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VII. Humor
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Jokes Versus Wit and Warmth
A good stand-up comic wants boffo jokes with strong punch lines. He measures his success by how loud the laughs are. But a good speaker uses humor to warm and win his audience. He doesn’t need to make them roll in the aisles. A smile is as good as a laugh, sometimes better and less disruptive. If the audience does laugh, you want the laughter to carry it in the right direction. Instead of being like Bob Hope or Jay Leno, you want to be more like “great communicator” Presidents John F. Kennedy or Ronald Reagan, seasoning serious subject matter with the occasional light quip or self-deprecating ad-lib.
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Where to Go for New Ideas
Besides the great selection of humor we have included in the American Speaker Binder and bi-monthly updates, there’s also a treasure trove of comedy in our everyday lives. You’ll never run out of fresh ideas as long as you keep your eyes open, read the paper and watch the evening news. If you spend a few minutes each week jotting down funny things that happen to and around you — and clip some of the more amusing oddities that run in the press — you can be fresh and funny for the rest of your life without ever using your imagination again!
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Enjoying the Last Laugh
Are you afraid to risk humor? Don’t be. Remember: people like to laugh and want to be amused. The instinctive desire to be amused is so basic to human nature that — with some people — it turns out to be the last sense to leave the body. Here are two true stories:
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Bob Orben’s Current Comedy for Speakers
Today, corporate America is the arena in which one of the most titanic struggles of our century is taking place — the paperless office vs. the copying machine.
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