Episode 191: Love Your Online Presence: A Conversation with Comedian Nick Smeriglio
Want to know what Christopher Walken’s favorite podcast is? You’re in for a treat.
In today’s episode, Erin talks with impressionist and comedian Nick Smeriglio about his journey from corporate to comedy, how posting his impression of Sebastian Maniscalco on TikTok led to a phone call from Jimmy Kimmel, and the realization he came to about letting go of other people’s opinions.
If you’re looking for some inspiration on taking that leap—whatever it is for you—this is the episode to listen to.
More about Nick Smeriglio: Nick’s career has taken off since his TikTok impression of Sebastian Maniscalco blew up the internet in September of 2020. He earned reviews from Maniscalco himself plus invaluable screen time when the fellow Arlington Heights native spotted Nick's video on the Jimmy Kimmel Show. In October 2021, Nick packed up, moved to New York, and started doing comedy at East Coast Comedy Clubs. Today, Nick is a comedian, impressionist, actor, digital content creator, and cast member on "I Mostly Blame Myself.”
ICYMI – Your Post-Episode Homework: Leave a review for us on iTunes so we can continue to bring hilarious guests on like Nick, screenshot it and send Erin an email at info@learntoimprove it.com. She'll send you a personalized video back as a thank you. Thanks so much for listening.
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Connect with Nick Smeriglio:
Nick’s website: https://www.nickysmigs.com/
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Erin Diehl is the founder and Chief “Yes, And” officer of improve it! and host of the improve it! Podcast. She’s a performer, facilitator and professional risk-taker who lives by the mantra, “get comfortable with the uncomfortable.” Through a series of unrelated dares, Erin has created improve it!, a unique professional development company that pushes others to laugh, learn and grow. Her work with clients such as United Airlines, PepsiCo, Groupon, Deloitte, Motorola, Walgreens, and The Obama Foundation earned her the 2014 Chicago RedEye Big Idea Award and has nominated her for the 2015-2019 Chicago Innovations Award.
This graduate from Clemson University is a former experiential marketing and recruiting professional as well as a veteran improviser from the top improvisational training programs in Chicago, including The Second City, i.O. Theater, and The Annoyance Theatre.
When she is not playing pretend or facilitating, she enjoys running and beach dates with her husband and son, and their eight-pound toy poodle, BIGG Diehl.
You can follow the failed it! podcast on Instagram @learntoimproveit and facebook, and you can follow Erin personally on Instagram @keepinitrealdiehl here. You can also check out improve it! and how we can help your organization at www.learntoimproveit.com. We can’t wait to connect with you online!
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Episode 191 Transcription
Erin (00:02):
Improve it. Peep oh my God, today's guest is going to make you giggle. He's gonna make you laugh. He's also going to give you a great conversation about digital content where we are in this digital landscape. You're gonna hear how he got to be the comic and impressionist that he is, and just have a little fun today. So, Nick Rio's career has taken off since his TikTok impression of Sebastian Maniscalco blew up the internet in September of 2020. Now, back then, he earned reviews from Maniscalco himself plus invaluable screen time when the fellow Arlington Heights native spotted Nick's video on the Jimmy Kimmel Show. Nick is gonna talk to you about this in this episode. And then in October, 2021, you're gonna hear all about how Nick packed up, moved to New York and started doing comedy at East Coast Comedy Clubs. He is a Chicago native, which as you know improve it myself, spent a 15 year stint in Chicago, that is where Improve its roots began.
Erin (01:15):
But now Nick has started this career as a comic and a digital content creator. He's gonna give you some of his story here today. I hope it resonates with you. And obviously, if you are listening today and you aren't pursuing a career and comedy like yours, truly take what he says and really apply it to yourself and how it can help you really love what you are doing. You're gonna hear an awesome story about Nick's transition from corporate America to the comedy world during the pandemic. And I think this story is spot on when it comes to talking about following our passions and truly loving what we do. Let's get to improving it with Nick Smeriglio. Nick, I am so excited to have you on the improve it! Podcast.
Nick (02:18):
How are you, Erin?
Erin (02:19):
Oh, I'm living dreams. I'm living dreams. I'm, I really am so excited. I feel like I, I got to do my research on you. You know, a very special someone in relation to this show. Her name is Rachel Oliveros. She might be your podcast manager.
Nick (02:36):
Maybe not be special in her eyes because of how much time she had to give me training me at Viacom when I started, but God bless her for that. And, and you got <laugh>. You got a gem in the, in the podcast game. Let's be honest.
Erin (02:49):
Oh my God, I, and, and in life, Rachel is, we always said when she interned at Improve It somehow, some way we would find a way to work together. Here it is. She's here. So I'm thrilled to have you on this show. I told you we had this wonderful woman named Andrea Lopez on the show. And I know you know her. I know you might know her.
Nick (03:11):
Just a tad.
Erin (03:11):
Tad. Just a tad. And we are just, I love what you do. I'm here to, to share, to share the Nick Gospel. And I wanna, I wanna just start off by setting an intention for this show. So what is one word that you wanna give our listeners today?
Nick (03:34):
Fail.
Erin (03:35):
Oh, yeah. Fail. Yeah.
Nick (03:36):
I mean, like, that's, yeah, right. It, i, easy layup for me because it was in front of me, but it couldn't be yeah. You know, but no, fail Fail is probably the best one, I think for now.
Erin (03:46):
It could be. Yeah. But we'll take fail. We'll take fail too. Could be both.
Nick (03:49):
I'll, it might be one word by the end of the podcast.
Erin (03:51):
Might be one word. Fail. Yeah, Fail Yeah. There's no hyphen, fail. Yeah. And if, and for those of you, for everyone who is listening of the Fail yeah sign behind me here, which is a big part of our journey. So this is what, this actually teased me up, Nick, for what I wanna start with. So you had this awesome time in corporate America, thank you to Rachel Oliveros. I want you to share just sort of how that journey came, but now you're this awesome comedian, digital content creator. So how did you evolve to where you are and, and how did this work on the corporate side help you along the way?
Nick (04:37):
Yeah, so I marketing degree in college. I, you know, thought I was gonna be a CMO when I graduated. That was the path my dad's in advertising, so he was a huge inspiration for that side of the corporate world. And then I did recruiting for a year. I did food service sales for a year and ended up just being miserable. It's just not, you know, some of it's the millennial piece of like, you know, how come no one cares about me? Probably, you know, I think we're just wired that way generationally. But part of it was also, I just had this bug. I had this itch I had to scratch, and it was just like, dates back to me being 11 years old, watching Who's Line is it Anyway on a, b, c family? My sister and I loved that show, and I, I just remember like, liking it a little bit more than most people did.
Nick (05:21):
And then in high school, all the football guys we finished senior year season, which was a wonderful two and seven I think, and definitely not the athlete of the family. And then we went out for the musical and did sound of Music in high school and I loved performing. So fast forward to my sister, takes me to a Second City show when I was like two years into the corporate world. And I was like this is it. Like whatever they're doing on stage, I'm in love with this. Eventually got a job at Viacom downtown Chicago in the ad sales support CSR customers. I think, I forget the, the Rachel would know.
Erin (05:59):
Rachel's gonna edit this show. Yeah, she's gonna edit and she's gonna be like, what?
Nick (06:03):
Something that sounds really important that really you know.
Erin (06:06):
A good acronym.
Nick (06:07):
A learning role and a good ground floor. And for me, I needed that. But it was an awesome awesome company. Great people. And I learned a lot. And I was taking, I started taking Second City classes when I was when I started at Viacom. Fast forward like a year, and I get casted for some like, coached ensemble. And my boss let me take six Wednesdays as half days to go rehearse. And so Viacom is a huge forever like, gratitude towards them because I was ready to like not get another corporate job. I was so unhappy. My dad was like, just try this one place. Trust me, it's not the same. Give it a shot. And I'm, I was dreading it. I saw the job description. I was like, dad, this is the same thing. <Laugh>, this is the same thing, that every resume, you know?
Nick (06:55):
And I had a shitty attitude and it's I, I, I'm so happy I did it because they were allowing me to pursue um what I didn't know at the time was really a dream, a hobby in the moment. And my last show was a week before Covid and depression 2.0 when Covid started. I was like, I finally found what I wanted to do and now what, you know, but I loved Second City. I loved improv. So, Rachel aside, I would've done your podcast truthfully. Cause I love what you guys do too so.
Erin (07:22):
Aw, thank. Okay. Well now I need to know who are some of your teachers? Cuz they might be our people. Who, who are some of your teachers? Oh,
Nick (07:28):
God, I don't even know. I couldn't tell you. I mean, I had
Erin (07:37):
Andrew McCammon.
Nick (07:38):
Rosie does not sound familiar. Andrew, maybe.
Erin (07:41):
Okay. Okay. He's one of our guys both then.
Nick (07:44):
Whoever they were, they were awesome.
Erin (07:44):
Catherine Savage. Oh God, I, no, okay. Come back to me. Come back to me on that one. Well,
Nick (07:50):
You know how improv works. They all have like a nickname when the first day, and remember, we just make fun of 'em and they make fun of us and they become I don't know, Blondie or I don't know, something like that. So I, I could, that's not a good example, but they were awesome.
Erin (08:03):
I, okay, so you started doing improv. I did not know that. I thought you were doing impressions stand up. I thought that was just the jump. I did not know you started an improv and good for Viacom for recognizing. Okay. So cool. He has Yeah. Strengths outside of work, right? Let me let him go do that and he'll show up for us here.
Nick (08:24):
Yeah, I guess I didn't know I had strengths outside of work. It was a gamble on their end. But luckily with the job being salaried in overtime they were just like, we trust you. Make up your hours, you know, go pursue this. And they kind of like LA looked at inward, the management team, the sales team where they were like, we sell airtime for entertainment and actors and comedians. Like if someone in the airtime business wants to pursue the other side of Viacom's business, like why not? So it wasn't just me. That I think got special treatment, if you will. I think it's something that they made collectively. At least my boss told me that. So again, props to Viacom because they let me do that. And the other, other two jobs probably would not have let me have done that. So
Erin (09:07):
That is awesome. Yeah. Good for kudos. Viacom. I'm gonna give them lots of love. Yeah. Cuz that's, that is what's up. That's how you do it. Yeah. You know? Yeah. And now you've found this love and this passion and you're a comic and you work, you have performed at Zanies, right? One of my favorite spots in Chicago. Love. Love. Yeah. And then you also are a celebrity impressionist <laugh>. And this, I love you were found doing your impersonation of Sebastian Meniscal on TikTok. And then he saw this on, tell us that story about how he saw you doing the impression on Jimmy Kimmel.
Nick (09:50):
So I, COVID starts mm-hmm. <Affirmative>, I wanted to like, take more classes. I really wanted to be an actor more than a comedian. I was not an impressions kid, but my, I was, my family was pushing me to get on TikTok to share or just take advantage of all this downtime. Cause I wasn't doing anything. And all I knew how to do was these three impressions, which was Sebastian, Tony Soprano, Christopher Watkins. I put him in skits on TikTok and it just worked, which was nuts. So I kind of became Impressions guy by default. Just how the way, you know, these apps work now.
Erin (10:19):
Yeah.
Nick (10:20):
Algorithms. But Sebastian saw it and like three months later, July, 2020, he guessed hosted Kimmel and reviewed impressions of himself. And he put me up there with three or four other people. One was Melissa v VOR from S n l, which was, which was awesome. And I got a call from a Burbank, California number, like the day of, and I ignored it and I didn't, I mean, I didn't, because Sebastian posted about it on his social. I'm guest hosting and I'm reviewing impressions of myself. And everybody was texting me like, dude, it's gotta be you. It's gotta be you. I'm like, I'm not, no, I don't, I don't know. I, this is too weird. There's no way. And it's three months into Covid and me posting just to have fun. And lo and behold my dad calls me after I get an unknown call from Burbank and he goes, it could be, it could be a studio, it could be, maybe it's Kimmel. So I listened to the voicemail and I was like, this is Jim or James from Jimmy Kimmel. We wanna make sure you're okay with putting a video of yours on, on Kimmel tonight. And so props to my dad for telling me to call back a Burbank number because I wasn't expecting that. And yeah, I was on the show that night. It was crazy.
Erin (11:25):
That is crazy. Okay. And did, did that sort of propel you forward on TikTok or were you already seeing just a lot of movement from what you were doing? I think I had
Nick (11:37):
Like 10,000 followers on TikTok at the time. Like, I don't know, four or 5,000 on Instagram. So I didn't really know where this thing was gonna go, but Sebastian really is my inspiration to get into entertainment because he's also from Arlington Heights, Illinois, my hometown. Yeah. And just an Italian kid who got a, a corporate communications degree and did some corporate jobs until he was 24 and then moved to la And his story was just so inspiring and it just kinda showed me like, you don't have to know anybody in show business. You don't have to know a thing about show business, but you can, if you try and you work hard, you know, his story really hit home for me, like in a way to where like, if I got his approval, you know, if you will, like no one else's mentally, I remember like, no one else's opinion matters. Like my one inspiration just gave me a nod on national TV and like, this is mine to screw up now kind of mentality. Yeah. So he really did do me a huge solid, and he, he follows me on Instagram and he, you know, very supportive.
Erin (12:35):
Does he like your content? Do you get likes from Sebastian?
Nick (12:38):
You know, he did out of the gate. And then his, his <laugh> his mom started commenting <laugh> like my second son. So funny. And, and one day, like, like his wife Lana followed me as well. Oh. And she was liking some of the videos early. And then one day, next day, third day, fourth day, like, there was no activity. And I'm like, Sebastian definitely called his mom and said, ma, lay off the kid. All right. You're giving him too much confidence. It's not good. He's trying to do this thing and you're ruining his you know, so it, it, I I rec I at the time, I was like, oh God, they all un foul me or whatever. And then now looking back, like that's just, that makes sense based on his story because it might have messed with my head a little bit if they kept engaging and it was, it was, I took it as, okay, you got national tv, you got the follow, like, let's see what you got. Like go, like you're, do your thing. And so yeah, I messaged him a couple of times, like, you know, thanks for exposing me means a lot love what you do all the respect and it's like, I, you know, happy to do it. Best of your family, good luck in the entertainment business. And that's all I needed to really gimme the confidence to pursue this thing. So it's definitely special. That is
Erin (13:54):
Awesome. Yeah. That's cool. I mean, you literally like your, so for me that would be like Oprah, you know, like, I mean, that's a lot of people, but that would be Oprah or you know, Ellen before she got the bad press. Like, you know, that type of like, that, you know what I mean? But I still love her. I still love Ellen. But that's huge. Like, that is, it's just unbelievable. And now, so now you've fast forward, that was 2020, it's 2023, you've moved to New York. What made you move to New York? Was that the comedy scene?
Nick (14:28):
Yeah, so I, I didn't really wanna do standup. I wasn't in my mind at the time. And then fast forward to fall of 2020 and Comedy Club started calling me to book me. Mm-Hmm. And I was telling them I'd never gotten on stage before. I just had a year of improv at Second City and they didn't care, which was insane to me. Like, I, Sebastian's story is like 10 years of open mics and then maybe a special 15 years later. And so that was strange. And I realized, you know, the restaurants and entertainment and clubs were hurting during Covid. They were booking a lot of people with, from, with followings online. So I, I put a 30 minute set together, did a couple open mics, and then by like spring of 21, I was headlining like the Jersey Shore Governor's, long Island, Atlantic City.
Nick (15:13):
It made no sense. And I got, you know, just baptism by fire. Got a manager from another Italian comedian, Anthony Rodia, who I owe a lot of gratitude to as well for a helping me out out of the gate. My manager was in New York. And my following, because of some of the reposts I got by like Italian content pages most were in New York. Like, the demographics were like overwhelmingly New York. And like Fractionally Chicago was like the number two. So a buddy I met during Covid doing podcasting, he lives on Long Island, was like, dude, if your following's here and you need a spare bedroom for a couple months, like, we'll figure it out, check with the wife. And lo and behold, it was seven 50 a month on Long Island for six months. And I, so I threw my life in my grandma's car and I drove out there and it's, it, it, what happened so fast, it, it's still crazy to think back at house. Insane, the whole thing is, but loved it and fell right into a groove. Met a lot of people, got some jobs, been auditioning, getting on stage, and then moved to Brooklyn a year ago after six months on Long Island. So it's been a true blessing. I i aware of the fact that my covid experience was the 0.01% of the population in the sense that it was very beneficial to me and grateful for that. So it's been pretty cool for sure.
Erin (16:31):
Wow. I mean, truly, I'm, I'm not gonna let you Nick, it is the opposite of my story, but you know what? We're here now, here now
Nick (16:39):
My story makes no sense. I still doesn't make sense to me. I'm like, why am I headlining these places? I don't know what I'm doing still.
Erin (16:45):
So don't worry about it. But I mean, it all came, it all happened for a reason. That is so awesome. And now you're doing a life that you love. And guess what? Corporate America helped you remember the life that you love. So, and helped you, I guess find the life that you love, which is so crazy. And now you're doing these shows. You're in New York, you're in Brooklyn. So I thought this would be fun. And tell me, Nick, if you're like, listen, I'm sick of it, and I know you're, which is shocking to me that you're not. And impersonator, like, I, I really feel like when I look at your page, I was like, man, that's it. But you have this whole comedic chopped you, which is fascinating and I had no clue that you started at improv, which is even cooler. So, are you ready? Could we, could we do a few characters here?
Nick (17:40):
Put me on the spot. Fire away.
Erin (17:42):
Okay. All right. Cuz this is, you know what we do. So I'm gonna do some lightning ground questions and so they're super, super quick. And you can answer 'em as Nick or as the, let's, let's answer 'em as the character would. I think that would be easier. So, okay. The first one is Christopher Walken. Okay. What's your favorite podcast,
Nick (18:03):
Christopher? Now I've done a lot of podcasts. Aaron, I do. I like them. It's a great forum for conversation in today's digital age. After many runs in podcast interviews, I have to say, of course, there'd be a push to not acknowledge, improve it with Aaron, you know, it's been great. Fascinating. The prep. The prep on my, it's great. So good to be here. Aaron <laugh>. Thank you.
Erin (18:30):
Yes, thank you Christopher. Okay. And then one more, one more question for you. What is your favorite food item to order off a menu?
Nick (18:40):
Pasta, linguini. Rigatoni, far, you name it. Oh my <laugh>. Lions and tigers and bears. Oh, my granny for or Kitty. Oh my. I like pasta. Aaron. It's great Italian food. It goes with anything. I need to stop eating it cause I'm getting fat, but you know, here we are.
Erin (19:01):
Crush it. Crush it. Okay. All right. I got, I got a couple more. Okay. Can we do Sebastian, can we do Sebastian now? Okay. Sebastian, what is the best book that you've read lately?
Nick (19:13):
Honestly, the only book I've ever read cover to cover True Story is my own. It's called <laugh> Stay Hungry. If you can't tell, I was a horrible student cause I didn't read nothing. Ask Rachel. She trained me. I didn't read nothing. <Laugh> <laugh>
Erin (19:30):
Amazing. Amazing. Okay. And then Sebastian, what's your favorite television show to binge?
Nick (19:39):
You know, I, oh my gosh, I just did Walken. I like I'm a big fan of mad Men. You seen Mad Men with John Ham and Roger Sterling. It's a great highlight of the sixties and Madison Avenue and just the class. Can we talk about the class these people had with the suits and the, and the punctuality? I mean, what a different era today. I mean, people aren't wearing suits to the office anymore. They got slippers and flannels on, what is that? <Laugh>?
Erin (20:13):
Amen. Amen. Okay. Yes. Sebastian Crush. Okay, I got one more. And this one, I, I like trolled through your gram. And I don't think you do this one a lot, but I liked it. Gary Vaynerchuk. Can we do a Gary?
Nick (20:27):
Of course. Like ask whenever. You have to ask <laugh>. I'm just starting. You don't even ask me a question. Sorry. Go ahead. I love
Erin (20:34):
It. I love, okay, what, what's the best movie you've ever seen, Gary?
Nick (20:38):
Like, movies are like so powerful in the content industry and it's funny you ask me that because tonight I'm literally posting a collab with another Gary v Impersonator, swear to God. Nema Naer favorite movie. I would probably say Goodwill Hunting. Great movie. Honestly. Like Boston accents are amazing. You know, I, I'm not from there, but it's cool and a great story and therapy, like self bettering, patience, perseverance, <laugh>,
Erin (21:11):
Gary. I love it. I love it. Okay. And Gary, one more question for you. Who is your favorite comic?
Nick (21:18):
You know, lately I had so my impression sucked <laugh> Tim Dylan.
Erin (21:25):
No, it's so good. Keep
Nick (21:26):
Going. Great comic, long Island. Comic Tim Dylan, like blowing up like significantly online and like TikTok and Instagram, Snapchat, Pinterest, who knows. And only 10 years in like murdering, just crushing it and all the, all the humility in the world. So prop. Timmy d Dylan, Tim, sorry,
Erin (21:48):
Gary. Yes. Oh my God. Crushed it. And that is the name of his book Crush It. Is it really? It's one of the very first. Oh yeah. One of the,
Nick (21:58):
A lot of books now, right?
Erin (21:59):
Oh my god, Nick, that was good. My cheeks hurt. That was amazing. I loved it. And also my favorite is like when you break, because that, that is my favorite moment in any, any type of comedy scene. Like if people break, it just makes me laugh even harder. But you crushed it. Like truly those were amazing.
Nick (22:15):
And just to thank you. But just to be clear, like, I have nothing against impressions, I guess. I didn't know it was gonna get me a career change from TikTok. So I, I learned all the new ones that like the audience would suggest after starting on TikTok. And then once you get into standup and acting either you love impressions enough to make it your whole act or if you can channel some other, you know, stories or that darkness of comedy or whatever character into standup and acting like I I I've been coached to like develop my own brand and a lot of the impressions things can, can take away from that. So I have nothing against them, I just don't post them as much because I'd rather be branded as or at least attempt to be branded than more than that. But nothing wrong with it at all. It's just really not me at my core. So Totally, totally. No problem asking me any of those questions, by the way.
Erin (23:07):
Oh my god, I love it. And I'm glad you shared that because a lot of people don't know that comedy. Okay, so there's, there's so many elements to it. Great storytelling right, is obviously one which I love. And that showcases who you are as a human. There's so much. The truth in comedy from an improv perspective is really just in my opinion, where the great comedy lies because you take exactly what you're, and I've seen some of your other videos too, where you're taking everyday instances and things that we do all the time and just amplifying them. Like the one one you had where your mom was waking you up and you had on a hair towel. We'll get everybody to follow you on the gram. Okay. Okay. And you gotta pin this one. I loved this one so much cuz that was my mother.
Erin (23:57):
That literally was my mom. And you come in three different times and every time you're getting more annoyed and trying to get you up for the day. Like, li that was me, like as a teenager. And everybody can relate to that. And that's, that's also like the truth in the comedy right there. Like, and, and so let me ask you this too, cuz I wanna, I wanna talk about these social platforms because truly they launch careers. I've seen it happen with you. I've seen, I mean Andrea, we've seen it with Sam Ramsdale who was on the show. We have seen it. There was another guy on this show, DJ Pryor, who had a video go viral before videos were a thing on Instagram and now it's landed him this huge comedy career so crazy. What do you love most about TikTok and Instagram? Just the platforms in general.
Nick (24:50):
Oh my God, it's changed so much in three years, right? To where I'm like annoyed now, honestly, trying to keep up with all the like algorithm Bs. But yeah, what I love the most, I think it's just like, this sounds so artsy, but it's so true. I just, I came into 'em and I still look at it this way, look at them this way. It's just a blank canvas and whoever you wanna be, you can be it. And if you don't care that anybody thinks, if you can get over that hump, like everything else just takes care of itself. Like if you just follow, I'm Gary v's. One of the people that I in, in is that I follow for this advice is just like, you know, consistent with your content, whether it's three times a day or once a day or three times a week, you know, engage with your audience, respond to messages, and just be active and treat it like a business and like a brand.
Nick (25:38):
It's it's, it's a canvas for whoever I wanna be creatively. And it gives me an opportunity to engage with people that may or may not like it. And the good comes with the bad, obviously with the feedback there, but you just learn a lot every time you post, you learn, every time you engage with somebody, you learn after a show. When someone comes up to me and they tell me this, which is crazy, but it happens. Like this video changed my life. Your, your videos during the pandemic changed my life. My father was on his death bed, it's terminal cancer, and he wanted to see one of your videos, like stuff in person has like brought me to tears along with the person telling me that like, that's priceless. And that's something that I didn't realize that responsibility during covid that people were messaging me saying they, I was helping their depression, which is, I was like, I was like doing that for myself. I'm like, I need an distraction from all this because I don't know what career I'm gonna be in in a couple months or years. So going from just, I don't know who the heck I am or what I'm gonna be or what this video even is to like, people are positively responding in that way. Yeah. That's amazing. So that, that feedback full circle is probably the best part about the apps, honestly.
Erin (26:54):
Yeah. That is
Nick (26:55):
Awesome. And I forget that by the way. I forget that way too often. I get selfish. Yeah. I critique myself on, on engagement and views, like, what's wrong with me. But the reality is like, it's one person God knows where, who I might never meet, never know. Yeah. They might never message me. And just like the thought of this is helping someone, whether it's true or not, it's just, it's motivating. So Totally.
Erin (27:16):
That's probably the best part. Oh, I love it. I I hear that. And you know what, it's so cool because you don't even know a lot of people who haven't even reached out to you Right. Have been changed because of the positive message crazy the last you've given them. I know, right? Isn't that crazy? Yeah. It doesn't make sense. Yeah, you don't, you have no clue. Right? Like, so, you know, and I, there's content creators I followed that I've never even liked their stuff, which is a jerk move. Like I should, as a content creator, I should like it, but instead I'm just scrolling and scrolling.
Nick (27:47):
That's me too. But I love it. That's all of us. That's all of us. Yeah, that's so true. And that's, I mean, if you look at it, whatever, whether you have a hundred followers or a hundred thousand followers and three people give you feedback, you could assume that there's probably, I don't know, tenfold that feel the same way maybe. Yep. Double. And all it takes is one, you know, to just remind you why you're doing what you're doing. So yeah, it's,
Erin (28:13):
That is awesome. That's, I mean, full circle moment.
Nick (28:17):
What about you? I mean your audience Yeah. The feedback you've gotten, like
Erin (28:22):
Yeah, I mean, truly it does change. It, it, there are days when, right when like my imposter syndrome is super high, my limiting beliefs are just kick in and I am got that ego just flaring up, and then I'll get a message from a listener, or I'll get somebody who I don't know that people who I know who listen to the show, they'll reach out to me. It means, so like literally it means so much that they take the time to do it. There's so much content out there, right? When I, when I hear from somebody who I've never met in real life, I just, I'm, this aha moment goes off for me and I'm like, that is the why. That is the why. And I'll tell you one thing I posted, I had a, a lot of issues within infertility and just like, I have a miracle baby son, that episode I put, I did a whole episode like two years about it has helped so many, oh man, women, and like, good for you. I had a, a woman reach out to me and I hope she's listening, g I'm just gonna say G. And that episode helped her keep going. And now she is a miracle baby. And so it's like stuff like that, you just don't, you don't realize it in the moment. Amazing. And then you have those off days and you're like, that's amazing.
Nick (29:44):
Why? I think the hardest part about that concept is that people might see that feedback that listen to your podcast and they, it's a testament to you whether you know it or not to like, that takes a lot of guts to share, to open up about something personal on a topic that's not relative to what you're really trying to do from a bigger picture. Yeah. And it's so hard to make that decision to open up about it. And what people don't realize is this is a good story about who you are as a person, but how many other times is you share something that maybe it didn't land or it didn't get their feedback that you expected. And no one hears about all those. So like, this goes for anything, whether it's a bad video, a good video, or a good story like that you might share a hundred times something that hurts you because you, the intentions are good for your brand, but it, it, it flips on you and it's actually not who your audience might be or the video's terrible and people only see the good stuff.
Nick (30:43):
And that means so much more to, to us, I think, to get that feedback because yeah, it shows you that there is power in, in vulnerability and it's something that I think makes podcasts like the great podcast great or just great contents creator is great, but it's so hard to navigate that and just, and make those decisions like when or which topic or sometimes you're in a bad mood or you're busy for a month and you're not thinking clearly and you think opening up about this is a good idea and just bites you in the butt and <laugh>. So like tru truthfully, like, you never know how people are gonna react, but that's that stuff keeps you going too, obviously. So that's awesome
Erin (31:18):
That I mean a thousand percent and that's, I try to keep 80% of the content relevant to, you know, our message, what we're doing. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And then that 20% I'm like, she's gonna fly, she's gonna fly because we're human. Right? And that's how people connect to human beings is through those authentic vulnerable moments. And they might be really hard to share, but even you talking about your journey here, I mean, this is vulnerable. Somebody listening could wanna a career as a comic or a digital content creator and say, oh, okay, I'm gonna start posting videos. It's just telling those stories just matter and you never know who they're gonna impact.
Nick (32:01):
Yeah, no, it's, so, and the other piece of it too is not only an audience listener who might have, you know, a corporate job or whoever they might be, but creators too. Like, I, I forget like my confidence and not caring what other people think has kind of been snipped be since Sebastian put me on tv what's gonna be three years ago. But the vast majority of so many other people don't have that booster or that exposure or that nod from someone. They, that, that inspires them. So I've, I've had to check myself like, why aren't you posting more? Like what's what are you worried about? Why'd you turn your light count off? Like what? And they're like, they won't gimme the answer, but over time I'm like, oh, they of course they care what people think. This is a brutal job. It's a brutal industry. Yeah. So in, in that way I've learned, you know, that most of us are incredibly insecure and it's so hard to put yourself out there. So that's fun too, to have those conversations with other creators about just keeping them, you know, positive and uplifting and yes. And turn Gary v's. Words just f f them. I dunno if I can swear, but true. Like, nobody cares. Like, yourself, yourself. And it's so true though. Like, who, who cares? Who cares?
Erin (33:15):
Who cares? And it's like, you know, we all are born, I always say this too, it's like we're born with love, right? Like we are, we aren't, we aren't born afraid. And we just learn that along the way. And so the older I get, like, I'm turning 40 Nick, okay, she's,
Nick (33:31):
You won't look 40, Erin, come on,
Erin (33:32):
She's 40. It's Botox in prayers. <Laugh>. And, and I will tell you like that to me, the older that I've gotten, the more, and I know that's not even old, but like every year I just try to keep remembering that love is greater than fear. And then the message that we're here to do, your message, your, your comedy, your style is only the only style of Nick. Like, you can only do this style, nobody else can. Maybe you'll have somebody doing an impression of you one day, which would be awesome, right? So I mean, but think about that and that, I think that's really cool for people to hear that, you know, there are days when I want to not do this because I'm doubting myself. There's days when I think, oh my God, what am I gonna post? Like, who cares? Nobody cares. But people do. And it's that one per, it's, you focus on the one versus the many. That's it, right?
Nick (34:28):
Yeah. I, i a hundred percent. And the other thing too is like, I'm far from perfect at maintaining that love versus hate message. Because there's days where, you know, I'm, I'm not in a good mood and I don't realize it, and I post something that's actually divisive and I don't even know it. And I see the, the reaction and I'm like, wait, that's not what I was trying to do. I thought this was supposed to be funny. And the reality is like, and another comic told me this about standup most people are miserable. And it's, it hit me so hard. She's a very successful comedian, Jessie Kirson, I don't know if you know who she is. She was just reminding me like, I know you're miserable. I'm miserable. Tell us why you're miserable. Like the, the humor will come from that, those stories.
Nick (35:16):
And the same thing works for online in the sense that even if you're promoting the love versus hate daily, and you stick to it and people you know, hate it, the, the people that you forget, the people that don't like it are miserable too. And that, that re that reaction and feedback online is something you don't think about until, you know, maybe you do it long enough or you get over that hump. But it's not personal. It's, it's, again, something Gary says is, is they're upset about something or sad or angry and they were looking for an out and you didn't give it to them. It doesn't mean that it was the wrong decision on your end. Right? It's just a, a realization after three years of doing this, that like, people really are miserable, sad. Yeah. And we, they look to us, which is nuts, however many of them for something.
Nick (36:06):
Yeah. And it's our job, like every day, every week to figure that out. So it's for some weird reason, like I, I'm far from a brain surgeon, but there's like a lot of responsibility that comes with like creating stuff and making that decision and responsibility and managing the feedback positive and negative. And that's, a lot of people don't do that. And that's totally fine. They either don't care about the messages or they have somebody answer for them. But for me, you learn a lot about yourself and I think you're kind of saying that as well, so,
Erin (36:34):
Yeah. Well, yeah. And that's, I mean, so let me ask you this, cuz this is something I really wanted to talk to you about. Where do you think the future of, of digital content creation is going?
Nick (36:48):
It's it's changed so much the past three years. Like the fact that reels didn't exist right on Instagram two and a half years ago. I remember when they rolled them out it was like fall 2020 and seeing them, like literally, I was just talking to the other creator about this last week. It's the exact same algorithm as TikTok now. Like some videos get 300 likes, some get 6,000 likes, like before reels. And even before, like they honed the algorithm. It was a consistent viewership engagement because the feed was, it wasn't chronological, but it was, it was, it was algorithmic in the sense that it prioritized the best performing of the people you follow. So at least you, you, when you knew if something was doing well or if it was on the right track I don't wanna get too into the weeds with it, but knowing that, looking back, I have no idea.
Nick (37:40):
And I think what's so intriguing is a lot of people said during covid entertainment would flip back to what it was in this, you know, people would go back into the office and there wouldn't be zooms or there wouldn't be remote work or there wouldn't be improv sessions on Zooms with co. But the reality is like it's gotten so advanced and like the resources have feels like quintupled into the digital like dynamic to where I thought VR was 15 years away. Like, we might be doing shows with goggles on in three years. Yep. I have no idea. But I think the, the answer to your question it's why we have to do this every day and stay educated every day to understand where it's gonna go. But it's only gonna get more complicated I think. And harder to navigate.
Erin (38:33):
I know.
Nick (38:34):
Cause now, now like YouTube shorts, Google's paying TikTok creators for one week exclusivity before posting the TikTok. Like six, it's so crazy. Six month contracts. A buddy of mine, $80,000 for six months, he's gotta post 60 videos in 60 months and they all have to be a week before TikTok. Like that's just Google saying there's no other way to poach these people from TikTok, so let's pay 'em to like for exclusivity and our, so that's crazy in and of itself. And that was like a year ago. So who knows how competitive this is gonna get chat. G P T with AI now is crazy. So kind of scares me now. I think. I
Erin (39:11):
Know. I gotta be
Nick (39:11):
Honest,
Erin (39:12):
Like it's terrifying. It's terrifying. This
Nick (39:13):
This canvas thing is not really what I thought it was gonna be. You know?
Erin (39:16):
I know. Well back in my J neck when I was in college, I you said
Nick (39:21):
Charleston accent?
Erin (39:22):
Yeah, that's what Charleston I was doing the Charleston and no, I was, there was Facebook literally the year Facebook happened the year after I graduated, which was, it actually happened the year I graduated, but I didn't join it until 2006. Right, okay.
Nick (39:39):
Yeah.
Erin (39:40):
So I didn't like my generation, I'm an millennial. Okay. Literally we did not have this growing up. And so my, my son who is three and a half, like what is that digital landscape gonna look like?
Nick (39:57):
That's the scariest part, right? For sure. The kids. You have kids, I don't, but eventually can you raise them the same way we were raised in a way, I mean, I didn't get a cell phone until high school. Me neither. I didn't get, I didn't get Facebook til 2008, which was high school. So it just, even though we're 10 years apart, like it's still pretty similar upbringing where we grew up without your phone being your life. And I think about kids and I don't know how you do it, but it's only gonna get harder to Yeah. Make the decision of screen time. Or is this, is my kid just gonna be a computer like we all are. I mean, like, I saw an article yesterday, it says you can now upload, you'll be able to upload your consciousness by the end of the year based on the what
Erin (40:38):
Does that mean? What does that mean? Take
Nick (40:39):
Take the data for everything You decide to give them every Word document, every app, every text, and they can create you and upload, you can upload yourself by the end of the year. Like,
Erin (40:50):
That is terrifying. I'm terrified. I'm, I'm never, I'm not writing anything ever. I'm, I'm stopping the book that I'm creating. I'm all things,
Nick (40:59):
It's not real negative. Real.
Erin (41:01):
Just kidding. No,
Nick (41:04):
No, that's my fault. Fault. Not your fault. Fault. I'm just saying as a creator, lemme tell. Wait,
Erin (41:07):
Lemme ask you this though because I think this is interesting. Like, the future of it is fascinating. No one knows. Yeah. Like we never knew. I never knew Instagram.
Nick (41:15):
It excites me. It excites me by the way. Yeah. It definitely excites me. Let's say, I'll say that, but, but sorry,
Erin (41:20):
But like Nick, I would probably know you from Rachel, but would the world know you without these apps? Right? There's so many cool things about it before, yeah, before these apps. So in order for me to tell tell people about Improve It, we would literally have the phone book and we would have to call people in the Yellow Pages. And that's how I tell myself every time I don't wanna post something or I get, you know, I'm just like in my own head, I'm like, this is, this is a megaphone and it exists for a reason. Use it. So let me ask you this one question that I think will be really beneficial to somebody listening today. Yeah. Who is thinking about content creation in general. What is one piece of advice that you would say to them if they wanted to get started? What is the first step that they could do?
Nick (42:13):
I mean, the first one is not the most important one in my opinion. The first one is just deciding how you want people to look at you. Like what's your brand? What's your goal? Yeah. You don't have to, I I the corporate goal stuff, like it exists in, in the creator comic acting role. Like you should have goals, but I'm, I've never made a goal list. Like I, I know what my goals are, but I don't like every week make sure to accomplish something by, so I don't wanna go down that road. But you have to make a decision on who your brand is. I didn't think I was gonna be Impressions guy and that was my brand for a while. And then you pivot. So make a decision on, on what kind of content you want to expose yourself with. And I think the second thing is really is also the first thing is you literally cannot care what anybody thinks.
Nick (43:00):
And I didn't think it was gonna be my mom and dad, but my mom comments when I say. My, my dad doesn't like standup stories that tell something about my brother. And every comic that has given me feedback has said Ignore them, ignore them, ignore them. And it's so frigging hard to ignore, even your closest friends and family. Sometimes obviously there's times where like, that was stupid. You're right. Shouldn't have done that, but you cannot care what anybody thinks. Yeah. And it's like I said, I was lucky cuz Sebastian gave me that confidence early. But that's really it. If, if everything else just comes with ease, because you just get hooked on creating stuff. And if you wanna be a creator you should create, but make a decision on who you wanna be and you're gonna lose some friends. There's people that are gonna go, you're gonna, they're gonna see your growth or see some success or even see failure, and they're gonna pounce on the failure and highlight it, or they're gonna get like drifty and, and, and critique you in ways you didn't think when you see some success and you never know who they're gonna be, but you have to move past them because they're not worth having you.
Nick (44:14):
Toxicity is the last thing you need in your life and you gotta move past that too, which is so fricking hard, but it's true in
Erin (44:20):
My opinion. I love that. And that's, I mean, it's just true for everything career oriented. Oh yeah, for sure. Digital creation. Any, any, any type of success might trigger somebody or it might inspire them. Right. And so keep going Nick, we are proud of you now. Okay, this is my final question. We, we asked everybody. Ok. I know, right? Yeah. Okay. You say it and prove it. The, it is that thing that you are put on this earth to do. So what is Nick's it?
Nick (44:55):
Wow.
Nick (44:57):
I came into this saying fail, trying to highlight <laugh> how much failure is important. And I don't even know. I mean, I think tell storytelling I wanna be a storyteller and that could be editing a video that I'm not even in or, or producing a movie. I'm not even in. I've always made videos just for fun. I didn't know I was gonna end up like this, like anniversary videos my grandparents when I was a kid. I think with standup, with acting, with playing a character, like what's motivated me the most is movies and tv. And I think the most powerful part of that is how the story was told. Whether it's, whether it's horrible or really positive. I think that's what I want to do. And whatever platform it is on stage, producing a movie, editing a movie, I don't care if I'm an assistant, whatever I have to do. There's so much power in storytelling and I think people need it. They really do need it.
Erin (45:54):
They do. And it helps, as you have seen, it helps people in ways that you don't even know. Yeah. So, okay. If somebody wanted to find you on Instagram, TikTok, all the things, how could they find you?
Nick (46:06):
Nikki SIGs? My full name is Nick sio. Long Italian last name. So we went with SIGs at a young age, I guess, but Nikki SMGs, s m i g s on everything. Nikki smgs.com, whatever. Yeah.
Erin (46:20):
Love it. Okay. We'll put it in the show notes. Nick, you are awesome. Thank you. Thank you. You're awesome. You so much for coming on the show. Keep keep, keep improving it, you know what I mean?
Nick (46:32):
Will do. I appreciate it. You're you, you too. This is a Gary v episode. I mean, ignore them. Like improve. Oh my God. I hope our listeners like Gary V. No, <laugh>.
Erin (46:43):
Ah, alright. Thank you
Nick (46:45):
Nick. Thank you.
Erin (46:55):
Hey friend, did you enjoy today's show? If so, head on over to iTunes to rate and subscribe. So you never miss an episode. Now, did I mention that when you leave a five star review of the Improve It podcast, an actual team of humans does a happy dance? Mm-Hmm. <affirmative>. That's right. So leave a review for us on iTunes, screenshot it and send me an email at info learn to improve it.com. I'll send you a personalized video back as a thank you. Thanks so much for listening. Improve It Peeps. I'll see you next Wednesday.