Have you ever been out to dinner with a group of friends and after a bunch of chit chat the table falls to a dead silence…

And as that awkward feeling starts creeping up your shoulders someone starts babbling again and relief washes over you?

What is it about silence that gets to people?

I think that we are so used to being bombarded by sound, that when silence arrives, it's so unfamiliar that we have an unconscious need to fill it back up.

Why?

Because nature abhors a vacuum.

We have an unconscious need to fill empty space.

What does this have to do with comedy?

Well, It's been said that "music happens in the silence between the notes".

This is also true for comedy.

Comedy happens in the pause.

And if we look at our job as being a conductor on stage, then we get to create magic between ourselves and the audience

And if you can master this one thing, it will make you a better comic in no time.

In fact, if you're new and you build this in to your set straight from the gate, you'll give off the essence of being a pro.

That's how powerful this is.

Today, we're joined by Bobbie Oliver, author of The Tao of Comedy – Embrace The Pause

And it was in her book, that I first read about the importance of pausing.

You'll hear first hand how pausing on and offstage will help you build confidence and a commanding stage presence.

Read Bobbie's book, The Tao of Comedy

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