“A sense of humor is the ability to understand a joke-and that the joke is oneself.”
~Clinton Fadiman
“To be happy in life, you must be able to take a joke.
And if you can leave a few also, that’s even better.”
- Swami Beyondanada
“The pleasure that I cause them tells me that at least for a short moment, they love me.”
– W.C. Fields
"Jokes join up the invisible dots between two subjects"
- Mel Calman
A sense of humor is part of the art of leadership, of getting along with people, of getting things done.
- Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890 - 1969)
“It isn’t always funny because what is funny is a matter of personal opinion.” – Steve Allen
“What may seem depressing or even tragic to one person, may seem like an absolute scream to another person”. - Dave Barry
“A joke is not just a collection of words; it’s the scene that appears in the listeners mind as a result of those words.” – Dave Barry
The best comedians make fun of themselves first..
~Clinton Fadiman
“To be happy in life, you must be able to take a joke.
And if you can leave a few also, that’s even better.”
- Swami Beyondanada
“The pleasure that I cause them tells me that at least for a short moment, they love me.”
– W.C. Fields
"Jokes join up the invisible dots between two subjects"
- Mel Calman
A sense of humor is part of the art of leadership, of getting along with people, of getting things done.
- Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890 - 1969)
“It isn’t always funny because what is funny is a matter of personal opinion.” – Steve Allen
“What may seem depressing or even tragic to one person, may seem like an absolute scream to another person”. - Dave Barry
“A joke is not just a collection of words; it’s the scene that appears in the listeners mind as a result of those words.” – Dave Barry
The best comedians make fun of themselves first..
Let’s face it…one of the reason we love some of our favorite comedians is because they make fun of themselves first. Self-deprecation is a trait that’s highly valued in countries like Great Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand, where “blowing one’s own trumpet” is frowned upon. Irish comedian Ruairi Culleton and English comic David Mitchell are good examples from those cultures. In America, self-deprecation has been a huge component of the comedy of legends past and present: Rodney Dangerfield (“No Respect”), Phyllis Diller, Joan Rivers, Louis C.K., Don Knotts, Woody Allen, Zach Galifianakis, Mike Birbiglia, Carrot Top, John Stewart, David Letterman, Conan O’Brien and Bernie Mac.
In a 2012 article in Psychology Tomorrow Magazine called “Stand Up Psychology: What Makes Comics Funny,” Kyle Dowling writes: “When self-deprecation is the focus of a comic’s performance, it’s often an attempt at healing self-worth. The comic releases unto the world what they think is wrong with them – a kind of preemptive defense. If it is out in the open, what is there to laugh at? With self-deprecating humor, the stand-up comedian keeps total control of the room and, ideally, how they are laughed at.”
In a 2012 article in Psychology Tomorrow Magazine called “Stand Up Psychology: What Makes Comics Funny,” Kyle Dowling writes: “When self-deprecation is the focus of a comic’s performance, it’s often an attempt at healing self-worth. The comic releases unto the world what they think is wrong with them – a kind of preemptive defense. If it is out in the open, what is there to laugh at? With self-deprecating humor, the stand-up comedian keeps total control of the room and, ideally, how they are laughed at.”
The Most Important Letter in H-U-M-OR is "U"
That’s
great food for humorous thought as we arrive (at last!) at the most important
letter in HUMOR and the most important part about adding humor to your life.
Yes, that’s “U” and YOU. In fact, the Universe made it official – it begins
with U, i.e YOU!
I have had the great fortune to learn from a wealth of successful people and the #1 thing I observe that is different between successful people and their less successful counterparts is that successful people take 100% responsibility for everything in their lives. They believe that what they think about, talk about and act upon becomes their reality! They DO NOT play the “blame and complain” game. At least when they know people are looking!
For us to channel success, we need to think about how we can artfully and playfully “humorize” our lives, which adds positivity. To accomplish this, we need to start thinking humorously, talking more humorously (i.e. having a reservoir of great applicable jokes to draw from) and, to borrow a phrase from Tony Robbins, take MASSIVE ACTION. Guess what? Then you will be successful in laughter. That in itself will not get you a great job (remember, I only made a pittance at Song of the Morning, budding comic genius though I was!), but it will enrich your life in the many ways we have detailed in this book: your work, relationships, health, creativity, etc.) In this chapter, I provide some powerful secrets and strategies you can utilize so you can start laughing in life (and at life) right away!
I’m shouting it from the rooftops: I WANT YOU to start Laughing and Playing More.
Remember our chapter about children and laughing 400 times a day? It's time to awaken your inner child and start laughing more and having fun in life.
I have had the great fortune to learn from a wealth of successful people and the #1 thing I observe that is different between successful people and their less successful counterparts is that successful people take 100% responsibility for everything in their lives. They believe that what they think about, talk about and act upon becomes their reality! They DO NOT play the “blame and complain” game. At least when they know people are looking!
For us to channel success, we need to think about how we can artfully and playfully “humorize” our lives, which adds positivity. To accomplish this, we need to start thinking humorously, talking more humorously (i.e. having a reservoir of great applicable jokes to draw from) and, to borrow a phrase from Tony Robbins, take MASSIVE ACTION. Guess what? Then you will be successful in laughter. That in itself will not get you a great job (remember, I only made a pittance at Song of the Morning, budding comic genius though I was!), but it will enrich your life in the many ways we have detailed in this book: your work, relationships, health, creativity, etc.) In this chapter, I provide some powerful secrets and strategies you can utilize so you can start laughing in life (and at life) right away!
I’m shouting it from the rooftops: I WANT YOU to start Laughing and Playing More.
Remember our chapter about children and laughing 400 times a day? It's time to awaken your inner child and start laughing more and having fun in life.
You Can Lead a Horse to Water...
I can shout it all I want (or type in CAPS to get your attention), but if you read all this and don’t put my encouraging words and jokes into action, you may stay in glumville. Yes, as Norman Cousins proved, watching funny TV shows and movies is great therapy, but you also have to get your butt off the couch, get out there and be funny! Don’t just absorb comedy and laugh to yourself. BE comedy! OOZE COMEDY! In other words…
You Can Lead a Horse to Water, but a pencil must be led!
OK, that's the humorous version.
You know that actual saying in its original form:
You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink,
(Which begs the question - How do you lead a horse to water? With carrots, of course.)
Seriously though, this saying essentially means you can present someone with an opportunity, but you cannot force him or her to take advantage of it.
In this book, I am that person. I’m the guy dreaming of a funnier world, leading you, dear reader, to an ocean of laughter (which means you are the horse...LOL).
This world is not just a small water bucket to take a drink, it’s one gigantic sea of fresh (and refreshing!) water with plenty of incredibly funny jokes awaiting your execution. (Hmm, not sure this metaphor will work if you’re more into “dry” humor.) But bear with me! Did I say execution? That’s a heavy word. I meant “delivery,” but if your humor is not delivered properly, it can seem like an execution. On the other hand, when a comic is commanding a room and every joke is “hitting,” we say he’s “killing.” What a metaphor rich universe, this English language is!
That's why this chapter is here...To share secrets of delivering humor that will make sure you “kill” it every time so you can feel more alive with laughter. I just had a lovely image of Julie Andrews on a mountaintop, singing, “The hills are alive with the sound of laughter”! When it comes to enriching the soul, it’s as important as music!
"Remember that life is a situation comedy and we are in this material world to get more material." Ask Madonna! Of course if your jokes fall flat, you might get cancelled like bad sitcoms do in two weeks. You know, like those shows no one remembers that Jason Alexander and Michael Richards did after “Seinfeld.” Material is everything! Even when the show’s about nothing!
Let's begin with the first BIG secret.
Ok, maybe it’s not much of a secret, and if it sounds too obvious, hold on, and keep reading.
The BIG Secret is situational humor - humor or jokes that are 100% relevant to any given situation. But in order to take advantage of this, you need to be armed with a large repertoire of jokes to pull from, especially short jokes and one-liners that are the easiest to remember.
You Can Lead a Horse to Water, but a pencil must be led!
OK, that's the humorous version.
You know that actual saying in its original form:
You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink,
(Which begs the question - How do you lead a horse to water? With carrots, of course.)
Seriously though, this saying essentially means you can present someone with an opportunity, but you cannot force him or her to take advantage of it.
In this book, I am that person. I’m the guy dreaming of a funnier world, leading you, dear reader, to an ocean of laughter (which means you are the horse...LOL).
This world is not just a small water bucket to take a drink, it’s one gigantic sea of fresh (and refreshing!) water with plenty of incredibly funny jokes awaiting your execution. (Hmm, not sure this metaphor will work if you’re more into “dry” humor.) But bear with me! Did I say execution? That’s a heavy word. I meant “delivery,” but if your humor is not delivered properly, it can seem like an execution. On the other hand, when a comic is commanding a room and every joke is “hitting,” we say he’s “killing.” What a metaphor rich universe, this English language is!
That's why this chapter is here...To share secrets of delivering humor that will make sure you “kill” it every time so you can feel more alive with laughter. I just had a lovely image of Julie Andrews on a mountaintop, singing, “The hills are alive with the sound of laughter”! When it comes to enriching the soul, it’s as important as music!
"Remember that life is a situation comedy and we are in this material world to get more material." Ask Madonna! Of course if your jokes fall flat, you might get cancelled like bad sitcoms do in two weeks. You know, like those shows no one remembers that Jason Alexander and Michael Richards did after “Seinfeld.” Material is everything! Even when the show’s about nothing!
Let's begin with the first BIG secret.
Ok, maybe it’s not much of a secret, and if it sounds too obvious, hold on, and keep reading.
The BIG Secret is situational humor - humor or jokes that are 100% relevant to any given situation. But in order to take advantage of this, you need to be armed with a large repertoire of jokes to pull from, especially short jokes and one-liners that are the easiest to remember.
Situational Humor
The easiest type of situational humor is using something that comes up in a conversation, in life in general and say, "That Reminds Me of a Joke". Throughout this book, you have seen digress way too many times, using that phrase to justify inserting a joke. But jokes are always funnier when they are relevant to the topic at hand and in the moment.
Sometimes, you can cleverly interject the joke without the person/persons even knowing.
For example, I remember talking to a customer of mine who was really into golf. I asked him, "Do you bring an extra pair of socks with you when you go golfing?" Surprised, he said, “No, why?” I replied, "In case you get a hole in one". He laughed and I laughed with him. It’s not the biggest guffaw in the world, but the synergy was inspiring. Even someone you hardly know can become a quick friend when you share in a good laugh. Humor can disarm and charm at the same time. I have seen this over and over throughout my life.
So GET CREATIVE! Once you start learning and memorizing more jokes and punchlines, you'll find clever ways to add humor to any situation. I have 1000 jokes and one-liners in this book to get you started, but keep on collecting the funniest jokes you hear or read and keep them in a file (or Word Document). Make sure to only record the ones that YOU LIKE, because whether the joke is funny or not to someone else, the fact you are smiling and laughing is the key to the joke’s potential to become contagious. That’s why many sitcoms have laugh tracks. If others are laughing even at something you don’t find immediately funny, you might just want to join in!
That is another aspect of the "U" / YOU in humor, YOU need to think the joke is funny, so only tell YOUR favorite jokes, But for heaven’s sake, try to be mindful of distasteful and off color humor. The books I am sharing are for the most part 100% clean, non-offensive and certified funny.
Sometimes, you can cleverly interject the joke without the person/persons even knowing.
For example, I remember talking to a customer of mine who was really into golf. I asked him, "Do you bring an extra pair of socks with you when you go golfing?" Surprised, he said, “No, why?” I replied, "In case you get a hole in one". He laughed and I laughed with him. It’s not the biggest guffaw in the world, but the synergy was inspiring. Even someone you hardly know can become a quick friend when you share in a good laugh. Humor can disarm and charm at the same time. I have seen this over and over throughout my life.
So GET CREATIVE! Once you start learning and memorizing more jokes and punchlines, you'll find clever ways to add humor to any situation. I have 1000 jokes and one-liners in this book to get you started, but keep on collecting the funniest jokes you hear or read and keep them in a file (or Word Document). Make sure to only record the ones that YOU LIKE, because whether the joke is funny or not to someone else, the fact you are smiling and laughing is the key to the joke’s potential to become contagious. That’s why many sitcoms have laugh tracks. If others are laughing even at something you don’t find immediately funny, you might just want to join in!
That is another aspect of the "U" / YOU in humor, YOU need to think the joke is funny, so only tell YOUR favorite jokes, But for heaven’s sake, try to be mindful of distasteful and off color humor. The books I am sharing are for the most part 100% clean, non-offensive and certified funny.
Create Your Own Jokes
You'll
even start coming up with your own jokes. To illustrate how easy this can be,
I present some real life situations where I was able to create my own jokes based on the circumstance of the moment. It helps when the people you are with have a good sense of humor, but even if they don't, you may be able to cheer them up. Then later, you have to think, why am I pals with such dull, dry people?
You can do this too...It helps to keep a small notepad handy, or better yet with technology, you can dictate jokes orally into your smart phone and add to your humor file later. You see, I have a chapter called "Bryant Meyers Originals.” These are jokes I came up with myself. Whether they are funny or not to you doesn't matter, because they were IN THE MOMENT humorous jokes that came to me. Sweet nuggets of inspiration that I knew I had to preserve and later share with others. So start recording and remembering all those humorous things you say and do. You may need them again someday. Comedy is eternal!
The below examples are ALL true stories.
*This lady walked into our health food store and asked for some pine nuts. I got them for her and then she asked me where pine nuts come from. I shrugged my shoulders and said, “I don’t know, maybe schizophrenic evergreens.”
*This little old lady walked into our health food store (the last one wasn’t little or old, larger and young!) and bought twenty pounds of wheat bran! I said to her, “Wow! I see that you are going to be one of our most regular customers.” She laughed out loud.
*Teaching inertia in a physics class, I was able to yank a tablecloth and leave all the dishes, silverware and glass on the table virtually undisturbed...I told the students with big smile, “I can't believe I ‘pulled it off.’ They all laughed! (Yes, I know I used this one in another context earlier in the book, but it bears repeating!)
And there are more examples in my chapter "Bryant Meyers Originals".
I present some real life situations where I was able to create my own jokes based on the circumstance of the moment. It helps when the people you are with have a good sense of humor, but even if they don't, you may be able to cheer them up. Then later, you have to think, why am I pals with such dull, dry people?
You can do this too...It helps to keep a small notepad handy, or better yet with technology, you can dictate jokes orally into your smart phone and add to your humor file later. You see, I have a chapter called "Bryant Meyers Originals.” These are jokes I came up with myself. Whether they are funny or not to you doesn't matter, because they were IN THE MOMENT humorous jokes that came to me. Sweet nuggets of inspiration that I knew I had to preserve and later share with others. So start recording and remembering all those humorous things you say and do. You may need them again someday. Comedy is eternal!
The below examples are ALL true stories.
*This lady walked into our health food store and asked for some pine nuts. I got them for her and then she asked me where pine nuts come from. I shrugged my shoulders and said, “I don’t know, maybe schizophrenic evergreens.”
*This little old lady walked into our health food store (the last one wasn’t little or old, larger and young!) and bought twenty pounds of wheat bran! I said to her, “Wow! I see that you are going to be one of our most regular customers.” She laughed out loud.
*Teaching inertia in a physics class, I was able to yank a tablecloth and leave all the dishes, silverware and glass on the table virtually undisturbed...I told the students with big smile, “I can't believe I ‘pulled it off.’ They all laughed! (Yes, I know I used this one in another context earlier in the book, but it bears repeating!)
And there are more examples in my chapter "Bryant Meyers Originals".
Preplanned Humor
I have
given many examples of using preplanned humor in this book. I’ve talked about
everything from humorous syllabi, to funny handouts, Top Ten lists, bumper
stickers, using humor or cartoons on overhead projectors and whiteboards, etc.
When I taught physics, I would try to find a cartoon, joke or even perform a skit that was relevant to the lecture of the day. For example, I remember one day during a basic algebra class, I dressed up in a very formal suit and tie. All my students looked and me in somewhat shock, because I always dressed very casual. Finally, one student raised her hand and said, “Mr Meyers, why are you all dressed up today?" Hardly able to contain my laughter, I said, "Why, I always dress up for functions". The topic of the day was functions f(x) = y = equation, etc.
Which reminds me….Conjunction Junction, what’s your function? I haven’t sung a “Schoolhouse Rock” song in a while. Okay, now back to the chapter…
Preplanned comedy is a blast, BUT to me, the spontaneous situational humor that just comes up in life is the still the best, because it wasn't planned and has an added element of surprise for both YOU and the audience. There’s always an opportunity to interject a pun or funny joke in any conversation or circumstance.
The goal of this book is to provide you with a good base of clean and always appropriate humor to start with, just like Victor Steinman helped me to get started that cold winter night 18 years ago (I know that’s the 50th time I’ve mentioned it! I just like saying “cold winter’s night,” probably because the jokes warmed me up!). And like I mentioned, keep a notebook or word file of any and all funny jokes you come across. Someday, you'll be able to write your own joke book filled with your very own experiences.
Humor and laughter are guaranteed to enrich your life and positively influence all those you know and love... And it will spread around the world in a fireball, nay, a conflagration of smiles and laughter. You’ll be a hunka hunka burnin’ comic love!
But Before You Can Begin, it helps to know the basics of how professional comedians tell jokes - AKA the Delivery!
When I taught physics, I would try to find a cartoon, joke or even perform a skit that was relevant to the lecture of the day. For example, I remember one day during a basic algebra class, I dressed up in a very formal suit and tie. All my students looked and me in somewhat shock, because I always dressed very casual. Finally, one student raised her hand and said, “Mr Meyers, why are you all dressed up today?" Hardly able to contain my laughter, I said, "Why, I always dress up for functions". The topic of the day was functions f(x) = y = equation, etc.
Which reminds me….Conjunction Junction, what’s your function? I haven’t sung a “Schoolhouse Rock” song in a while. Okay, now back to the chapter…
Preplanned comedy is a blast, BUT to me, the spontaneous situational humor that just comes up in life is the still the best, because it wasn't planned and has an added element of surprise for both YOU and the audience. There’s always an opportunity to interject a pun or funny joke in any conversation or circumstance.
The goal of this book is to provide you with a good base of clean and always appropriate humor to start with, just like Victor Steinman helped me to get started that cold winter night 18 years ago (I know that’s the 50th time I’ve mentioned it! I just like saying “cold winter’s night,” probably because the jokes warmed me up!). And like I mentioned, keep a notebook or word file of any and all funny jokes you come across. Someday, you'll be able to write your own joke book filled with your very own experiences.
Humor and laughter are guaranteed to enrich your life and positively influence all those you know and love... And it will spread around the world in a fireball, nay, a conflagration of smiles and laughter. You’ll be a hunka hunka burnin’ comic love!
But Before You Can Begin, it helps to know the basics of how professional comedians tell jokes - AKA the Delivery!
Mastering the Delivery - The Art of "Killing it" in Comedy (Not "Bombing")
CAUTION: Not everyone will laugh, but don’t let that stop you.
“It isn’t always funny because what is funny is a matter of personal opinion.” – Steve Allen
“What may seem depressing or even tragic to one person, may seem like an absolute scream to another person”. - Dave Barry
“A joke is not just a collection of words; it’s the scene that appears in the listeners mind as a result of those words.” – Dave Barry
Next there is the practice and delivery of the jokes. Here are some strategies that top comedians use to deliver their jokes that make being funny easier. Mastering the delivery and practicing will give you more confidence and help you overcome the fear of the dreaded “Bomb”. But even if you bomb, don't worry. As A. Whitney Brown once said, "That is the saving grace of humor, if you fail no one is laughing at you." One joke that kills balances out 10 that fall flat. I just made that up but let’s create a meme and put it on Facebook. Then everything will think it’s true!
Bombing 101: The net effect of bombing in front of others or an audience is the same as though the joke were never told. So, no worries. But if you want to kill it and ensure that people die laughing (after paying their cover, hopefully!), it is good to avoid bombs as much as possible. So before we tell you How to deliver a Joke, let's first start with How not to...
“It isn’t always funny because what is funny is a matter of personal opinion.” – Steve Allen
“What may seem depressing or even tragic to one person, may seem like an absolute scream to another person”. - Dave Barry
“A joke is not just a collection of words; it’s the scene that appears in the listeners mind as a result of those words.” – Dave Barry
Next there is the practice and delivery of the jokes. Here are some strategies that top comedians use to deliver their jokes that make being funny easier. Mastering the delivery and practicing will give you more confidence and help you overcome the fear of the dreaded “Bomb”. But even if you bomb, don't worry. As A. Whitney Brown once said, "That is the saving grace of humor, if you fail no one is laughing at you." One joke that kills balances out 10 that fall flat. I just made that up but let’s create a meme and put it on Facebook. Then everything will think it’s true!
Bombing 101: The net effect of bombing in front of others or an audience is the same as though the joke were never told. So, no worries. But if you want to kill it and ensure that people die laughing (after paying their cover, hopefully!), it is good to avoid bombs as much as possible. So before we tell you How to deliver a Joke, let's first start with How not to...
First, Here is How NOT to Tell a Joke
DO NOT:
1. Insist that you are terrible at telling jokes, but tell one anyway. Don't start out by apologizing. That just ruins it.
2. Immediately give away the punchline, as in “have you heard the one about _____?” People laugh when the punchline is revealed AFTER the set up.
3. Add lots of extra stuff to make the joke longer. “It’s not the length of the joke that counts, it’s how much pleasure it gives.” (I just pulled that joke out of my rear. Again, let’s create a Meme!) The longer a story is, the funnier the punchline had better be. Get to the point. In songwriting, they refer to this as, “Don’t bore us, get to the chorus.”
4. Laugh hysterically in the middle, and say, “You’re gonna love this ...”
5. Forget the punchline halfway through the joke, or worse yet forget the punchline right before the end of the joke. (This is why practice is necessary).
Uh, Does, any of the above sound familiar (wink wink)?
Ok now that you know what NOT to do, let’s get into what you need to do to have 'em Laughing!
1. Insist that you are terrible at telling jokes, but tell one anyway. Don't start out by apologizing. That just ruins it.
2. Immediately give away the punchline, as in “have you heard the one about _____?” People laugh when the punchline is revealed AFTER the set up.
3. Add lots of extra stuff to make the joke longer. “It’s not the length of the joke that counts, it’s how much pleasure it gives.” (I just pulled that joke out of my rear. Again, let’s create a Meme!) The longer a story is, the funnier the punchline had better be. Get to the point. In songwriting, they refer to this as, “Don’t bore us, get to the chorus.”
4. Laugh hysterically in the middle, and say, “You’re gonna love this ...”
5. Forget the punchline halfway through the joke, or worse yet forget the punchline right before the end of the joke. (This is why practice is necessary).
Uh, Does, any of the above sound familiar (wink wink)?
Ok now that you know what NOT to do, let’s get into what you need to do to have 'em Laughing!
Here is our Final Top Ten List... Drum Roll Please....
Mastering the Delivery (This is what YOU DO).
1. Telling a Joke is Like Magic. (And a sentence featuring the word “magic” needs to be in caps!) You start with something ordinary or familiar about everyday life. Then comes "the turn", or twist, which is followed by a revelation at the end. The secret is revealed and the audience or listener is "surprised". In a joke, the bigger the surprise, the bigger the laugh. Set up a joke like a magician would, to intentionally distract and mislead. The bigger the gap between the listener’s expectations and the punchline, the bigger the chuckle.
2. Draw the listener in. Make the moment intimate! The story of the joke (especially longer jokes) must completely draw the attention of the listener so they are present each moment and hanging on every word. Create more interest and you will add more punch to the punchline.
3. Understand that what makes a successful joke is the shortest distant to the punchline. I love the TV show “Last Comic Standing.” I recommend you watch it or Netflix it because you can learn so much from the judges critiques. One thing I hear over and over is "get to it", that is, the punchline. Say as much as necessary but no more. LESS IS MORE! Don't leave out necessary details in the joke. Too often, comedians are too wordy and take too long to get to the point, or in this case, the punchline. Hmm, too wordy…that describes this book. Fortunately this is a book of jokes and not a single joke itself! Or maybe it is. You decide!
4. Create a brilliant, sharp rhythm! Many jokes have a common structure and rhythm and many times, they come in threes. For example, "A minister, a priest and a rabbi..." or "A mathematician, a physicist and an engineer”. Having heard similar jokes, the listener is expecting a one...two... three (with three being the punchline). Sometimes, there are jokes that disturb the rhythm and are funny because of that. For example, a minister, a priest and a rabbi walk into a bar and the bartender says, “What is this, some kind of joke? But usually a good rhythm will draw the listener in and help "spike" the punchline!
5. Master the Pause. A pause at the right place makes every joke funnier. The best and most obvious place to pause is right before the punchline. The pause lets the setup of the joke sink in, so the punchline is much punchier and funnier.
For example, consider the joke:
Two Goldfish are in a Tank
One says to the other
(PAUSE - let the ordinary image of two goldfish swimming in a tank sink in)
Do you know how to drive this thing?
The well placed pause can make or break a joke.
6. Slow down. Speak slowly enough so people can process the images of the joke in their mind. The idea is to give people the time to fully commit to the wrong interpretation, and then let them have it! The punchline, that is. Like the pause, saying the joke a little more slowly builds the tension and gives the listener time to form the mental imagery. So when you get to the punchline, they’re more apt to burst out in laughter.
7. How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, Practice, Practice! Regardless of natural funniness, no one becomes really brilliant at anything without practice (say it three times every time just for effect!) Think of athletes like Tiger Woods in his prime or Kobe Bryant in his glory days. They both took thousands and thousands of shots and practiced tens of thousands of hours. Now, you don't have to practice THAT much (of course, if you want to make millions as a comic, you should!), but telling jokes will be a ball if you but practice even a little. It will give you added confidence so you almost are guaranteed laughs. The best comedians are brimming with confidence because they have practiced over and over and seen how their jokes make people laugh. Trial and error is part of the gig. Be patient. Practice, Patient? Know any good doctor jokes? Personally, I have had this experience with jokes that were winners every time! I would have a smile on my face just knowing laughter was coming!
8. In choosing jokes, know your audience. Is the joke a match with this particular crowd? Is the joke likely to be taken as an insult? Is the joke rude, crude or mean? The reason I have only clean jokes in this book is that they are good for all occasions. There may be a few exceptions, so even with these jokes in this book, be mindful. For example, if someone is a fundamentalist Christian, they may not appreciate some of the Christian humor. Also be mindful of my science jokes, not everyone will get those as they require a high humor IQ.
9. Stop trying! Here's a secret for happiness straight from the guy who meditated with a guru for four years: “Take humor seriously, and seriousness humorously.” This doesn’t mean you have to work at being funny. There is nothing less funny than someone trying to be funny. So stop trying so hard and relax. The whole idea is to have fun. If you can light up a room with a wink and a smile, you may be way ahead of the game. Telling a joke might be superfluous! I think the funniest people have that charisma and gift. You start laughing or smiling just looking at them.
10. Take a Dive into the Humorverse. Immerse yourself in the kind of humor that makes YOU laugh. Tell the jokes YOU find funny and hang out with people you can joke and kid around with. I find the best friends are the ones you can play a practical joke on or share any type of joke with. And when you pull a practical joke on someone, be able to take one back. Enjoy being on the receiving end of humor, and then it will be much easier to give in return!
2. Draw the listener in. Make the moment intimate! The story of the joke (especially longer jokes) must completely draw the attention of the listener so they are present each moment and hanging on every word. Create more interest and you will add more punch to the punchline.
3. Understand that what makes a successful joke is the shortest distant to the punchline. I love the TV show “Last Comic Standing.” I recommend you watch it or Netflix it because you can learn so much from the judges critiques. One thing I hear over and over is "get to it", that is, the punchline. Say as much as necessary but no more. LESS IS MORE! Don't leave out necessary details in the joke. Too often, comedians are too wordy and take too long to get to the point, or in this case, the punchline. Hmm, too wordy…that describes this book. Fortunately this is a book of jokes and not a single joke itself! Or maybe it is. You decide!
4. Create a brilliant, sharp rhythm! Many jokes have a common structure and rhythm and many times, they come in threes. For example, "A minister, a priest and a rabbi..." or "A mathematician, a physicist and an engineer”. Having heard similar jokes, the listener is expecting a one...two... three (with three being the punchline). Sometimes, there are jokes that disturb the rhythm and are funny because of that. For example, a minister, a priest and a rabbi walk into a bar and the bartender says, “What is this, some kind of joke? But usually a good rhythm will draw the listener in and help "spike" the punchline!
5. Master the Pause. A pause at the right place makes every joke funnier. The best and most obvious place to pause is right before the punchline. The pause lets the setup of the joke sink in, so the punchline is much punchier and funnier.
For example, consider the joke:
Two Goldfish are in a Tank
One says to the other
(PAUSE - let the ordinary image of two goldfish swimming in a tank sink in)
Do you know how to drive this thing?
The well placed pause can make or break a joke.
6. Slow down. Speak slowly enough so people can process the images of the joke in their mind. The idea is to give people the time to fully commit to the wrong interpretation, and then let them have it! The punchline, that is. Like the pause, saying the joke a little more slowly builds the tension and gives the listener time to form the mental imagery. So when you get to the punchline, they’re more apt to burst out in laughter.
7. How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, Practice, Practice! Regardless of natural funniness, no one becomes really brilliant at anything without practice (say it three times every time just for effect!) Think of athletes like Tiger Woods in his prime or Kobe Bryant in his glory days. They both took thousands and thousands of shots and practiced tens of thousands of hours. Now, you don't have to practice THAT much (of course, if you want to make millions as a comic, you should!), but telling jokes will be a ball if you but practice even a little. It will give you added confidence so you almost are guaranteed laughs. The best comedians are brimming with confidence because they have practiced over and over and seen how their jokes make people laugh. Trial and error is part of the gig. Be patient. Practice, Patient? Know any good doctor jokes? Personally, I have had this experience with jokes that were winners every time! I would have a smile on my face just knowing laughter was coming!
8. In choosing jokes, know your audience. Is the joke a match with this particular crowd? Is the joke likely to be taken as an insult? Is the joke rude, crude or mean? The reason I have only clean jokes in this book is that they are good for all occasions. There may be a few exceptions, so even with these jokes in this book, be mindful. For example, if someone is a fundamentalist Christian, they may not appreciate some of the Christian humor. Also be mindful of my science jokes, not everyone will get those as they require a high humor IQ.
9. Stop trying! Here's a secret for happiness straight from the guy who meditated with a guru for four years: “Take humor seriously, and seriousness humorously.” This doesn’t mean you have to work at being funny. There is nothing less funny than someone trying to be funny. So stop trying so hard and relax. The whole idea is to have fun. If you can light up a room with a wink and a smile, you may be way ahead of the game. Telling a joke might be superfluous! I think the funniest people have that charisma and gift. You start laughing or smiling just looking at them.
10. Take a Dive into the Humorverse. Immerse yourself in the kind of humor that makes YOU laugh. Tell the jokes YOU find funny and hang out with people you can joke and kid around with. I find the best friends are the ones you can play a practical joke on or share any type of joke with. And when you pull a practical joke on someone, be able to take one back. Enjoy being on the receiving end of humor, and then it will be much easier to give in return!
Summing Everything Up = InFUNity
17 Ways FOR YOU to Interject H-U-M-O-R in YOUr Life
Below are 17 secrets strategies and tips you can start USING today to add humor to your Life...
To reap the benefits of the Grin Reaper, you must take action: start with tip #3 and learn 1000 jokes... This book is a great starting point. These tips are a summary of what I have shared in this book, and it is my sincere hope you will take this information and jokes to heart so you can have more "hearty" laughs!
H = Health and Happiness
1) Laugh at aging and time. Laugh at doctors and hospitals, even healthy stuff.
2) Laughter is GOOD for your health - Understand Laughter research and why it’s HEALTHY to laugh.
U = YOU
3) Read and Study 1000 Jokes and keep a file of all your favorites. Memorize AT LEAST 10 of your favorite if opportunity arises to share a joke. Start with easy one or two liners.
4) Learn to laugh at yourself. If I didn’t do this, I couldn’t write this silly book!
5) Master the Delivery - See Appendix 1 for Tips on how to Deliver Jokes More Effectively (If I didn’t tell you, you never would. Who the heck reads Appendices?) Master these and you are well on your way to being a standup comic.
6) Try stand up at an open mike (but practice on friends first, using a hairbrush as the mic or something like that). Study up on mastering the delivery and practice first.
M = Meditation/Mindset
7) Don't take Beliefs too seriously.
8) Be a Opti-mystic, think positive.
9) Ask More Questions and admit you don't have all the answers.
(You can be right or you can be happy)
10) Practice Laughter Meditation.
O = Occupation
11) Practice on Friends and Family then on co-workers.
12) Make work more fun.
13) Humorize via worksheets, manuals, etc. Humorize slideshows, Lectures, etc.
Or if you’re not a physics professor, incorporate comedy into similar things in your own profession! Creatively add humor to any and ALL presentations you do, a little at a time. Break the ice with humor!.
R = Recreation/Recess
14) Be More childlike (but not too childish).
15) Find friends you can joke around with and don't mind being made fun of or having a prank.
16) Watch funny movies and stand up comedians.
17) Play more practical jokes - just don't hurt anyone or get yourself in trouble.
To reap the benefits of the Grin Reaper, you must take action: start with tip #3 and learn 1000 jokes... This book is a great starting point. These tips are a summary of what I have shared in this book, and it is my sincere hope you will take this information and jokes to heart so you can have more "hearty" laughs!
H = Health and Happiness
1) Laugh at aging and time. Laugh at doctors and hospitals, even healthy stuff.
2) Laughter is GOOD for your health - Understand Laughter research and why it’s HEALTHY to laugh.
U = YOU
3) Read and Study 1000 Jokes and keep a file of all your favorites. Memorize AT LEAST 10 of your favorite if opportunity arises to share a joke. Start with easy one or two liners.
4) Learn to laugh at yourself. If I didn’t do this, I couldn’t write this silly book!
5) Master the Delivery - See Appendix 1 for Tips on how to Deliver Jokes More Effectively (If I didn’t tell you, you never would. Who the heck reads Appendices?) Master these and you are well on your way to being a standup comic.
6) Try stand up at an open mike (but practice on friends first, using a hairbrush as the mic or something like that). Study up on mastering the delivery and practice first.
M = Meditation/Mindset
7) Don't take Beliefs too seriously.
8) Be a Opti-mystic, think positive.
9) Ask More Questions and admit you don't have all the answers.
(You can be right or you can be happy)
10) Practice Laughter Meditation.
O = Occupation
11) Practice on Friends and Family then on co-workers.
12) Make work more fun.
13) Humorize via worksheets, manuals, etc. Humorize slideshows, Lectures, etc.
Or if you’re not a physics professor, incorporate comedy into similar things in your own profession! Creatively add humor to any and ALL presentations you do, a little at a time. Break the ice with humor!.
R = Recreation/Recess
14) Be More childlike (but not too childish).
15) Find friends you can joke around with and don't mind being made fun of or having a prank.
16) Watch funny movies and stand up comedians.
17) Play more practical jokes - just don't hurt anyone or get yourself in trouble.
Raise Your Laugh Quota
Make it a point to laugh more with the goal of laughing 400 times a day – give or take 50.
Granted, that is a lot of laughing, but if you have an extended hahahahahahahahahahaha” laugh, you can count each of those ha's, he's or ho's as a laugh. Every time Santa Claus says “Ho Ho Ho!” he’s adding joy to the world! You don't have to count every laugh, but if you do a daily gratitude journal, look back on each day and make sure you laughed a lot!
Granted, that is a lot of laughing, but if you have an extended hahahahahahahahahahaha” laugh, you can count each of those ha's, he's or ho's as a laugh. Every time Santa Claus says “Ho Ho Ho!” he’s adding joy to the world! You don't have to count every laugh, but if you do a daily gratitude journal, look back on each day and make sure you laughed a lot!
And Smile More!
Smile, and the World Smiles with You
Even easier than telling and delivering jokes is a simple smile. Charlie Chaplin made these words famous: “Smile, though your heart is aching, Smile even though it’s breaking…”
Besides laughter, just smiling can work wonders to brighten up your life. A smile is sunshine from the soul, and can instantly create a connection even with a stranger. It’s something simple, free of charge, and can enrich your life immeasurably! Smile when you’re happy. Smile when you’re mad. Smile at a stranger – and scare the heck out of them! You may just brighten that person’s day! Just have the courage to do it. Don't worry if someone doesn't smile back. Just offer your good cheer to all. You’ll get results!
Researchers have examined the effect our smiles have on other people. They visited a shopping center (and you know how pleasant and smiley shoppers are, especially at Christmastime!) and the experimenter either smiled or frowned at the people who walked past him. A second researcher secretly observed whether the person reciprocated with a smile or a frown.
Guess what they discovered? Nearly 40% of people responded to the experimenters smile with another smile. In contrast, only 6% of them frowned when the experimenter frowned at them.
The researchers neatly summarized their findings in the title of their article: "Smile, and (half) the world smiles with you, frown and you frown alone.”
*Hinsz, V.B. & Tomhave, J.A. (1991). ""Smile, and (Half) the World Smiles with You, Frown and you Frown Alone." Pesonality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 17(5), 586-592.
Did you know there’s even a small unincorporated community called Smile in Kentucky? It got its name in reference to the facial expressions of residents when their application for a post office had been approved! Imagine if there was a town called Smile in every state of the U.S. A boy can dream…
Besides laughter, just smiling can work wonders to brighten up your life. A smile is sunshine from the soul, and can instantly create a connection even with a stranger. It’s something simple, free of charge, and can enrich your life immeasurably! Smile when you’re happy. Smile when you’re mad. Smile at a stranger – and scare the heck out of them! You may just brighten that person’s day! Just have the courage to do it. Don't worry if someone doesn't smile back. Just offer your good cheer to all. You’ll get results!
Researchers have examined the effect our smiles have on other people. They visited a shopping center (and you know how pleasant and smiley shoppers are, especially at Christmastime!) and the experimenter either smiled or frowned at the people who walked past him. A second researcher secretly observed whether the person reciprocated with a smile or a frown.
Guess what they discovered? Nearly 40% of people responded to the experimenters smile with another smile. In contrast, only 6% of them frowned when the experimenter frowned at them.
The researchers neatly summarized their findings in the title of their article: "Smile, and (half) the world smiles with you, frown and you frown alone.”
*Hinsz, V.B. & Tomhave, J.A. (1991). ""Smile, and (Half) the World Smiles with You, Frown and you Frown Alone." Pesonality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 17(5), 586-592.
Did you know there’s even a small unincorporated community called Smile in Kentucky? It got its name in reference to the facial expressions of residents when their application for a post office had been approved! Imagine if there was a town called Smile in every state of the U.S. A boy can dream…
Final Joke
What did the ocean say to the beach?
Nothing, it just waved.
(I hope this book was a "good buy" in your eye ;-)
(I hope this book was a "good buy" to put more H-U-M-O-R in Your Life!
Now, spread your wings, take flight, laugh, tell jokes, smile big, and start quacking up the world!!
Nothing, it just waved.
(I hope this book was a "good buy" in your eye ;-)
(I hope this book was a "good buy" to put more H-U-M-O-R in Your Life!
Now, spread your wings, take flight, laugh, tell jokes, smile big, and start quacking up the world!!
