Are You Laughing Yet? (Business of Fun #25)
Reading Time: 2 minutesFun and laughter go hand-in-hand.
People who laugh at work are more productive. Here’s why. Laughter boosts your heart rate and even burns calories, according to research. Babies start laughing at about four months and, although the statistics are disputed, kids may laugh up to 300 times a day, compared to adults’ <20 times a day. How sad!
The study of laughter even has a name — it’s Gelotology (as opposed to Jello-tology, the study of fruity desserts.). If you take your humor seriously, you can read this exhaustive article from Psychology Today, which is fascinating but not particularly funny. This profile of “the laugh scientist” is a bit more light-hearted. Laughter plays a role in our romantic lives as well. Here’s how gender differences factor into comedy and laughter.
But back to humor in the workplace. The bottom line is that it’s generally in short supply. We laugh more on weekends than when we’re in the office. Every major business publication has written articles about why humor in the workplace is good — even the Harvard Business Review and Forbes. Leaders need to understand millennial humor if they are going to be successful, according to Inc. Aburdity, self-deprecation, and universality are the overarching themes. And memes. Lots of memes.
But don’t try too hard. Forcing humor can be painful. You want people laughing with you…not at you. Here are some tips for using humor at work.
And for more funny business…
Need guffawing or chortling inspiration?
And sadly, as the month draws to a close, our theme will soon shift from fun to learning. But we will always attempt to make you smile (or perhaps smirk) at least once as you read our posts!