In public speaking, the ability to use humor is an important skill to possess whatever your natural ability is. Most people like to smile, to laugh, or to enjoy a listening experience. Humor adds sparkle and interest to a speech. Humor when used should be good willed and not given in a manner to show how witty you are.
It is probably impossible to catalog humor completely. Here I have listed the 7 kinds of humor commonly used in public speaking.
Turn of Phrase
In this type of humor, you get the laugh by starting to make a serious point in one direction and suddenly an unexpected meaning is revealed. Mark Twain used this technique when he said that "youth is such a wonderful thing, it is shame to waste it on children."
The Pun
A word is used to evoke a serious meaning and then used in a completely different meaning altogether. The second meaning gives a whole new viewpoint to the speaker's remarks. To be funny the meaning should not be stretched too far or it will evoke groans rather than smiles. For example, the organiser of an event may ask a member of the audience if the guest speaker was an able speaker. The member of the audience may reply "Yes, the guest speaker was able. He was able to stand up all the way through his speech."
Exaggeration
This is where a small thing is made into a larger important issue. This is similar to the how a cartoonist will exaggerate the features of a politician for effect.
Understatement
This is the opposite of exaggeration, and words are used to underplay the importance of an event or issue.
Irony
Here, the face value meaning of the words is different to the intended meaning. An example is the phrase "as pleasant and relaxed as a coiled rattlesnake" used by Kurt Vonnegut in one of his books.
Sarcasm
Sarcasm is a cutting form of wit and should be used with care. To be funny the audience should not have much sympathy for the intended target. If they do it will not work in your favor.
Satire
Satire is an attack upon something worded in a way as to be pleasant but clear in its meaning. Will Rogers at a bankers convention asked "I have often wondered where the Depositor's hold their convention."
To be funny, the humor should be said in a spirit of fun. However, for best effect, humor should be unannounced and told with a straight face (you don't want to laugh before your audience does). It requires more practice and preparation than other parts of your speech. The humor will die if you fumble over words or stumble during the punch line. In public speaking, as it is with conversation, the telling of humor should be effortless and natural.
To be effective in public speaking the humor should be relevant to the points being made. It is woven into the fabric of the speech. With practice and preparation it is possible to employ the 7 types of humor listed, regardless of how dry and shy you maybe.
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Author: Edward Hope ... Add interest to your your public speaking and conversation with "The Art of Great Conversation." To claim your free preview visit http://www.SelfConfidentSpeaking.com
All that I am
Anna Funder
When Hitler comes to power in 1933, a tight-knit group of friends and lovers become hunted outlaws overnight. United in their resistance to the madness and tyranny of Nazism, they flee the country.
=> http://bit.ly/KjKr0r (... includes link to free excerpt)
Anna Funder
When Hitler comes to power in 1933, a tight-knit group of friends and lovers become hunted outlaws overnight. United in their resistance to the madness and tyranny of Nazism, they flee the country.
=> http://bit.ly/KjKr0r (... includes link to free excerpt)
“The challenge of leadership is to be strong, but not rude; be kind, but not weak; be bold, but not a bully; be thoughtful, but not lazy; be humble, but not timid; be proud but not arrogant; have humor, but without folly.”
—Jim Rohn
“Aerodynamically a bumblebee shouldn't be able to fly, but the bumblebee doesn't know that so it goes on flying anyway.”
-- Mary Kay Ash
Odd Apocalypse: A Novel
Dean Koontz
Odd Thomas has seen danger and he has seen death. He lives between two worlds, communicating with the lingering dead. He stands between us and our darkest fears, never failing the tests that confront him, whatever the cost. This is the fifth Odd Thomas thriller from the master storyteller. Odd finds refuge at a rundown mansion, but soon discovers a frightening presence. => http://bit.ly/RnAbWU
Dean Koontz
Odd Thomas has seen danger and he has seen death. He lives between two worlds, communicating with the lingering dead. He stands between us and our darkest fears, never failing the tests that confront him, whatever the cost. This is the fifth Odd Thomas thriller from the master storyteller. Odd finds refuge at a rundown mansion, but soon discovers a frightening presence. => http://bit.ly/RnAbWU
Random House has announced the Random House Teacher Awards, which recognises "dynamic and resourceful teachers" who use their creativity to inspire and successfully instill a love of reading in their students". Open to full and part-time teachers in public schools, the awards will be presented by Crown author Jonathan Kozol at the National Council of Teachers of English annual convention during the "Mentoring Matters" breakfast, held November 16 in Las Vegas.
Awards consist of a $10,000 first place grant, $5,000 second place grant and a $2,500 third place grant payable to each teacher's school. Book donations will be made to winners and runners-up. More information, including application guidelines, can be found here. http://bit.ly/TlaPX8
John Grisham
Theodore Boone is back in a new adventure, and the stakes are even higher. When his best friend, April Finnemore, disappears from her bedroom in the middle of the night, no one, not even Theo—who knows April better than anyone—has answers. As fear ripples through his small hometown and the police hit dead ends, it's up to Theo to use his legal knowledge and investigative skills to chase down the truth and save April. => http://bit.ly/NKdLjh
You work hard. You covet every day of vacation you're entitled to. So why aren't you using them? According to Expedia.com's annual "Vacation Deprivation" survey, nearly one-third of Americans do not always take their vacation days. In fact, Americans are likely to give back more than 421 million unused vacation days {each year]..
Before blaming your job for forcing you to surrender your precious time off, take a look at your own habits at work and home. The best way ensure that you don't forego a single well-deserved day on the beach, on the slopes or just relaxing at home, is to increase your personal productivity. By tweaking the way you work and structure your day, you can get more done in less time and feel good about it. Best of all, you will never have to say no to a vacation again. Here's your five-step game plan for seizing control of your time and boosting your personal productivity:
1. Draw a line in the sand
Creating boundaries is a crucial step in regaining control of your time and increasing your personal productivity. The hard part of setting boundaries is telling other people what's important to you in a way that doesn't compromise the relationship.
First of all, schedule everything in your planner: exercising, going to church, taking the kids to the zoo, having a date with your spouse, spending time with friends, etc. That way, when a coworker says, "Will you come help me raise money at this event?" you can open your calendar and honestly say, "Gee, I'm really sorry. I have something planned." If it's not written down, you might accidentally say, "Uh, no, I'm not doing anything on Saturday. I guess I can help you out."
2. Don't be so darn picky
Have you ever delegated a task to someone, then taken it back because the person didn't do it the "right way"? You may suffer from the disease of perfectionism. If you demand that people perform your way, according to your perfect standards, many people will be content to let you do things your way, leaving you wondering why you have so much on your plate! The bottom line is: distinguish between a high standard and an unrealistic expectation. Some things require high standards and have to be done "just so." Most expectations we impose on others, however, are simply picky-picky standards without merit.
3. Learn to trust your subordinates
You should always retain broader management duties such as overall planning, policy making, goal setting, and budget supervision, as well as work that involves confidential information or supervisor-subordinate relations. But if there is another person who is 80% as capable to doing a task as you are, then delegate.
Consider delegating the following types of work:
Decisions you make most frequently and repetitively
Assignments that will add variety to routine work
Functions you dislike
Work that will provide experience for employees
Tasks that someone else is capable of doing
Activities that will make a person more well-rounded
Tasks that will increase the number of people who can perform critical assignments
Opportunities to use and reinforce creative talents
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Related: 7 tips for leaving the office earlier
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4. Question job responsibilities and related tasks
Have you ever looked back on a completed task and realized that if it had gone undone, there would be no consequence? When you're faced with too much to do, assess the tasks by asking, "What would happen if I simply didn't handle this?" If the answer is "nothing," don't do it.
In order to create effective work objectives, you need to know where you are expected to invest your time, energy, talents, and company resources. If you are to be evaluated on your successful accomplishment of work objectives, do those performance objectives really match what you do during the day? The things you want to or should be working on aren't always the things you're being evaluated on.
5. Stick to your guns
Many of those people have a jam-packed calendar because they can't say "no." Others prey on them, because they know a people-pleaser can never refuse. Perhaps you're afraid of losing control on something you may eventually be responsible for. It's time to get realistic and determine if the demands on your time have exceeded your ability to handle them.
Saying "no" does NOT undermine your authority or competence. Your credibility is actually enhanced when you honestly tell people you lack the time or the interest. First, it makes you seem more desirable (we always want what we can't have). Second, you ensure that you don't perform tasks slipshod, making you appear less competent in the end. Three, you'll have more time to devote to the tasks that do return the highest value for your time. So flex that "no" muscle, create your rules, and make sure others stick to them.
Make it a productive day! ™
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© Copyright Laura Stack, MBA, CSP. All rights reserved.
Laura M. Stack, MBA, CSP, is "The Productivity Pro"® and the author of Leave the Office Earlier. She presents keynotes and seminars on time management, information overload, and personal productivity. Contact her at 303-471-7401 or Laura@TheProductivityPro.com."
