When Fear Gets in the Way of Your Big Ideas

Summer is the perfect time do something you’ve always wanted to. Even if you aren't a student anymore with a ton of free time, you can still check something off your “wouldn’t it be cool…” list.

That’s kind of what my new video series is about. It’s crazy how easy it was to do some of the dumb stuff I thought would be funny to try. For several videos all I had to do was post on Facebook and say “hey, does anyone know someone who can help me do this stupid idea?” And within an hour I'd get A TON of responses from people more than willing to help. A lot of times you never know until you ask!

A lot of you have a “wouldn’t it be cool if…” that has to do with making something or doing something creative. Record music, try stand-up, make videos, write, paint, design, perform, speak, OR WHATEVER.

One of the big obstacles that gets in the way of us actually doing the things we want to do is fear. Elizabeth Gilbert is an author who talks a lot about creativity and she made this video called “A Letter to Fear” that I really love. It’s basically the conversation she has to have with her fear before she starts working on anything.

Here’s a fun exercise I started doing to help me get over my fear. Think of one of your favorite movies of all time. Look it up on iMDB. Scroll to the bottom of the page and find user reviews of the film and read ALL of the negative and one star reviews.

You’re going to find people who HAAAAAAAATE movies that you love so much. It’s always funny to read people complain about scenes in the movie that are actually the parts you love the most.You’ll read review after review of people annoyed, confused, angry, or who just “didn’t get it.”

It’s such a relief to me when I do this. It’s nice to know that no matter what you make there will be people who don’t like it. There will be people who hate it and don’t get what you’re trying to do.

There are people who hate Elf. There are people who really don’t like The Muppets. When I remind myself of that it stops feeling like the end of the world if someone doesn’t enjoy my stand-up. If those movies I love so much aren’t able to please everyone, then it’s ok that I can’t either.

What's on your "wouldn't it be cool if..." list? What are you going to try and do this summer? What's been stopping you from doing it?!

Talking about Black Holes at Camp

Two weeks ago I got to be a part of Mission 58 camp in Marshall, TX. I was hired as an MC, introducing each service, and performing stand-up one night.

BUT ALSO on Thursday 4 of us camp speakers got to teach break out sessions on topics students and leaders wanted to hear about. This was the best part of camp for me.

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking on what I want to travel with after I finish performing my TELL A GOOD STORY show. I’ve come up with this idea to talk about “black hole topics.” These are the topics and struggles we don’t want to bring up with people because we’re afraid they’ll suck the fun and energy of any conversation away. We’re afraid if we share our black hole it’ll suck away our friendships. My break out session at camp was the first time I got to speak about this.

The first half of the session was about how to be the kind of friend someone would want to share their BH topic with. The second half I addressed anyone in the room who might be dealing with something.

It was a really emotional afternoon for me. There was a Q&A at the end where students would ask questions and then just break down crying. It’s so crazy that we have no idea what the people around us are secretly dealing with.

And so crazy how much people are willing to open up about their hurts and problems when we share what we’ve gone through. Some times we just need to know we’re not the only one who has experienced the type of pain we’re going through. Some times that’s all we need before we’re willing to open up.

I really like the name. I like calling them “black hole topics” but I also see a problem with it. A few times during my session it sounded like I was talking about a butt. I said “what if someone shows you their black hole” and when I heard myself say it I tried really hard not to laugh.

Wonder Woman Calls You Out for Compromising Your Beliefs

"Perhaps we’re too familiar and comfortable with the current state of the church to feel the weight of the problem. But what if you grew up on a desert island with nothing but the Bible to read? Imagine being rescued after twenty years and then attending a typical evangelical church. Chances are you’d be shocked."

This is a Francis Chan quote from Crazy Love but it’s also pretty much the plot of Wonder Woman.

Wonder Woman grows up on an island, isolated from the rest of the world, until Chris Pine shows up and lets her tag along with him back to World War I. There’s a lot of goofs once they get off the island around how sheltered she is and how she doesn’t know how to act in “normal society.”

One of my favorite things to see happen in a story is when someone has to be taught how to be a “human.” I love it because there’s a moment that always happens. Whoever is being taught how to be a person turns out to be better at it than the one teaching them BECAUSE they haven’t yet learned how to compromise their beliefs.

Wonder Woman grew up being taught justice, fighting for what’s right, and protecting those in need. She doesn’t know about how we all are willing to add a “yeah but some times” to the things we know are right to do.

Wonder Woman hears a lot of “slow down,” “that’s not how things work around here,” “you can’t just do that” and she never listens to any of it. She still pursues what she knows is right and she always succeeds. She proves them wrong.

And the people trying to stop her aren’t the bad guys. These are her allies, those closest to her.

When we read the Bible we see people do some crazy stuff for Christ. People gladly go to jail for preaching the gospel. Others sell what they have to take care of the poor. It really sucks that some times when we try to follow the example of the New Testament church we hear a lot of “slow down,” “that’s not how things work around here,” “you can’t just do that” and we listen.

We compromise.

Last year the first season of Stranger Things premiered on Netflix and we were all obsessed with it because it’s such a great show. I loved it especially because it has this same element as Wonder Woman.

A major aspect of the plot is how this group of jr high boys find Eleven, a girl kept locked away, isolated from the rest of the world, for sake of scientific experiments. She escapes from captivity and her time with these boys is her first experience with the rest of the world.

The boys have to teach her how to be a person. They teach her about family. They teach her about school. They teach her about “mouth breathers.”

Eleven is taught that “friends don’t lie” and she takes it to heart. In her mind, if this is true then it’s ALWAYS true no matter what. Even when you’re scared. Even when you’re embarrassed. And she calls one of the boys out when he’s trying to lie to her! Why would he lie if "friends never lie?”

After watching the show I got a little obsessed with this. If I found Eleven, what would I teach her? And then how long would it take for her to call me out for being a hypocrite? How long until I don't practice what I preach because I'm too scared to fully commit and I'd rather take the easy way.

What if I found Eleven and I told her what a Christian is? How long until she calls me out?

I don’t want to keep compromising. If I read Jesus say “take care of the least of these” I don’t want to listen to the “slow down,” “that’s not how things work around here,” or “you can’t just do that.” I just want to do it.

This Podcast Changed the Way I Looked at Being a "Christian Comedian"

I was right out of college, working part time as a youth pastor and spending the rest of my energy trying to travel as a stand-up comedian. I had no idea what I was doing and I was dealing with a ton of insecurities. I wanted to find a way to make stand-up comedy my full time job but HOW DOES THAT EVEN WORK?!

I wasn’t good at “putting myself out there.” I barely knew what that meant. Most of the time I was performing in churches and, if I’m going to be really honest with you, I was embarrassed about that. I was becoming a “Christian comedian” and I hated it. It was embarrassing and I didn’t want to tell anyone outside the “church world” about what I was doing.

In my mind Christian comedians are comedians that only Christians find funny.

I DID NOT WANT TO BE THAT.

My Brother My Brother and Me is one of my favorite podcasts. It’s an advice show. Kind of. People send in questions looking for advice and the three brothers use that a jumping off point for all their silly goofs.

I actually went to them for advice on what I was going through. I was insecure about being a Christian trying to do comedy and I wanted to hear from a non-Christian perspective. I knew all the things people in the church might tell me. I wanted to hear from a different voice.

It really freaked me out the week I heard them read my question on the show. They said some really incredible and encouraging stuff. I’ve listened back to this a few times as I’ve gotten ready to post this and, MAN, it’s still so good.

Here’s the clip from the episode. I’ll warn you here that there is some NSFW language.

My Favorite Moments:

Just be true to yourself and you’ll end up with something original and sincere that people will be more interested in than if you just did what you think would be popular.

You might actually be able to change some people’s minds about what Christians are like and that could be a really cool thing.

You can be anything and also be funny.

When Justin said the thing about changing people’s mind, that really hit me. I feel like with today’s culture a lot of what it means to share the gospel in America today is just doing PR work

A lot of people have some really negative preconceived notions about what it means to be a Christian. It could be from people in their life or just what they’ve seen in the media, but it’s our job to be open about our faith and also not be a jerk or weirdo or someone who makes them uncomfortable, you know?

The guys from My Brother My Brother and Me really helped me be ok with being a Christian (who is also a) comedian.

Thanks, guys.

Don Rickles and Bad Advice

Don Rickles passed away last month. He was a legendary comedian. Some of you only know him as the voice of Mr. Potato Head from Toy Story but I promise he’s so much more.

I had no idea Jimmy Kimmel was close to Don Rickles until I saw his very moving tribute the day Rickles passed. His whole monologue was dedicated to Rickles, filled with some really great stories. You should watch the whole thing. It ends with a montage of some of his best moments on the show.

But there’s one line Jimmy Kimmel said that really hit me. It’s one of the finest compliments you could ever give someone.

“He gave me advice, and good advice, not the advice people give you just to hear themselves give you advice.”

I want someone to say that about me.

I want to be someone you COULD say that about. I know I don’t always live up to that. Some times I don’t just give advice, I yell it. I need to learn how to stay calm during every social interaction.

When I argue with someone I I sound like someone has a knife pointed at my face. That’s the intensity. It doesn’t matter what it is we’re arguing about, I still sound like I’m trying to defend myself in a knife fight.

Friend: “That movie was dumb.” 
Me: “I WILL DIE FOR THIS!”

I don’t always yell. Some times I just give other people advice that’s really just for me. It’s the advice I’m too chicken to apply to my own life so instead I just throw it at others. The whole time I’m saying it I’m thinking “do you hear yourself right now? This about you, not them. Chill! NO ONE HAS A KNIFE ON YOU!”

Every once in a while something comes out of my mouth that surprises even me. In a good way. I say something that I know I’m not smart enough to think of on my own.

If only there was some way I could guarantee I’m the kind of person who knew when to say the right thing. If only there was some way I could have more love, peace, patience, kindness, and self control. The problems I just described would be totally solved if those things overflowed out of me. If only there was some way to make that happen. Hmmmmmmmmmmmm…

P.S. I was talking about the Fruit of the Spirit, obviously. Those are things that come naturally out of you the more you walk in the Spirit. It's not like you force yourself to be more loving or patient. The more you walk with God, and the closer you get, the more you start to act like Him. That's all I gotta do.

Why do a house show tour?

I’ve been doing stand-up for 8 years now. It’s taken me this long to feel like I’m starting to get the hang of it. Don’t get me wrong, I’m really proud of some of the stuff I did to get me here. But now I’m about to start this stand-up tour and for the first time I feel like I know what I’m doing.

What is this tour!?

It’s called the TELL A GOOD STORY tour. I’m going to travel around performing stand-up comedy in people’s living rooms. They’re house shows and they’re the coolest.

The shows are small and intimate. I tell a bunch of stories from my life and get people int audience telling their stories too. So if I talk about my first kiss I’ll ask if anyone else has an embarrassing first kiss story. And we go from there.

I did 3 house shows this summer to get ready for when the “tour” starts in September. I wanted to test it out and get a feel for things. The shows were so much fun. People opened up and told stories their closest friends hadn’t even heard. “I’ve known you for years and you’ve NEVER told me that story!” That was one of my favorite moments.

What does the name of the tour mean?

Good question. Glad I asked myself! On all the shirts, journals and everything supporting this "tour" is a symbol. It’s a bunch of triangles and it’s a hobo symbol. You can watch this video of me talking about it or just read the description below:

HOBO SYMBOLS: Back in the 1800s hobos would leave little drawings in chalk. They’d usually warn fellow hobos of what to expect when passing through a town. Symbols might mean things like “This is a safe place to camp” or “watch out for the judge here.”

The symbol I'm using for the tour means "TELL A GOOD STORY." I love that. Hobos were outcasts from society and usually looked down on. They knew the fastest way to connect with a community was with a good story.

That's what the shows are all about. When I tell a good and honest story about my life it is the fastest way to connect with other people.

When you tell a story of something you've gone through, and you're able to laugh through the tragedy, it can be powerful for someone else going through the same thing. It'll let them know they can get through it too. They can have a similar story.

If you would like your own TELL A GOOD STORY shirt or journal (for writing down your own story) you can go here: http://www.taylorjohnsononline.com/product-category/merch/

Why did it take you 8 years to get to this point?

Don’t go asking personal questions like that! How dare you!

The truth is I wasn’t ready. Until now. I tried doing house shows a few years ago but it didn’t work. I put the call out to see if anyone was interested. I got one response and did that house show. It went ok. But just ok. Looking back, I wasn’t a strong enough performer to make it great.

This year was stressful for a while there. I knew I was supposed to be traveling full time as a comedian but I was starting doubt everything. I couldn’t get booked to save my life. My calendar was empty for months and it was getting harder to support myself.

Over the summer I was so discouraged. But a conversation I had with Garland Owensby changed it all. It was a great “who cares about success? Do what you love!” pep talk and it was exactly what I needed. I had wanted to try doing house shows again and this conversation pushed me over the edge. Literally. I fell off a cliff and died. This a ghost writing. Help me haunt Garland Owensby! He’s responsible for my death!

None of that is true. He gave a great pep talk and it FIGURATIVELY pushed me over the edge.

That weekend I recorded a video pitching the idea of the house show tour. I thought I might get 5 or 6 people interested. Maybe. But over 200 people shared the video on Facebook. It has over 17,000 views. A TON of people from all over the country contacted me wanting to do a house show. It was the right thing at the right time. It’s been the biggest blessing this year.

Soon the tour starts. When does it end? I don’t know. When people stop contacting me.

In September I’m performing around Texas.

In October I go to California.

A lot of people reached out from the east coast. I have to find a way to get to all of them. I don’t know. Being this busy is a new thing for me. I’m still learning. These are exciting new problems to have.

Does it sound like I’m bragging? Hope not.

I think I was struggling as a comedian this year because I was trying to fit into this box of “Christian comedian who performs in churches.” In order to get churches to look at me I felt like I needed to act a certain way. I needed to go about “marketing myself” in a certain way. It was fake. It was garbage. I was bad at it. I WAS REALLY BAD AT IT. But a friend told me it was ok to be myself. It was ok to do something different. If I’m bragging on anyone it’s Garland. This is the first thing I’ve done as a comedian that feels like it’s 100% me. That’s a new feeling.

I love these house shows. I can’t wait to do more.

When I am Insecure

A while ago I posted a video about living in my van.

Some times I feel weird telling people what I do with my life because I feel like they'll look down on me. Like I failed or screwed up and that's how I ended up here. I know it's not true but I can still feel insecure.

It reminds me of a blog I wrote 4 years ago when I was about to graduate from college. I was freaking out about my future and jealous of everyone else's plans in life. This what I wrote:

God makes it happen at different times for different people AND in different ways. You can't cop someone else's spiritual journey. And you can't rush your own.

If you want to read the whole blog post, it's here: http://www.taylorjohnsononline.com/god-makes-it-happen/

If you want to watch my video about living in a van, it's here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cpOutE37yA

I asked everyone who receives my weekly email newsletter if they ever deal with this. Do they find themselves comparing their lives to people around them? Do they get jealous? Does it make them discouraged or feel like giving up? I wanted to know how they dealt with it.

Here's what they said.

This is what Casey said. “I have a hard time thinking of anyone who's 100% secure in where they are right now. Especially if you get them alone and ask them. I've struggled with that, having only ever done restaurants and service industry type things since college. I struggle defining success, what that looks like, and if God and my vision of success align.”

Heather talked about a season where she made decisions based on what people around her were doing. “I wish I would have done better at keeping my eyes on what we really wanted/needed and not what we thought we needed.”

Andrew said “I always have to remind myself that, even though my job is not my favorite thing to do, I am lucky to have it, and it has taken away the huge stress of financial worry.”

It's nice to know I’m not alone on this. And neither are you.

If you'd like to receive my weekly newsletter and be a part of that awesome community, you can go here: https://madmimi.com/signups/201144/join

See Stephen Colbert's Greatness

Stephen Colbert is a thoughtful and thought provoking comedian. He also has the sense of humor of an 8th grade boy.

My fellow Americans, last week I had the pleasure of being a guest on the film and television podcast Seeing & Believing. They brought me in to shine a light on a subject I am a bit of an expert in: “not being able to shut up about how great Stephen Colbert is.”

In fact, the whole reason I was invited onto the show is because of something I tweeted out in desperation.

Stephen Colbert takes over The Late Show tonight. If you’re not all that excited for it, let me share some of my favorite Colbert clips to help explain why this show is going to be so great.

“Colbert Loves to Play”

This was a major point I kept making on Seeing & Believing. Colbert jumps at any invitation to interrupt the norm and run after something silly in any moment. Here are two of my favorite examples.

Stephen Colbert and Steve Carell are lifelong friends who’ve worked together for a couple decades. During this interview to promote Carell’s Get Smart there’s this beautiful exchange between the two. I love how you can clearly see what they’re REALLY saying to each other underneath what they’re saying to each other. “Are we really going to do this?” “I’m willing. You chicken?” “I’m not scared.” And the interview is put on pause so they can play.

Another clip I love to show is from when Colbert and Jon Stewart presented at the Emmy’s a few years ago. The best part is when it’s time to announce the winner. Jon Stewart initiates something ridiculous and I LOVE the look on Colbert’s face. He can’t believe they’re about to interrupt the Emmy’s for this stupid moment. And everyone goes for it. The part worth watching starts at 3:31.

Colbert’s Faith

Colbert is pretty open about his Catholic faith. This clip especially shows a real love/understanding/appreciation for Christ’s teaching on caring for the poor. What’s so great about this is that the message is not compromised for the sake of jokes and the jokes are not compromised for the sake of the message. It’s equally funny and powerful. If only mainstream Christian entertainment understood how to do that.

Get More: Comedy Central,Funny Videos,Funny TV Shows

Colbert’s Sincerity

Colbert makes it very clear that a lot of who he is today is a result of working with Jon Stewart. In Stewart’s last episode of The Daily Show Colbert was able to give a really nice heartfelt speech on behalf of everyone who worked for Stewart.

The best part of the clip is what happens when Stewart tries to throw to commercial. Several years ago, Stewart made it a practice to surprise a Daily Show correspondent with a touching goodbye tribute on their last show. The best example of this is when Jon Stewart made John Oliver cry like a baby. It’s really funny to see the tables turn. Also, Colbert is so well spoken. I want to talk like him one day. The part worth watching starts at 3:13.

The Daily Show Daily Show Full Episodes,  More Daily Show Videos,  Comedy Central Full Episodes

Colbert’s 8th Grader Sense of Humor

In the episode of Seeing & Believing I was the guest on, we got into some deep discussions on subjects like suffering and joy. And it was because of who Stephen Colbert is and what he does. He is a thoughtful and thought provoking comedian. What I love about Colbert is the fact that he can be all those things while at the same time being very stupid and childish. You don’t have to choose a side. He’s both.

The whole time we were having our very serious conversation on the podcast I kept thinking about this moment. Warning: this whole clip is about an inappropriate joke.

Colbert’s Friends

Every time I watch this clip from the series finale of The Colbert Report I end up getting emotional. Because I’m a big dumb baby. And because it brings me so much joy. Colbert ends his show after 9 years with the most impressive sing-a-long ever assembled. It’s insane how many celebrities they were able to get to say goodbye to the show. And they’re all standing together. And they’re all singing.

Often times satire and political humor can alienate and cause division. Colbert never pulled punches when going after this politician or whatever controversial issue, but how amazing that, at the end of day, Colbert was able to bring more people together than separate.

This clip is crazy. We’ve got George Lucas, Mike Huckabee, Willie Nelson, James Franco, Big Bird, Patrick Stewart, and celebrities blocking the view of other celebrities.

It’s clips like this that make me excited for the new The Late Show. The guest lists for the first two weeks of shows have already been released and it’s clear Colbert is building up an eclectic family all over again. CEOs, politicians, and Stephen King? In the first week!? What if Stephen King became the Justin Timberlake to Colbert’s Fallon. HA! I’d love to see their song parodies.

We have a lot to look forward to. Stephen Colbert takes over on CBS tonight. Please check it out.

Should I be Scared to Die? [video]

We’re all going to die one day and that’s terrifying.

I think about death a lot and now I’m going to talk about it with you so you can think about it a lot too. Hooray for death!

Isn’t it crazy that you could die before you finish reading this post? That means either you’re an impossibly slow reader and it takes you 40 years to get through 100 words OR it means you could die at any minute.

How does that make you feel? Does it freak you out? Are you ok with it?

One of my favorite bands of all time, The Avett Brothers, have one of my favorite lyrics about death.

"If I live the life I’m given I won’t be scared to die."

Yes yes yes. That sounds amazing. That sounds like exactly what I want. I want to live the life I’m given so when I come to the end I won’t be scared to die. I won’t have a ton of regrets.

But what does that mean? How do I make sure I “live the life I’m given?”

I think I’ve finally figured it out. The answer may surprise you. Or it might not. Who knows. I’m not good at clickbait anymore.

In these two videos from my Youtube Channel I dive into what I believe it means to live a “good life.”

Subscribe to my Youtube Channel for more videos of me discussing serious themes in the silliest ways.

How to Pursue Your Calling? I DON'T KNOW

I have no idea what I’m doing.

At the end of this summer I’ll get to celebrate one whole year of traveling as a comedian for my full time job. Up until that point it had just been something I did on the side. First it was a fun thing I did in college and then it became a side job while I worked as a part time youth pastor. And before all that it was just this far away pipe dream that seemed impossible.

I’m so glad I’ve never been asked to be a part of any sort of Q&A about following your calling because I don’t know if it would go well.

Q: When did you first feel a calling into ministry?

A: I was in the 8th grade. No joke. That’s when I knew.

Q: What did you feel a calling to do?

A: Something with traveling and Jesus? I didn’t know much. I just knew it was something.

Q: And how did you go from knowing that in 8th grade to actually doing that with you life?

A: I have no idea and if I think about it for too long I get freaked out. I don’t know how any of this happened. It kind of doesn’t make any sense at all.

Q: Why are you sweating so much all of a sudden?

A: I told you! If I think about this too much I FREAK OUT! AAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!

Q: I think we’ll have to end the Q&A there because Taylor has taken his shirt off and run out of the building crying.

I have no idea what I’m doing and I never had. I didn’t come up with a master plan in 8th grade and followed that step by step in order to get me here. When I was in 8th grade I was dead set on not going to college. I thought I didn’t need to take classes to learn about the Bible. I thought I knew it all already. WHAT AN IDIOT.

When God lays a dream or a calling on our heart we can get too concerned with the “how.” How in the world is this possibly going to happen?! But remember the story of Joseph in the Old Testament. God gave him a vision what would happen in the future. It took a lot of years, being sold into slavery, jail time, and a bunch of other seemingly random events in order for Joseph to find himself at the fulfillment of that dream.

You think Joseph made a 5 year plan that included running naked from his boss’ wife? I hope not. I really really hope not. That would be troubling news.

Am I saying planning is wrong? No. But don’t get so wrapped up and stressed out by it. We can look at Joseph’s story and know that above all we just need to be obedient in the little steps. That’s what’ll take us through our journey. Joseph was ready to do the right thing in all these little moments and that’s what got him to his destiny.

Don’t freak out. Be obedient.

I guess that’s what I need to keep telling myself.