at restaurants with friends, speakers at conferences and live comedy shows. However, I quickly learned that being partially deaf has its benefits! I have been able to create some unique jokes because of my deafness. For example, a friend suggested that I try the Keto diet, but I heard the Cheeto diet and that sounded great to me! This experience has fueled my passion to help people become more resilient. The world today can be very challenging at times, and we need tools to deal with the stressors at work, home and driving in traffic! My mission is to help people in leadership, entrepreneurship, colleges and organizations to find the silver lining in any situation through the lens of humor. To be able to find levity during challenging times increases our resiliency so that we can smile more often. I want to share my love of stand-up comedy with audiences across the country.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.drkerrycomedian.com/
• Instagram: drkerrycomedian
• Facebook: drkerrycomedian
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kerry-szymanski/

Image Credits
Kerry Szymanski on all photos