Although I don’t have a boss, I understand that keeping one’s boss happy is a big priority for many people in the workplace. Humor can help you build and improve your relationship with your boss without appearing like a suck-up and without requiring you to take on extra work. It can even give you more job […]
There’s a time to be funny, and there’s a time not to be funny. For most people it takes only basic common sense to know the difference. But sometimes people use humor inappropriately. Actually in most situations it’s not the use of humor that’s inappropriate but rather the type of humor. Telling off-color jokes in a professional […]
Many people think the best way to open a speech is with a joke, and in some situations that can work well, as long as you aren’t merely retelling an old joke your audience has heard before. The best speakers incorporate abundant humor throughout their speeches. In the Toastmasters International speech contest, it’s common for a […]
My friend John Kinde has been speaking in front of audiences about as long as I’ve been alive. By his own admission, John was not born funny. During the Cold War, he managed a nuclear weapons training facility, and he found humor an effective way to release tension in what could be a very stressful job. Over a […]
My friend, fellow Toastmaster, and fellow improv performer S. Frank Stringham (he actually goes by “S” as his first name) has been in the entertainment and motivational speaking industry for 25 years. He’s one of the most talented people I’ve ever met — a singer, a comic, a pianist, and one of the world’s top balloon artists. […]
If there’s such a thing as a born comedian, my friend George Gilbert would certainly qualify. He’s been performing before audiences since he was 11 years old, and his parents were a popular comedy duo who traveled and performed with Bob Hope, Jack Benny, Red Skelton, and many other famous comedians. After doing comedy for decades and witnessing […]
For the remainder of this week, I’ll be blogging a series on humor as it relates to personal development. Several of my friends are humor speakers with decades of experience, and they’ve agreed to contribute plenty of interesting content for this series. All of them have started blogs of their own this year (thanks in […]
Can humor skills be developed? Yes, absolutely.
I’ve had a strong sense of humor since I was a child. I would sometimes get in trouble for making witty commentary in class, causing the room to bust out laughing. In fact, I still do this today in group situations. But this always came to me as a natural skill […]
Virtually every week I receive reader feedback that could be generalized to the following template:
Steve,
I’ve been a long-time reader of your blog now and have found [ a few | some | several | many | most ] of your insights very helpful. I am not normally one to criticize, but I feel compelled to say something, as lately […]
Last night I competed in my Toastmasters’ division humorous speech contest at the California Hotel in downtown Las Vegas. It was very competitive, and I took home second place. The first place winner was Linda Bown, who gave a great speech titled, “Oh, Clutter. My Clutter.” Her particular club, Jackpot Speakers, specializes in coaching its […]
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