When was the last time, you did something for the first time?

The last time I did something for the first time was a few months ago when I decided to move away from Pittsburgh, PA where I have lived my entire life for a new career opportunity in Atlanta. I was in a wonderful spot in Pittsburgh and always was proud to be a Pittsburgher but I also knew that it was time to explore something new and different. I wanted a new journey for myself and my family. I needed to stretch beyond my comfort zone to experience the world from a bigger and different perspective. Never be afraid of change. Well it is okay to be anxious about change. Everyone is at some point. But do not let it stop you from taking the leap to something and someplace new. No matter how old you are or how settled in you may be now.

This question certainly got me thinking. Once I decided to do standup comedy. It was one of the most terrifying things I'd ever done. I thought I should. Class clown and all that. But performing in public was a shattering event. For some reason, probably out of audience largesse or too much alcohol, I was a hit. A big hit. The confidence it gave me conned me into no preparing for the next time, and it was a disaster. First, it taught me not to take anything for granted -- most good things require work. Second, it taught me that I was not "a natural", and probably not "a natural" at anything, that no matter what you do, if there are other people doing it, there are likely a lot of people just as good as you and much better but who put extra work into it. Third, it told me I liked it. A lot. I did that for about eight years. I met some really talented people who showed me just how good other people were, and people who were really, really nice people. I can point to people on television and in movies and say, "Hey! I know that person!" I had a show and called a friend and invited him. He told me he'd really, really love to come, but he had moved to California. He was working with Larry David and became pretty famous. I very much appreciated those kind words. So the message it gave me was when confronted with an opportunity, take it. Not taking a chance is not why we're here.