To Laugh or Not to Laugh?  That is the Question

by Cindy Stradling CSP, CPC

It is common knowledge that humour is good for us.  It can go a long way to reduce stress and lighten up a difficult situation.  Laughing can help employees connect with one another and also helps them be more in the present moment.  Sometimes a joke can completely change the outcome of a situation.  The old adage “Laughter is the Best Medicine” is still true today.

Often, though we may not think of funny and leadership in the same sentences.  After all running a company can be very serious business. Effective leaders know how to use humour to set the tone and send the powerful message that “work can be fun.”  There is however a time and place and of course any jokes should be office appropriate. Sometimes we can all get so caught up in what we are doing that we forget to take time to laugh.  Ask yourself

• When was the last time I had a good laugh with my co-workers?
• If you are a leader, what can you do to lighten things up once in a while?
• On a scale between 1 – 10 (with 1 been deadpan boring and 10 being off the charts hilarious), how would you rate your company/department on a “fun place to work scale?”  If you are not sure look around, what do you see, are people serious all the time or do you see people smiling and enjoying working together.

I have worked with a lot of organizations that have lost the “sense of play” due the serious nature of their business and difficult economic situations.  Those who have recognized the negative impact have taken steps to shift their culture and have yielded great results.  Happy employees can produce more effectively.

There are many reasons to add more humour to your day and here are my top five:

1)    It can help defuse a difficult or a sensitive situation.  Simply smiling and making a remark that would help those involved look at things with a little humour.  Of course the comments need to be completely appropriate.

2)    As a leader, being able to laugh at one self and show that you are human too can go a long way to connect with your employees. They are less likely to feel intimidated by you or your position.

3)    Great teams laugh together.  Encouraging fun activities both inside and outside the office can bond a team.  It can greatly enhance corporate culture and create memories that the team can look back on and have a good laugh.

4)    As a leader creating a culture that allows for laughter and fun in the workplace can be very motivating.  Energy is higher and people are more productive when they are happy.  If the opposite exists people can feel stifled and exhausted and can burn out.

5)    People will remember the key points of presentations when the leader is able to share a funny story from the past. An “in the good ole days” can show progress and provide a good laugh in the process.

“A sense of humour is part of the art of leadership, of getting along with people, of getting things done.”
Dwight D. Eisenhower

Assessments : So Many Choices

by Cindy Stradling

There are hundreds of assessment tools in the market today and depending on the results you are looking for there is one that can provide participants and managers with a better understanding of each other’s person communication style, strengths, areas for growth and preferences.  One of my favourites is still True Colors when you are looking for an easy to administer and fun way to learn about yourself and others on your team.  For the month of May I have decided to provide details about each of the four colors Blue, Orange, Gold and Green.  As you read through the details each color, identify what is most like you and least like you.  Have fun!

Communication with a BLUE

Setting the tone

Outline Expectations clearly

Be frank but friendly

Feedback Techniques

Use ‘feeling’ language

Minimize negative criticism

Physical/personal contact (e.g. pat on back, touch on shoulder)

Praise for

Creativity

Depth of feeling

Personal achievements, traits

Honesty, sincerity

Energy, enthusiasm

Contributions to team, organization

Rewards

Recognition of contributions

Individualized incentives

Rewards for team & individuals

Values

Authenticity – being true to self

Honest, sincerity, integrity

Confidentially, trust

Close relationships, concern for others

Harmony, peace, love, spiritually

Living a life of significance

Compassion

Teamwork

Preferred Environments

Open, interactive atmosphere

Seating in groups, e.g. tables

Discussion, shared decisions

People – oriented environment

Long-lasting relationships

Room for creative self-expression

Attractive, comfortable ambience

Music, plants, flowers

Inspirational posters, quotes, art

Team Building

Inspiring, enthusiastic catalysts and mediators

Foster democratic relationships

Express appreciation

Encourage creativity

Allow time to discuss ideas

Trust their intuition

Collaborate on problem-solving

Allow for latitude, help to focus

Regularly discuss deadlines

Focus on how they’re helping

Learning Styles

Open, interactive atmosphere

People-oriented environment

Relaxed, flexible, creative style

Personalized instruction

Caring instructors

Supportive feedback, praise

Discussions and experiments

Cooperative, team-learning

Characteristics

People-oriented, empathic, cooperative

Creative, dramatic, sensitive, romantic

Imaginative, inspirational

Cultivate potential in self, others

Self-searching, individual, unique

Vivacious, enthusiastic, entertaining

Share feelings, warm, gentle

Optimistic, dedicated

Democratic, unselfish

Skills

Communication, speaking, writing

Facilitating human potential

Establishing rapport, team building

Creating a favourable impression

Acting as a catalyst, motivating

Creativity

Guiding, mentoring, mediating

Teaching, counseling, training

Persuading, leading, influencing

Interests

Helping people, friendships

Social settings, emotional events

Music, fine arts, drama

Inspirational speeches

Group spirit, teams, family atmosphere

Variety & Uniqueness

Leadership Style

Expects others to express views

Nurturing, empathic, leads with feelings

Fosters a family spirit

Democratic, unstructured

Catalyst to develop potential of individuals

Encourages change, but people come first

Expects staff to continue to grow

Idealistic, charismatic, dramatic

Rewards and Motivators

An open, interactive atmosphere

People-oriented environment

Approval, encouragement, acceptance

Empathy, understanding, support

Discussions, experiments

Attention, affection, friendship

Popularity, recognition of abilities

Validation of personal worth

Stressors

Conflict, aggression

Disharmony, lying

Authoritarian behaviour, censorship

Impersonal treatment, isolation, rejection

Insensitivity, insincerity

Negative criticism, discouraging remarks

Competition

Time limits, pressure to decide quickly

Routine work, paper before people

“Out of Esteem” Behaviours

(or what others might see when you’re having a bad day)

Attention-getting misbehaviour

Lying to save face, making excuses

Withdrawal

Fantasizing, trancing-out, daydreaming

Crying, depressions

Lack of self-confidence

Passive resistance, inertia

Emotional outbursts, yelling, screaming

At Work

Likes to help people

Need variety, can do almost anything if it’s of interest

At ease with colleagues

Inspire group spirit, teams

Lose interest with routines

Prefer family-like atmosphere

Dislike detail and follow-up

Offer unique contributions

Careers – Professional

Human resources, personnel

Psychologists, counselor, therapist

Social worker, interviewer

Minister, rabbi

Editor, reporter, journalist

Actor, playwright, creative writer

Advertising specialist, PR

Teacher, trainer, educational consultant

Fundraiser

Careers – Vocational

Recreation leader

Host, hostess

Tour guide

Sales

Flight Attendant

Travel agent

Receptionist

Actor

Humour, Attention and Engagement

Humour gets attention and is engaging.  Engagement is a key to learning, advertising, leadership, and team work. If you are not integrating humour into some core business functions in appropriate ways you are loosing time and money.

Humour important to Learning

Students at the (not a particularly funny field of study) strongly agreed that humor usage was engaging and motivating (88%), increased material retention (60%), did not decrease attendance (93%) and enhanced the overall learning experience (78%).

Humour gets Attention

The BBC says that a regular Web user has the attention span of a goldfish. According to Stephen Jones, editor of Growth Strategies, humor can increase attention by 700%. Getting attention is key to selling, motivating and persuading. Half of the world’s most impactful ads are humorous; whereas just 1 percent of the least impactful ads are humorous. Other studies prove that 94% of advertising practitioners see humor as an effective way to gain attention. Both the viral video and experiential marketing trends and campaigns also make use of humour.

Humour and Working

Why do 98% percent of CEO’s prefer job candidates with a sense of humour? Because 84% think that those with a sense of humour do better work. And more than three-quarters of workers believe that companies that promote fun at work are more effective than companies that do not. Are you a leader who promotes fun at work?

Snoozing

Seventy one percent of business people admit to having fallen asleep during a business presentation. It may just have been a big lunch that put them to sleep or it may have been the content or delivery. Change the content, delivery or deliverer. Or find ways to wake them up. Fortune 500 companies in the lowest quartile in profitability had 50% fewer engaged employees compared to those in the top quartile.

Most Laughter Improvised

Eighty to ninety percent of laughter does not follow anything related to a joke, story telling or anything intended to be funny. Most everyday laughter is an unexpected improvised process. The trick to this is having enough presence and confidence. The good news is that you don’t need to tell jokes.

Humour in Emails

Our advice is to keep humour out of emails unless you have a positive relationship with your intended recipient. Fifty six percent of humour fails in emails because humour is dependent on body language, tone of speech and appropriate pausing. These critical factors are absent in emails.

Make Humor Relevant

Make the humour relevant to the message and the audience. Studies have shown that the less the intended humour relates to the message, the more likely people will remember that ‘funny ad’ or ‘funny trainer’ but not remember the content. You might be getting attention at the cost of your message.

Sarcasm

Sarcasm can be humorous but there is often some form of negativity behind sarcasm, bitterness or past grievance. Sarcasm can be a symptom of a dysfunctional team or relationship and the best way to get at this issue is to engage actively in conflict. Ask yourself, is my humour inclusive? Does it bring people together or does it create divisions?

Creating Engagement

Laughter is 30 times more frequent in social than solitary situations. Strive then to capitalize on opportunities to use humour strategically in training, communications, meetings, and in marketing. On a personal, tactical level, remember that the truth is usually funnier than fiction so start by taking yourself and your life less seriously. Then, apply that same lesson to finding ways to bring out the natural humour and laughter of the people in your team, audience or market.

Truth Funnier than Fiction

I was asked to deliver a workshop on the topic of humour for a telecommunications company. I asked them why they wanted a workshop on humour and they replied: “You’ll know when you get here.”