He started doing stand-up comedy as a way to improve his public speaking skills, but now broker Adil Rahman is hooked
It was a desire to improve his public speaking that led Adil Rahman to his new sideline in comedy. “I thought, instead of Toastmasters, perhaps I could take a course on stand-up comedy,” the Ottawabased mortgage broker says. “To graduate, you had to do a 10-minute set onstage in front of 60 to 70 strangers.”
Since then, Rahman has made a point of stepping up at open mic comedy nights to refine his craft and has even gone as far as trying out a Toronto audience on a business trip. He plans to extend his hobby even further by doing a French language set in Montreal.
“It’s about conquering your fears of speaking up,” Rahman says. “Performing is very therapeutic for me: having the audience looking at me, hearing my point of view and laughing along with me. It’s a great stress reliever.”
