Jay Leno recently appeared on Fly on the Wall podcast with David Spade and Dana Carvey.
"I'm a huge believer in no self-esteem."
I can speak for most everyone who grew up in the 80s and 90s: self-esteem was king.
So, how in the world can one of the world's foremost comics get by with no self-esteem?
Self-esteem is the confidence in your own worth. “Believe in yourself,” they say.
The concept has its origins in the so-called "enlightenment." If one also fancies the notions of liberalism and socialism, you have the "enlightenment" to thank.
I'm not all that thankful, but we can talk about that another day.
But the affirmations of Stuart Smalley, Al Franken's famous Saturday Night Live character, encapsulated the self-esteem culture.
"I am good enough. I am smart enough. And gosh-darnit, people like me," came Smalley's refrain.
But what if your interpretation of your own "worth" deserves little or no confidence?
Say you're struggling. Maybe you are passionate about something you are good at, just not confident in how you do it. How can you rationalize confidence?
You can’t. You shouldn’t!
Leno might just tell you to "get better."
Do the work.
Take a major league baseball player for instance. Say he is struggling and has lost his "self-esteem" as a ballplayer. He can instead rely on his competitive instinct to get by.
If he's a pitcher, he's determined to get the batter out. If he's a hitter, he knows he is going to beat that guy on the mound. It comes from years of training, not self-esteem.
"People don't work on it," says Leno.
For, what is a boatload of self-esteem in your heart without the work ethic to back it up?
At his core, Leno sees himself as a stand-up comedian. He is. Still.
Although he didn't mention it on this show, Leno famously lives on only what he earns as a stand-up.
What about the tens—perhaps hundreds—of millions he earned as host of the Tonight Show on NBC and other television programs?
"TV was just..." Television was just another thing he did.
The Leno ethos: "Tell joke. Get check." He reiterated it several times on the show.
"I can't believe going to Hollywood and starring on a sitcom that get cancelled after 13 episodes and then you go back to working as a waiter."
Leno has always hustled to do his comedy. When he started in Boston, he'd give the barkeep a few bucks to take over the mic and tell jokes.
If he did well enough, he’d earn some of it back. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't.
"Probably cost me about 450 bucks." When you have no money, losing 450 is something.
Losing money at something you are passionate about may be a sign that you need to quit. Maybe not.
"I never really had that big break," Leno said. Instead, he kept grinding away, doing his craft.
Little break after little break kept coming. Consistency.
Eventually Leno inherited Johnny Carson's old seat. Twenty-two years of hosting a late-night show without that "big break" ain't too bad of a life.
Leno recently had a brush with death riding a motorcycle. Believe it or not, it wasn't "a 72-year-old man riding an 83-year-old motorcycle" that nearly led Jay to his death. He happened to be riding in a lot and hit a chain that wasn't marked or flagged. Drove right through it...or tried to.
Several broken bones and burns and the loss of an ear later, Leno still tours as a stand-up.
He loves it.
Tell joke. Get check.
If you have something to say and need help figuring out how to do it, we may be able to help.
No self-esteem? No worries.
We guarantee zero boost in self-esteem. In fact, you may lose some self-esteem in the process, but it's a formula that works.
Write email. Get check.
As always,
Brian
