Student THEN: Djoni de Vos
'Insecurity is a boring emotion'
Telling jokes on a stage, armed with nothing more than a microphone, is a nightmare for most people. But for alumna Djoni de Vos, stand-up comedy is the perfect outlet after a stressful day at work. During the day she invests in promising start-ups at Keen Venture Partners, and in the evening, she takes the stage at comedy clubs.
Author: Yrla van de Ven
Established names such as Ronald Goedemondt, Hans Teeuwen, Soundos El Ahmadi and Peter Pannekoek once took the first steps towards their solo careers at comedy club Toomler. Along with about 60 other comedians, they form the collective ComedyTrain, of which Djoni has been an aspiring member since June 2024. If all goes well, Djoni can officially join this renowned club after a year. ‘After a day at work, I love cycling to Toomler and stepping into a completely different world.’
'After a day at work, I love cycling to Toomler and stepping into a completely different world.'
First steps on stage
In 2016, during her Research Master Business in Society at the VU, Djoni took a stand-up comedy course. ‘I think I found myself funny and thought, “I'm going to try this out.” I often do weird things,’ says Djoni. ‘But at the end of the course we actually had to perform on stage, and that was the scariest thing I had ever done. Now, looking back, I think it went just fine for a first time, but I walked off the stage and thought: “I really hate myself, this was a total failure.”’
It wasn't until years later that Djoni took a step towards the stage again, when she sought some distraction during the COVID-19 pandemic. ‘I took another course and found the performance again nerve-wracking, but this time I didn't hate myself afterward, so that was progress.’
The first steps as a stand-up comedian require a good dose of perseverance. Beginner comedians travel all over the country for an 8 to 10-minute performance during an open mic night. ‘It really helped that I could go to gigs with my friend Maaike Dirkje Hop. I met her during the course. It is definitely quite a lonely profession in the beginning, where you have to travel to all corners of the world for drie man en een paardenkop (literally, “three men and a horse's head”: a tiny, unresponsive audience) who don't laugh.’
In the beginning, it is still a lot of trial and error to find what works for an audience. ‘You have to gain experience with failing in front of an audience, because not all new jokes land. You have to be quite resilient to persevere,’ says Djoni. ‘Sometimes I end up in a vicious circle with thoughts like “See, you can't do this. This is not fun for you, and the audience is also suffering. Why did you think you were funny?” You really have to pull yourself out of that, and funnily enough, that's also something you can just learn – enduring the shame.’
Djoni thinks it is a shame that uncertainty holds many people back from doing exciting things. ‘Insecurity is such a boring emotion. I get a bit tired of myself when I'm feeling insecure. Then I think: “Djoni, just go for it.” In that sense, stand-up comedy also helps me in daily life.’
Inspiration for jokes
On a comedy night, Djoni stands out because of her original observations, sharp jokes and somewhat dark humour. ‘I like humour when it surprises people and leaves them with a feeling of: “Oh, I hadn't looked at the world that way before,”’ Djoni explains.
Her daily work as an investor at Keen Venture Partners serves as a source of inspiration for her performances. She loves her job, but with a comedian’s perspective, she can’t help but notice the humour and absurdities in the world of Venture Capital. ‘In venture capital, many people place a great deal of importance on money and appearance. They start their day with a cold shower and post things on LinkedIn like “I'm proud and humbled to announce..." Meanwhile, comedians find money much less important and just wear an old T-shirt with jeans. They are often more creative people, less uniform, and less norm-affirming. And the age range is also much wider – I know comedians from 15 to 65 years old, while I feel like most people in venture capital are in their thirties.’
From Zuidas to Venture Capital
Prior to joining Keen Venture Partners, she was a consultant at a large firm located on the Zuidas. ‘From a distance these might seem similar, but it feels like there’s a world of difference,’ says Djoni. ‘My previous firm has 20,000 employees worldwide and now I work at a company with eight people. That is a huge difference in working environment. Now I work with start-ups, whereas before I mainly had contact with employees of large corporations. I now constantly talk to people who are enthusiastic and want to shake things up or change something. That brings a certain energy that you don't often encounter in large companies.’ Or, as she adds with humour: ‘Many people just sit in front of their computers all day. If the desk next to them were on fire, they wouldn't put it out because it's not in their job description.’
As a consultant, she was frequently in contact with clients. ‘You are the product, so you are constantly selling yourself. The customer is king and everything should have been finished yesterday. You need to solve the intellectual puzzle and find a solution for the customer, but even more important is how you communicate that to people. A lot of time was spent creating polished PowerPoint slides for stakeholder management. Now, I just send an email to my colleagues – much more efficient.’
In her current job as an investor, the dynamics are quite different. ‘People come to me now because they want us to invest in their start-up. And I notice that people are just nicer to you then. Although, I am afraid this may give me a distorted sense of self.’
'It is definitely quite a lonely profession in the beginning, where you have to travel to all corners of the world for a tiny, unresponsive audience.'
Lots of variety
Her full-time job can be quite stressful at times, but so can performing. ‘I actually like the combination of my work and stand-up comedy. When things go badly on stage, I think: “Luckily, I'm very good at my regular job.” And if things are difficult at work, then at least I can tell jokes about it.’
The combination sometimes brings the expected challenges. ‘Do I still manage to sleep? Yes, but I am increasingly finding myself in a bind. I have little time for friends, dating and sports. My job is busy, but fortunately flexible. So after a performance, I don't start before 10 o'clock in the morning. Also usually true when there’s no performance, by the way.’
Anyone curious about Djoni's jokes can find her at comedy club Toomler and on various stages in cafes and theaters throughout the country. Who knows, maybe in the future she will follow in the footsteps of the previous ComedyTrain members with her own solo show. In any case, we have high expectations for our VU alumna!
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