We’re Moving Performance Lab By One Day, Just This Once! (Again)

I have another out-of-state booking, which means I need to move our usual Performance Lab date by one day. Our next gathering at St. Pete Micro Farm will be Tuesday, October 20, at 6 p.m.

Despite the change, I’m really excited about this one.

We’re going to change up the format a little bit.

Don’t worry — there will still be opportunities to run material, work through exercises, and get on your feet. But this time, we’re going to spend a significant part of the evening diving into something that I believe is absolutely essential to making a living as a performer:

Negotiation.

Not just, “What do you charge?”

I want to dig into what happens before you ever get to that question.

How do you figure out what a client actually needs? How do you recognize an opportunity that they may not even realize exists? How do you create more value instead of simply lowering your price? What happens when the deal doesn’t make sense? And how do you approach a negotiation so that the person on the other side of the table isn’t your opponent, but someone you’re trying to find a solution with?

We’re going to explore all of that in a way that is practical, interactive, challenging, and — I think — a whole lot of fun.

I’ve put together a new exercise specifically for Performance Lab that is going to let us actually practice these ideas instead of just talking about them. There are multiple scenarios, different perspectives, information that isn’t immediately available to everyone, and some opportunities that you may not see coming.

One of the big ideas we’re going to explore is that price is only one variable. Sometimes the value in a booking is money. Sometimes it’s footage, future work, a relationship, access to a particular audience, a better opportunity, or simply changing the scope of what you’re offering. And sometimes, the most professional thing you can do is recognize that a deal isn’t worth taking.

That’s the kind of thinking I want Performance Lab to help develop.

Not just better performers.

Better working performers.

People who can drop into a scenario, understand what’s actually happening, recognize opportunities, communicate their value, and build a career that works in the real world.

I think this could be our best Performance Lab yet.

Thank you to everyone who has been showing up, participating, trying things, giving feedback, and helping me shape this into something better and better. The whole point of Performance Lab is that we’re building this together, and I really appreciate the support.

So mark your calendar:

Tuesday, October 20St. Pete Micro FarmPerformance Lab

Come ready to perform, experiment, think, negotiate, and maybe discover that you’re capable of a lot more than you thought.

You definitely don’t want to miss this one.

If you enjoyed this article, you might also like:

1. The World’s Hottest Date Night: An Unforgettable Evening with Mr. Bill Berry in St. Petersburg Florida!

2. Performance Lab Returns – Third Wednesday, September 16th at St. Pete Micro Farm

Ready for the next level? I work with students one-on-one — come join us.