The Use and Abuse of Humour At Work
Advert
The Use and Abuse of Humour at Work
At work, it can be good to have a laugh and can be very beneficial:.
- Laughing can help build a good team spirit.
- It can make the time pass more quickly.
- It can make you appear more attractive.
- Humour can make work more fun.
It is GOOD to have a laugh.
But not always!
Sometimes it is NOT good to laugh. Sometimes it is better to NOT clown around.
There are two things to be wary of;
- Humour as a weapon.
- Too much self-depreciative humour.
1. Using humour as a weapon
Be cautious of anyone who uses humour as a weapon to tear others down.
Some people have hostile intentions, but they express those hostile intentions in the form of sarcastic humour or jokes at the other's expense.
Some people use humour as a form of passive aggression or bullying.
I call this type, The Smiling Assassin.
Don't be a smiling assassin.
And don't allow the smiling assassin the freedom to attack you in meetings, and dress it up as a "Joke".
Take-on the smiling assassin.
2. Self-depreciative humour
Be cautious of using too much self-depreciative humour. This is when a person makes himself/herself the butt of their own jokes. He turns himself into a clown and puts himself down, as a joke.
A small amount of self-depreciation is endearing, as it shows that you are not egotistical. But if you do it too much, you turn into a Boris Johnson-type clown figure.
And it is interesting to note that Boris Johnson failed to achieve his stated goal of becoming prime minister; partly due to the fact that he has spent many years building a public persona that is that of the clown. And nobody will follow a clown into battle.
So don't always strive to be the funny one, in the meeting.
You don't have to be a comedian, to win.
Let the other person be the funny one, whilst you concern yourself with making the decisions.
Don't be the funny guy;
Be a serious person, with a sense of humour.
FREE Training Needs Analysis!
In order to get the best from your training, you need to discover your relative strengths and weaknesses. Take our FREE training needs analysis questionnaire now and get a report in less than five minutes!
Blogs by Email
Do you want to receive an email whenever we post a new blog? The blogs contain article 5-10 minutes long - ideal for reading during your coffee break!
Your Comments
Further Reading in Teamwork
-
A Good Team Builder
How to build the team On the last presentation of the effective leader manager course, I posed the following question to the delegates: "What are the qualities that make a great leader- manager?" The group came up with the following list of attributes. The leader-manager is a person who is: A...
Read Article > -
The Mastermind Principle
The most profitable ideas are usually the fruits of more than one brain. The Mastermind principle is based on harnessing the creative power of the whole team, in order to successfully achieve the team's goal.
Read Article > -
How can you motivate others
How can you motivate others? Motivation is one of the top priorities of leaders and managers. If your team is not motivated, then you will not get the best from them. If they are motivated, then you will. How can you motivate others? Let us look.... Motivation can be split into...
Read Article > -
Coaching and Mentoring Skills
Non-Directive Coaching and Mentoring Coaching and mentoring are both forms of non-directive teaching. Non directive teaching is radically different to directive teaching. Rather than a directive teacher saying, "Do this. Do that. Learn this. Learn that." a coach or mentor would use a series of provocative questions that would induce the...
Read Article > -
How can I improve team performance?
How to improve team performance The future of your organisation depends upon the performance of the team. If the team performance is good, then your future will go well. If your team performance is no-good, then your future will be hell. Your organisation is made up of individuals. Those individuals come...
Read Article >