Save this article
Use this article for free on your own website
Republish this article for free on your own website or blog. Or search or browse for more articles that your audience will appreciate. Huge choice available. Ideal for finding quality, free content. Read our publishers guide.
Putting Some Funny In Persuasive Communication Part One
The use of humor in persuasion is a funny thing. In this series of articles, you'll learn what's so funny about persuasive communication.
I am about to tell you why humor is such a great tool in the art of persuasion, and I’m laughing about it! Why? It just seems so obvious. After all, humor speaks in universal truths about human existence, and invites people to laugh at themselves and even laugh with others at themselves. Or laugh at others in blissful ignorance that the joke is really about themselves.
Everyone loves quotes. And all speakers use them. What is so funny about quotes? How about quoting myself? Because, as I say quite often, “United we stand, but divided, we can not stand each other!” And I could not agree more. Humor breaks down the barriers that keep us divided and polarized. Humor builds bridges to bring us together. The use of humor puts people on common footing, it attracts and holds interest. And it creates a positive atmosphere, goodwill to all, that is helpful when you want communication to be particularly meaningful. Humor discharges resistance, overcomes stubbornness, and creates opportunity for dialog. Humor has such a positive impact on people that more and more businesses (not the dead-serious ones though!) employ it to hold on to employees and train them too. Humor is a powerful tool for the person serious about creating positive change. Why? Well, in case I haven’t made the point, not because I say so. It’s a fact. Humor is persuasive.
But let’s be honest. Not all humor is equally funny. In fact, bad humor is also one of the fastest ways to put people in a bad mood, undermine relationships, create hard feelings, offend sensibilities, poison an atmosphere and destroy what could have been a great event, project, team, business, or community.
I’m saying that it is safe to say that what is funny to some is not funny to all. In-jokes are usually only funny to the people in on the joke, the people who shared the experience with you. They tend to leave everyone else drawing a blank. But sometimes, you tell an in-joke, the people who are in start laughing, and the people who aren’t in on the joke start laughing too! And at that very moment, they may wonder what’s so funny. They might even say it aloud?” because they want to know why they are laughing.
Still, you just can’t please all the people all the time. If it is tasteless, spare us. Unless you know us and know that our taste runs all the way to tasteless. To know for a fact what is and is not funny to others, you want to find out as much as you can about the people you are talking to and what they find amusing.
That can’t be too hard to do. Just pay attention, and notice what gets them laughing. More about humor in persuasion can be found in the second part of this article series. In the meantime, remember. No, there are no stupid questions. Just stupid people!