Dr. Michael Halcomb, assistant professor of Bible and writing at Montreat College, has released Comedy Mindhacks: 100 Mental Shifts to Help Comedians & Creatives Succeed, a new book designed to help comedians, performers, writers, educators, and other creatives build resilience, overcome self-doubt, and keep moving forward after failure.
While Comedy Mindhacks is rooted in stand-up comedy, Halcomb describes it as something broader: a guide to growth, creativity, and momentum. The book gathers 100 short lessons he developed while working to become a better comedian, drawing from psychology, academic research, public speaking, and the experience of bombing in front of strangers.
“I wrote it mainly for comedians and creatives,” Halcomb said, “but anyone trying to improve at something difficult will recognize themselves in its pages.”
The book’s subtitle points to its central idea. For Halcomb, a “mental shift” is a deliberate change in perspective that helps reframe a challenge. Instead of thinking, “I have to write something,” a creative person can learn to think, “I have something to write.” Writer’s block can become creative incubation. Self-doubt can become fuel. Failure can become data.
Throughout the book, Halcomb focuses less on joke-writing formulas and more on mindset. He argues that talent and technique are not enough for those who write, speak, teach, preach, perform, or create in public. Creatives must also develop confidence, resilience, and the ability to move forward after criticism, rejection, or silence.
Stand-up comedy, Halcomb said, taught him that getting onstage can feel like “semi-controlled trauma on purpose.” Yet, it also showed him that difficult experiences can be transformed into material. His comedy philosophy is simple: “If it’s messed up, it’s material.”
The book addresses challenges familiar to comedians and creatives alike, including stage fright, freezing during a performance, handling hecklers and online critics, managing the “inner heckler” of self-doubt, and recovering when a joke, idea, or performance fails.
Although written with comedians in mind, Comedy Mindhacks reaches a wider creative audience. Halcomb said its lessons apply to public speaking, teaching, lecturing, podcasting, preaching, parenting, relationships, and leadership. At its core, the book invites readers to transform anxiety, rejection, and uncertainty into curiosity, discipline, and forward motion.
In a culture Halcomb sees as increasingly shaped by outrage, he hopes the book makes a case for humor as a source of connection and resilience. His motto captures the spirit of the project: “Laughter is greater than outrage.”
Readers can learn more about Halcomb’s work at www.MichaelHalcomb.Live. Comedy Mindhacks is available through www.GlossaHouse.com and Amazon.
Learn more about Bible and theology, english, and psychology programs offered at Montreat College and take some of Halcomb’s classes!