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Lewis HowesStop Saying "Hope." It's Quietly Blocking Everything You Want (Here's What to Say Instead) | Jo Koy
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At a glance
WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT
Jo Koy on certainty, hustle, and earning breaks in comedy
- Jo Koy describes building a comedy career through relentless repetition, embracing bombs, and treating failure as necessary feedback rather than a reason to quit.
- He shares how he created opportunities by saying yes, pushing to be seen, and performing under unfavorable conditions that later turned into pivotal breaks like BET’s Comic View and Showtime at the Apollo.
- He reflects on insecurity and childhood trauma, explaining how being on stage gave him confidence and a sense of control he didn’t always have offstage.
- He discusses racism and limited opportunities in comedy clubs and Hollywood in the ’80s and ’90s, saying this scarcity made him unwilling to pass up chances to perform.
- He explains his craft philosophy: study the art, develop a unique voice, avoid “greatest hits,” and keep creating new material—along with a mindset shift away from saying “hope.”
IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING
5 ideasHe avoids saying “hope/hopefully” and swaps it for “when it comes out” or “it will.”
He says “hope” implies relying on something other than your own talent and effort, so he replaces it with certainty-oriented language like “when it comes out” and “it will work out.” This reflects his broader mindset of ownership and action over wishing.
He defines failure as not trying; attempting and failing is still a win.
He frames real failure as not trying because of fear, while attempting and coming up short still counts as progress and learning. In his view, accepting the challenge—even under bad conditions—is a form of winning.
Many of his career breaks came from making himself available under imperfect conditions.
He recounts going to the front of the line, asking to speak to the promoter, and being ready to perform when booked comics were late, which led to BET’s Comic View and later Showtime at the Apollo. The pattern he highlights is showing up, asking, and being prepared to deliver immediately.
He still does grassroots promotion (like handing out flyers) despite major success.
Even after selling out major venues, he says he still prints and passes out huge batches of flyers because “not everybody knows you,” and assuming they do is “narcissistic.” He emphasizes humility and consistent effort rather than coasting on reputation.
He studied stand-up like a craft, analyzing structure, timing, and delivery.
He describes watching stand-up specials as a deliberate education—timing applause breaks, studying cadence, structure, and stage command—especially in a pre-internet era when access was limited. He sees this as learning the art form, not just consuming comedy for laughs.
WORDS WORTH SAVING
5 quotesThe one thing I never say is hope or hopefully. You'll never hear me say it.
— Jo Koy
But if the opportunity arises and you accept the challenge and you fail, then you won.
— Jo Koy
Like, I don't get offended by it. I just get motivated by it.
— Jo Koy
Like, I dreamt this when I was nine. Like, I, I, I'm still asleep dreaming.
— Jo Koy
But it's when you're doing what you love for absolutely nothing. That's the true definition of greatness.
— Jo Koy
High quality AI-generated summary created from speaker-labeled transcript.
