I looked around the room. All of us were quietly sitting on the floor. Each one of us with our backs against the wall and tears rolling from our eyes. We were not talking to each other. Dead silence.
No, we were not watching a tearjerker movie.
We just finished performing a comedy skit for a school competition. So why were we crying?
Because NO ONE LAUGHED at our jokes. Consequently, we lost in that competition.
We tremendously failed. It was such a big blow to our ego! It was extremely embarrassing to be doing comedy on stage (to a big crowd!) that no one finds funny.
But we were also at fault. We thought it would be easy. In short, we were not prepared.
This happened years ago (when I was still young, innocent, and a minor) and I learned a lot since then.
Making people laugh is more difficult than making people cry!
And this applies to public speaking.
Everyone loves a funny, witty yet sensible speaker right? So why not make yourself funny and witty as well! Aim to put humor in your speech! Think Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago (Check out https://www.facebook.com/MiriamJokesnQuotes).
When we watch a comedian, we think that they are funny because they are born as a clown. It seems like that they can just spontaneously fire away jokes that would make us fall from our seats. They make it look so easy!
However, that is not the case. Behind those funny acts and humour is a LOT of hard work and preparation!
As Arthus Asa Berger puts it in his book Blind Men and Elephants: Perspectives on Humor, “it often takes comedians years to work up an hour’s worth of good material”.
Jim Carrey, the 90’s American King of Comedy known for his blockbuster movies The Mask and Dumb and Dumber, began as a stand-up comic in comedy bars in Canada. At that time, he is known for pretending to be famous performers such as Elvis Presley and Kermit the Frog. But to do such thing, he had to study their voice, facial expression, body movements and gestures. As a kid who placed the burden of making his parents and siblings happy amidst the financial problems they were facing, Jim had to practice in front of the mirror for hours to perfect his goofy expressions. Talk about practice and hard work!
Of course I am not asking you to be overnight comedians but putting humour to your talk is necessary – if you want to connect to your audience, if you want to attract attention, and if you want to make your words memorable.
“But I am not a funny person!” you might protest. Do not fear because it is a skill that can be learned. Plus, you do not need to be naturally funny. You just need to be BRAVE, to PRACTICE (and practice and practice) and to be PATIENT (with the results)!
Here are some things that might help you in putting humour to your speech:
1. OBSERVE FUNNY SPEAKERS YOU ADMIRE
Look at the way they deliver jokes. Study them. What was their facial expression? How did they use their voice? When did they throw the punch line? What was the purpose of the joke – was it to emphasise a point or was it to introduce the next topic?
2. TAKE NOTE OF JOKES YOU HAVE HEARD OR READ
You’ll never know when you will be asked to speak so better to have a library of jokes as ammunitions. I remembered someone saying, “The best joke is the one that made you laugh.” Very true! So after laughing at a joke you read from the internet or you heard from a friend, immediately pull out your notebook (or your phone) and write down that joke. Trust me, your notes will come in handy in the future.
3. READ JOKE BOOKS
If you’re the type who loves reading, go grab and buy (or borrow) a joke book. No need to think of new jokes since such books exists to help you. You may not have any speaking assignments at the moment but at least, you would get a good laugh reading the book (good for your health too!). As they say, laughter is the best therapy. I recently received this book below and I’m preparing myself to have a clean laugh as well (haha!).
No, we were not watching a tearjerker movie.
We just finished performing a comedy skit for a school competition. So why were we crying?
Because NO ONE LAUGHED at our jokes. Consequently, we lost in that competition.
We tremendously failed. It was such a big blow to our ego! It was extremely embarrassing to be doing comedy on stage (to a big crowd!) that no one finds funny.
But we were also at fault. We thought it would be easy. In short, we were not prepared.
This happened years ago (when I was still young, innocent, and a minor) and I learned a lot since then.
Making people laugh is more difficult than making people cry!
And this applies to public speaking.
Everyone loves a funny, witty yet sensible speaker right? So why not make yourself funny and witty as well! Aim to put humor in your speech! Think Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago (Check out https://www.facebook.com/MiriamJokesnQuotes).
When we watch a comedian, we think that they are funny because they are born as a clown. It seems like that they can just spontaneously fire away jokes that would make us fall from our seats. They make it look so easy!
However, that is not the case. Behind those funny acts and humour is a LOT of hard work and preparation!
As Arthus Asa Berger puts it in his book Blind Men and Elephants: Perspectives on Humor, “it often takes comedians years to work up an hour’s worth of good material”.
Jim Carrey, the 90’s American King of Comedy known for his blockbuster movies The Mask and Dumb and Dumber, began as a stand-up comic in comedy bars in Canada. At that time, he is known for pretending to be famous performers such as Elvis Presley and Kermit the Frog. But to do such thing, he had to study their voice, facial expression, body movements and gestures. As a kid who placed the burden of making his parents and siblings happy amidst the financial problems they were facing, Jim had to practice in front of the mirror for hours to perfect his goofy expressions. Talk about practice and hard work!
Of course I am not asking you to be overnight comedians but putting humour to your talk is necessary – if you want to connect to your audience, if you want to attract attention, and if you want to make your words memorable.
“But I am not a funny person!” you might protest. Do not fear because it is a skill that can be learned. Plus, you do not need to be naturally funny. You just need to be BRAVE, to PRACTICE (and practice and practice) and to be PATIENT (with the results)!
Here are some things that might help you in putting humour to your speech:
1. OBSERVE FUNNY SPEAKERS YOU ADMIRE
Look at the way they deliver jokes. Study them. What was their facial expression? How did they use their voice? When did they throw the punch line? What was the purpose of the joke – was it to emphasise a point or was it to introduce the next topic?
2. TAKE NOTE OF JOKES YOU HAVE HEARD OR READ
You’ll never know when you will be asked to speak so better to have a library of jokes as ammunitions. I remembered someone saying, “The best joke is the one that made you laugh.” Very true! So after laughing at a joke you read from the internet or you heard from a friend, immediately pull out your notebook (or your phone) and write down that joke. Trust me, your notes will come in handy in the future.
3. READ JOKE BOOKS
If you’re the type who loves reading, go grab and buy (or borrow) a joke book. No need to think of new jokes since such books exists to help you. You may not have any speaking assignments at the moment but at least, you would get a good laugh reading the book (good for your health too!). As they say, laughter is the best therapy. I recently received this book below and I’m preparing myself to have a clean laugh as well (haha!).
4. HAVE A HABIT OF INSERTING JOKES/HUMOUR WITHIN THE OUTLINE OF YOUR SPEECH
Of course you should use the jokes you have heard or read. Jokes are meant to be shared and not to be kept. Therefore, in your next talk – whether for a meeting, a presentation, a group sharing – try to inject humour. Just make sure that it is intentional, strategically planned and thoroughly rehearsed. Make sure it is scattered across your talk.
So are you now excited to try it? But before you take the plunge, just a few more things to remember:
1. Know the purpose of your joke – is it to emphasise a point? Is it to introduce the next concept?
2. Your jokes must at least be related to your key message/point.
3. Believe it or not, your jokes should be structured – know where to put it, how to put and when to put it in your speech.
4. Make your joke relevant to your audience. Make sure it is also simple and easy to understand.
5. If your jokes did not work the first time, don’t worry too much about it. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Learn to laugh at yourself. Move on. Look at it as an opportunity to improve your skill.
Again, no one can be a funny speaker overnight but it is possible to be one. No other way to do it but to practice, practice and practice.
My post ends here, your practice starts now. I would love to hear from your experience!
“A joke is a very serious thing.” – Winston Churchill
Of course you should use the jokes you have heard or read. Jokes are meant to be shared and not to be kept. Therefore, in your next talk – whether for a meeting, a presentation, a group sharing – try to inject humour. Just make sure that it is intentional, strategically planned and thoroughly rehearsed. Make sure it is scattered across your talk.
So are you now excited to try it? But before you take the plunge, just a few more things to remember:
1. Know the purpose of your joke – is it to emphasise a point? Is it to introduce the next concept?
2. Your jokes must at least be related to your key message/point.
3. Believe it or not, your jokes should be structured – know where to put it, how to put and when to put it in your speech.
4. Make your joke relevant to your audience. Make sure it is also simple and easy to understand.
5. If your jokes did not work the first time, don’t worry too much about it. Don’t be too hard on yourself. Learn to laugh at yourself. Move on. Look at it as an opportunity to improve your skill.
Again, no one can be a funny speaker overnight but it is possible to be one. No other way to do it but to practice, practice and practice.
My post ends here, your practice starts now. I would love to hear from your experience!
“A joke is a very serious thing.” – Winston Churchill