Shift Out Loud with Tracy Spears

Honing Your Creativity with Comic Erin Foley

September 17, 2024 Tracy Spears / Erin Foley Season 3 Episode 50

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Ever wanted a sneak peek into the world of comedy? My guest for this episode of Shift Out Loud has appeared on Conan O’Brien, @Midnight, The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, Chelsea Lately, Arsenio Hall, and Last Call With Carson Daly, so you’ve likely already seen (and enjoyed) her work! 


Erin Foley is a talented comedy writer and comic who has been making waves in the world of women’s sports, recently providing 2024 Olympic coverage on Sirius XM. During our conversation, we dive deeply into how joining an improv troupe derailed her plan to become a teacher, why she fell in love with stand-up comedy, and how she dealt with comic burnout. 


Erin is not only insightful, she’s also hilarious — you won’t want to miss this entertaining episode! Want more Erin? Her Herlights podcast tackles everything women’s sports, offering hot takes, interviews, and more. 


Ready to play bigger? Listen now to discover: 

  • A behind-the-scenes look at the pandemic’s effect on the television industry
  • Why Erin loved performing stand-up comedy on Zoom during lockdown 
  • Why she believes softball will be the next sport to explode

  

Guest bio: Erin Foley is a comedy writer and seasoned stand-up comic who has appeared on numerous late night shows, Comedy Central Presents, and at comedy festivals all over North America. She’s written for multiple TV shows including That 90’s Show and One Day At A Time, NPR’s Live From Here, the comedy website Funny Or Die, and was a consulting producer on Ellen DeGeneres’s unscripted comedy show Little Funny. Her humor writing has been published in The New Yorker’s Daily Shouts.


Timestamps:
01:47  Intro
03:19  Meet Erin Foley
06:27  Shift to improv
10:14  NY, Rhode Island & following her passion
17:29  Industry inspiration
19:10  Burnout
22:10  TV writing & pandemic comedy
26:48  No regrets
29:09  Herlights
35:01  The Olympics & softball
42:51  Erin’s trajectory
45:43  Dog parenthood
50:47  Touring & creative process
57:33  Wally, Joan Rivers & notebooks
1:02:59  Promo & Provincetown


Links:

Erin Foley
erinkfoley.com
herlights.com
Instagram: @ErinKFoley 


Good Game with Sarah Spain
iheart.com/podcast/1119-good-game-with-sarah-spai-185664375
Discover your tactical leadership toolkit: exceptionalleaderslab.com 

Interested in working with me or having me speak at your event? Find more information at tracyspears.com 

For insights that will help you play bigger in your life, work, and community, visit my resource library: tracyspears.com/blog

Connect with me:
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tracylspears
Facebook: facebook.com/TracySpearsSpeaker
Twitter: @tracylspears
Instagram: @tracylspears 


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