The leadership challenge has always been difficult in times of change and economic uncertainty. But thankfully, we get to have our sense of humor as a ready sidekick to help us through even the toughest challenges.
The fact is that humor works on and off the job. As one company president reminded his team, “If you aren’t having fun in your work, fix the problem before it becomes serious; ask for help if you need it. If you can’t fix it and won’t ask for help, please go away before you spoil the fun for the rest of us.”
Keep Your Face Out of Park With a Ready Smile
When you do, it’s as if others you meet are invited join your joy. Remember, laughter is contagious and so is cynicism. Which would you prefer to give to others? You know the answer—people love to be around people who bring them joy.Make Room for Laughter Every Day by Looking for It
The entertainer, Steve Allen, loved to say, “Nothing is better than the unintended humor of reality.”Take your work seriously but take yourself and problems a bit more lightly. Forget developing the “Eye of the Tiger”; try cultivating the “Eye of the Loon.” Be ready to say, “That’s funny!” and “This is going to be a great story!”
Ask yourself daily, “What funny incidents happened that I enjoyed or could use?” Write down your experiences in a humor journal or in your diary. The palest pencil mark is better than the best memory. Write down unique stories and anecdotes from your life that illustrate key points you plan on sharing with others on the job. Never stop collecting and expanding your collection of appropriate humor. Use files or albums to store comics, articles, ads, and anecdotes. For the computer literate, make a “humor digital recording” with YOUR favorite humor to listen to while you commute.
Keep Humor a Bridge Builder to Smooth Out Even the Toughest Relationships
Comedian Victor Borge once said, “Laughter is the shortest distance between two people.”You know the ones that are tough—frustrated clients, bosses, service personnel, not to mention, teens, spouses, bosses, and passing motorists. Using your sense of humor is one of the best deposits you can put into your relationship deposit account. The next meeting you attend, try sitting next to one of your “difficult” people and share the gift of laughter together.
Learn to Laugh at Your Errors and the World Will Laugh With You—Not at You
The safest target for your humor will always be yourself, so why not take advantage of it? A good sense of humor makes it easier to admit your mistakes; laughing at your own errors will help you get out of the rearview mirror and bounce back.Most like to be with people who are comfortable with who they are—warts, receding hairlines, and all. Kill your own version of the myth of perfection that leaves all feeling like impostors. In this world of rapid change and teamwork, the world doesn’t need people pretending to be “perfect.”
At best, “perfect leaders” leave us in awe, sure that we could never be like them. At worst, they destroy self-esteem of those they would like to encourage.
Avoid Humor That Creates Laughter at the Expense of Others
Develop your own humor code and then keep it. Leave sarcasm and jokes that make fun of others out of your personal humor repertoire. You don’t need humor at the expense of others to be funny, and such humor may hurt someone badly.A person who is made fun of may not be able to understand that underneath your kidding is an appreciation of their value. The same is true of employees who may experience sarcasm as a deft dagger that one can stick in, turn, remove, and clean before the victim realizes they have been stabbed.
When Things Are Going Crazy, Take a Trip on the Funny Side
Laughter also remains one of the best natural tranquilizers that is available whenever you or your team need it. Use the gift of humorous perspective for yourself and others, “Are we having fun yet?” “Is this candid camera?” “This life is a test. It is only a test. If it had been a real life, I would have been given instructions on where to go and what to do.” “Someday this will be a great story!”Don’t Suffer the Sin of Being Dull in the Entertainment Age
Allen Klein once said, “You can give ‘AhHa’s’ through ’HaHa’s’.” If you don’t find a way of keeping your coaching, training, and communications interesting, people tune you out and go to another channel.Effective humor unlocks a listener’s receptivity. Humor acts as a “grabber” that pulls people out of the noise of life to work at listening. Like the proverbial tree that falls in the wilderness and makes no sound, many statements in training and professional meetings are given but never heard.
True communication provides more than a stream of words; it evokes images that help people understand and retain information. A good story builds a visual image with words. When they remember your funny story, they retain your point with it.
Start asking yourself: Does my story provide a bonus that moves my message along? Does it tie into my main point? Is it pertinent? Remember, even a good story can’t make up for a poorly conceived message. One final note on communication—don’t send junk mail, emails, or mere letters to clients or co-workers; mix in a dose of humor whenever you can.
To Develop Your Appropriate Sense of Humor, You Have to Practice, Practice, Practice
Practice won’t make you perfect, just better. That’s enough for me. Tell your stories to everyone you meet until you have mastered its delivery and memorized the story.Stretch Your Humor Muscles Daily Wherever You Are
When you have a spare moment, think setups by engaging in these mental teasers—“What if...?” “Do you ever wonder...?” “How would Candid Camera visit us today?” “What crazy bumper sticker would I like to see on my bumper?” Such questions open the mind to crazy, humorous options. Stretching your humor muscles pays off.In closing, promise never to let it be a crime to remember the fun in your life on and off the job. Never be so busy that you can’t take a journey down the laugh lane of life. Benjamin Franklin knew the value of humor when he said, “Parsons, even in his prosperity, always fretting; Potts, in the midst of his poverty, ever laughing. It seems, then, that happiness in this life rather depends on internals than externals.”
Yes, it is important to be able to confront serious problems, but, for most of the time, keep an air of joyfulness. Take time to laugh and smile on the job. Let there be laughter, and let it start with you.
