The Comedy Tribune

“Mom, Dad, I’m quitting my very good corporate job to become a part time puppeteer.”

It’s still so hard to believe that this ridiculous string of words would have the biggest impact on my life thus far. But here I am writing this on a tropical island, sipping a pina colada. I currently live the dream of “working” by performing on a luxury cruise ship that tours around the Caribbean sea. I get to eat gourmet food, have my laundry done for me and get to entertain thousands of people every week by doing what I love. I now make my entire living doing strictly comedy. Hashtag Blessed.

Since I was young, I’ve always been sort of funny but I was not a comedian, in fact, I never hit a stage until I was 27. I grew up in the suburbs of Thornhill, Ontario, where the expectation was that you get a bigger house than your parents, move slightly further north and live the life that suburbans do. Meet someone, move in together, “buy” a home, get a dog to see if you’re ready for kids, accidentally have kids and play golf on the weekends. It’s just how it was when I was growing up.

In my mind, things were always measured by success. How big your boat is, how many vacations you go on, how good your job is. And I bought into that mentality for a long time. A very long time. I worked my way up slowly and surely in every job I held and never once was fired (I mean how embarrassing would that be!). But I also never really gave a lot of thought to what I was doing. I spent most of my life trying to keep up with the race.

Then it happened, I was told by my boss at the HR software company I was working at, that I needed to take my vacation days because this year they wouldn’t pay it out. I could not afford to go away at the time so I booked off a weekend and signed up for an introductory improv class at the Second City Training Centre. My whole world opened up and changed in an instant. Each week, I would meet people who thought like me, acted like me and best of all, joked liked me. It was a real renaissance for old Josh.

I kept going to classes for about 2 years, it became my oasis away from work and the only thing I used to look forward to. I kept at it and started doing my own shows. Eventually, I started to get paid for those shows. Not much, I mean come on, it is art, after all. And the day came when I was offered a job to perform a musical anti-bullying puppet show to kids all over Toronto. I thought about it for about half a day and then on my lunch break, I called my Mom and Dad and said those silly, silly words: “Mom, Dad, I’m quitting my very good corporate job to become a part time puppeteer.”

Who knew that this would lead to a bunch of opportunities and connections that would get me to where I am now, the happiest I’ve ever been.

This was a huge deal for me, as it would be for anyone, but I think it was for me in particular. This was the first decision I made not based on the measure of success but on the measure of happiness.

I know this may sound like logical reasoning to most but for me it was a first. It took a lot of time but I finally put my happiness above my comfort. This is scary. Terrifying. But I was letting fear run my life for so long. Fear that I was not keeping up, fear that I wouldn’t be able to survive, fear of just about everything.

When I was at my most frightened, I took the leap and left the “good” job I had (after I got my wisdom teeth taken out on their dime, booyah). And it was exhilarating. I told my friends and family, and I learned an important second lesson that day. No one cares what the fuck you do. I always thought they did because they offer you suggestions on how to run your life but at the end of the day, no one really cares, especially if it makes you happy. So you do you, it is your life.

With my new found knowledge, my life changed. I threw myself into the Toronto comedy scene. Slowly got better and more confident at what I was doing. I travelled over North America doing sketch and comedy festivals. I was hired by the Second City and did countless shows for their Touring and Family companies. I have been nominated and won awards. I worked in and around film and TV. Hit some of Toronto’s most prestigious stages. I got everything I dreamed of but was just too scared to do. Not anymore.

Right now, I’m touring around the Caribbean on a cruise ship performing for a crowd of adoring fans, bringing improv comedy a new audience. The best part is that I did this on my terms. It was never a clear path that was set for me by someone else. It was a journey that could only happen to me. And I like that.

I still teach at the Second City Training Centre and teach the very same introductory improv class that changed my life. And as cliche as it is, I teach my students to take risks. Not just in class but in life. I just hope that I can help someone get on their uncharted path so they end up on their own luxury cruise.

Josh Murray - @ActionMurray