Watching Grass Grow Can Be Funny
If something’s boring, we make the comment – “it’s like watching grass grow” or “it’s like watching paint dry.” BUT growing grass actually can be funny . . .or at least interesting. I got this cool app on my phone that connects to my sprinkler system so I can turn the sprinklers on/off, and do all sorts of other stuff, whenver I want to . . .without having to go into my basement to do it.
The company who I bought the system from is Rachio, and they send me an email once a week and calls themselves “lawn nerds.” That peaked my interest enough to open it. . .and sure enough, they are lawn nerds.
They give lawn tips about growing your grass and they offer little known facts about your grass . . . it’s kind of entertaining. And by calling themselves Lawn Nerds, they’re making fun of the fact that they love grass. A lot of comedy is about superiority, and they are making themselves funny so we feel superior.
https://www.TheWorkLady.com – my main website
. . . so if you want to connect with others, and you’ve got a kinda boring product, make up a funny new identity . . . maybe make a list of things people think about someone who likes your product. I’m guessing Best Buy came up with the Geek Squad to poke a little fun at themselves while getting you to laugh all the way to their service desk!
My Electronic Rolodex
My electronic Rolodex helped me moved to Los Angeles, so today I’m sharing my humor news article about it. Connecting with people in different ways – social media, newsletters, emails, etc . . .is a great way to stay in front of them. And writing a monthly or quarterly humor newsletter pushes you to write . . . so that’s my tip today. Start something that pushes you to write and work your humor muscle!
Virtual Comedy
So I’m doing some virtual humor keynotes these days – I used to joke that I’d like to do the comedy from my living room to cut down on travel . . and now it’s happening! Is it weird telling jokes and not hearing laughter? Yes . . .it is. It’s one thing to be on stage and not hear laughter…. at least you can react and play off of that. But it’s another to just presume they’re enjoying it and plow on.
What’s the key? Pretend it’s a radio interview. I’ve done THOUSANDS of interviews on the radio. . . it’s just me and the DJ. And they go very well. So that’s what I’m doing. Sure my timing is a little messed up . . .but I work hard to slow things down and give people an extra second to process the joke. So far, so good. I want to get back on stage in front of real people, but for now, it’s virtual people. Here’s a shot of a 2-day event I spoke at last week.
https://www.HealthComedian.com
5 Funny Things in Vegas
So I’m in Las Vegas for a gig today and I thought I’d look for 5 funny things that I can joke with. If you get into a habit of looking for the funny, then it becomes easier and easier until you’re doing it automatically. So here’s 5 funny things in Vegas....
Finding the Funny in a Script
So far with this blog I’ve focused mostly on writing jokesfor comedy routines or perhaps to put into a speech. Today’s post is a little different however, as I’m interviewing my good friend Nancy Beverly who is a playwright. Nancy and I have been hiking...
An Interview with a Late Night TV Writer
Okay you all have heard my writing tips for years, so it’s time to get a different perspective. I’ve got a lot of friends who write for a living – TV writers, comedians, playwrights etc – and so I’ll be posting some interviews with them to hear what they...
Using What Works Against You
I just read an article about a guy who controls his tourettes syndrome by doing stand up comedy – I always thought stand-up comedy ENCOURAGED people to cuss. But the article mentioned that this guy has gained self-confidence and educated people on the...
Using What Works Against You
I just read an article about a guy who controls his tourettes syndrome by doing stand up comedy – I always thought stand-up comedy ENCOURAGED people to cuss. But the article mentioned that this guy has gained self-confidence and educated people on the...
Comedy Writing and Location
Looking at WHERE people are sitting Can give you great comedy material to kick off your speech. I'm doing a comedy show for a group and they told me that the top sales guys and gals are sitting at the front tables. That got me to thinking. . .where are the...
Making the Familiar UnFamiliar
One very quick way to come up with some humor on the spot is to use adages and/or familiar wording and then twist it. There are tons of adages – you know, sage advice like “when it rains it pours” or “if it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, then...
10 ways to get started with a joke – part 2
Okay, now part two of kicking off with a joke. As I mentioned, getting into the joke is sometimes the hardest part, so use one of these tactics to set yourself up right. 1. Address what they see. If you’ve got some outstanding feature/hairdo/etc. ....
10 ways to get your speech started with a joke – part 1
When people hear that I’m on stage for like 60 minutes telling jokes, they’re always amazed at me being up there THAT LONG. Actually the hardest part isn’t being there for 60 minutes (ok, a few shows have been rough!), the hardest part is GETTING STARTED....
Speaking in tongues
I’ve never done comedy in another country (ok, Canada, but they’re so close it doesn’t count), yet I’ve been in front of audiences sprinkled with international people because they come to us. And while of course you can’t appeal to EVERYONE in the group,...
4 Ways to Use Self-Deprecating Humor
Self-deprecating humor is one of the quickest ways to get the audience on your side. As I’ve said, a lot of comedy is about people feeling superior to the comic, so if people think you have a flaw then they’ll either feel superior OR be able to relate to...
Joke Writing for One Demographic
All Women All Day! This week I got a chance to present my “Finding the Funny in Communications” program to a group consisting of all women! They were great! I do a lot of programs in which there are just women, or even just men, in the audience, and I...
Joking With Names
Sometimes the humor is not in researching the subject thoroughly, but rather in stepping back and looking at the big picture – their name. Companies name themselves and their products all sorts of whacky things, for all sorts of whacky reasons. Watch any...
Human Traits for the Joke
One fun, easy way to make a mundane noun (that’s person, place or thing) funny is to give that item a human trait. For example, this week I’m doing a show for a group in Austin, TX, and one of the unique things I was told was that Austin has millions of...
Joke Writing For Extreme Solutions
Jokes and joke writing are about taking things to the extreme. As I’ve said before, when you want to imply that someone is old, you don’t say 110 – because it’s plausible, you say 310 because it’s outrageous. So make sure in your joke writing that you’re...
On Being Counter-Intuitive
Okay, I just talked about proving a premise, but another technique for fast humor is DISPROVING a premise. The easiest way to do that is to find a principal that we all typically agree on. This can be a phrase or a statement or whatever, and make it...
Human Traits for the Joke
One fun, easy way to make a mundane noun (that’s person, place or thing) funny is to give that item a human trait. For example, this week I’m doing a show for a group in Austin, TX, and one of the unique things I was told was that Austin has millions of...
Joke Writing For Extreme Solutions
Jokes and joke writing are about taking things to the extreme. As I’ve said before, when you want to imply that someone is old, you don’t say 110 – because it’s plausible, you say 310 because it’s outrageous. So make sure in your joke writing that you’re...
On Being Counter-Intuitive
Okay, I just talked about proving a premise, but another technique for fast humor is DISPROVING a premise. The easiest way to do that is to find a principal that we all typically agree on. This can be a phrase or a statement or whatever, and make it...
PROVING A PREMISE
When you’re coming up with jokes, one quick way is to come up with a premise, and then prove it. For example, I have a joke about cats being better than kids, because. . . “. .cats clean themselves, they don’t talk back, and they will survive a drop from...
Timing Your Jokes
Sure there’s timing of your jokes when you say ‘em, but the time I’m talking about is a little different. Yesterday I was at the new Aria hotel in Las Vegas. . .very cool, very high tech! When I walked into the room, music from the TV kicked on, the room...
Speaking in tongues
I’ve never done comedy in another country (ok, Canada, but they’re so close it doesn’t count), yet I’ve been in front of audiences sprinkled with international people because they come to us. And while of course you can’t appeal to EVERYONE in the group,...
Fun WITH The City
What happens when you’ve got a completely dry subject and you just can’t figure out a way to have fun with it? You have to think bigger. To find the funny when I’m speaking, I start with the group; if there’s not much there, I look at the room, then move...
4 Ways to Use Self-Deprecating Humor
Self-deprecating humor is one of the quickest ways to get the audience on your side. As I’ve said, a lot of comedy is about people feeling superior to the comic, so if people think you have a flaw then they’ll either feel superior OR be able to relate to...
FUN WITH FOOD
Fun with Food So a lot of speeches take place at banquets, luncheons, and breakfasts. . .which means you have tons of opportunity to do some quick humor by having fun with the food. Now this doesn’t mean you should be super mean about it – you don’t want...