We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Leland Klassen. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Leland below.

Leland, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. The first dollar you earn is always exciting – it’s like the start of a new chapter and so we’d love to hear about the first time you sold or generated revenue from your creative work?

I had been working on my stand up comedy act by myself and had plans to try it, but I didn’t really know where to start. I told very few people that I was working on it. I did however tell a guy I had worked and when his parent’s comedian canceled for their Christmas party, they called me and asked if I was a comedian. I said…”yes, I am”.

I then prepared for a couple more weeks for my debut and then bombed horribly and realized there is a lot more to this than I thought. I ended up finding a a local spot to try comedy and proceeded to work on my craft for another year or so before I got paid anything again, deservedly so.

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

I am a stand up comedian and I’ve been doing it for 25 years. I’ve never conformed my act to what would make me more successful. Thankfully the real me is something that is fairly accessible to most audiences. I can do almost any type of crowd in any type of situation. While so many comics are being canceled these days, I mostly make fun of myself so unless I cancel myself, I should be okay (I’ve been tempted, there’s only so much I can take from me).

I can perform with children in the audience and am never afraid that it’s going to be too raw for them. I’m totally family friendly, however I am not a cheesy comic either. The “cool kids” also think I’m funny.

I’m authentic. What you see is what you get. I have been told that it just feels like we’re having a conversation when I’m on stage. The only problem with that is that some audiences get too comfortable and think they’re part of the show. Luckily, I’ve also learned how to deal with almost every kind of crowd and can deal with whatever is thrown at me.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Anyone who does stand up comedy and has done it for several years, has to be resilient. Talent is the most important thing in comedy and honing your craft, but hustle is a close second. I’ve seen some terrible comics who actually do pretty good because they know how to hustle, to work, to keep the gigs coming and seizing every opportunity.

I’ve been in this business for more than 25 years and the reason I’ve lasted this long is because I was always being proactive and “creating” the opportunities and work instead of waiting for it to come to me.

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

Everything is available through google. I never had this when I first started out and it’s invaluable for the business aspect and for various artistic parts of comedy. Other comics will often list helpful anecdotes of what they’ve learned and they are invaluable.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.lelandklassen.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leland.klassen
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leland.klassen
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/lelandklassen