Episode 29: How to Deal With Rejection

In this episode of Put Your Funny Where Your Mouth Is, Vince Carone and Dobie Maxwell dig into the one thing every comic will face—disappointment.

Whether it’s a set that fell flat, an audience that didn’t respond, or a career milestone that didn’t happen the way you hoped, disappointment is baked into the journey. Vince opens up about how he responds to those moments in real time—and why he's learning not to let them define him. Dobie reflects on decades of unmet expectations, and how he’s learned to separate who he is from how the night goes.

Together, they unpack the emotional landmines comedians face when things don’t go as planned—and why resilience, detachment, and self-awareness are just as critical as punchlines.

Key Points Discussed:

• The mindset behind letting go of audience validation

• How to emotionally recover from a show that doesn’t go well

• Learning to be disappointed without becoming bitter

• The importance of not letting one night affect your whole week

• Why disappointment is tied to expectation

• Processing disappointment before reacting publicly