Humor is a powerful tool for engaging, persuading, and entertaining your audience. But how can you make your speeches funnier without sounding forced, inappropriate, or offensive? Here are some tips to help you add some laughter to your presentations.
The first step to making your speeches funnier is to know who you are talking to and what they find funny. Different groups of people may have different preferences, expectations, and sensitivities when it comes to humor. For example, a joke that works well with a young, tech-savvy crowd may not land with a more conservative, older audience. To avoid awkwardness or backlash, do some research on your audience and tailor your humor to their interests, values, and culture.
Knowing your audience is like being a DJ at a party. First, you do some recon to figure out the crowd's vibe, their favorite tunes, and what gets them on the dance floor. Then, you carefully curate a playlist that hits all the right notes, mixing in some crowd-pleasers with a few unexpected gems. Finally, you read the room and adjust the tempo as needed, making sure everyone is having a good time and grooving to your beat.
Adding humor to your speeches can make them more engaging and memorable. Here are some tips to make your speeches funnier: Know Your Audience: Understand your audience's preferences and sensibilities. What might be funny to one group may not be to another. Use Anecdotes: Personal anecdotes or relatable stories can inject humor into your speech. Real-life examples tend to resonate well with audiences. Timing is Key: Perfect timing is crucial for humor. Pause before delivering the punchline, and make sure the audience has time to react before you move on. Puns and Wordplay: Clever wordplay, puns, and double entendres can be great sources of humor. Just ensure they are relevant to your speech topic.
Yes, a well-formatted speech with well-organized humor is great, especially for those in need of planning. I prefer to meet my audience, allowing us to get to know each other, be authentic, spontaneous, and have some fun. However, it's crucial to be factual and avoid speaking outside your knowledge base. If you do touch on unfamiliar topics, consider engaging an expert in the audience for a brief perspective. Human interaction shines when the speaker genuinely cares about the audience's needs, whether they seek to learn or challenge ideas. Remember to enjoy yourself; it's not as serious as it may seem.
Two of the greatest forces to bring people together are music and laughter. No matter your background, music and laughter have the ability to create community. One of the best things you can do when speaking to your audience is to start off by sharing a funny story about yourself that could be relatable to some people in the room. For example, ripping your pants (this has happened to me twice in my career) or tripping in front of your boss. Humanize yourself, and it'll allow you to connect better with your audience. People want to feel seen and heard when listening to you speak; they want to relate to you, and what better way to do that than through humor?
An extra mile entrepreneur, Member of Harvard Business Review Advisory Council
Is a very good idea to make your speech funnier and amusing not only for your audience but for yourself also! A funny story is a common way to add fun in your story Or a funny picture even a video I use many times tricks to improve the tone of voice of my public speech and I like it ??
One of the easiest and safest ways to make your speeches funnier is to poke fun at yourself. Self-deprecation shows that you are humble, relatable, and confident enough to laugh at your own flaws. It also reduces the risk of offending or alienating your audience, as you are not making fun of anyone else. For example, you could joke about your nervousness, your mistakes, or your quirks. However, be careful not to overdo it or undermine your credibility. A little self-deprecation goes a long way.
Using self-deprecation is like being a clown at your own circus. First, you put on your red nose and oversized shoes, showing that you're not afraid to laugh at yourself. Then, you perform a few silly tricks, like tripping over your own feet or juggling imaginary balls, demonstrating your humility and relatability. Finally, you take a bow and receive applause, knowing that a little self-mockery can go a long way in winning over your audience and making your performance memorable. Just remember to strike the right balance and not turn your speech into a roast of yourself!
I recommend to my coaching clients that you avoid self-deprecation. Instead tell stories about incidents that are self-effacing. Yes, you reveal a flaw or embarrassing moment to get a laugh and demonstrate vulnerability to connect. Then you build on that to deliver your message.
I always try and get a laugh out of the audience before I’ve even started my session. Usually it’s something about myself. Not too self-deprecating, but something observational about myself that’s funny. It works a treat and automatically opens up the room to be more vulnerable and the audience is more likely to pay attention.
I just performed at TEDx talk. I had written an opening joke about text someone had sent their husband. My coach suggested I make a text I had sent, make it self-deprecating. It worked. The audience roared.
Another effective way to make your speeches funnier is to tell stories that illustrate your points and connect with your audience. Stories are more memorable, emotional, and engaging than facts and figures. They also allow you to use humor in a natural and organic way, rather than forcing a punchline or a gag. For example, you could tell a personal anecdote, a fictional scenario, or a historical event that relates to your topic and has a humorous twist or outcome. Make sure your stories are relevant, concise, and clear.
Telling stories is like being a magician pulling a rabbit out of a hat. First, you set the stage by introducing your story in a way that grabs your audience's attention and piques their curiosity. Then, you weave your tale, using vivid imagery, emotions, and a dash of humor to make your points come alive and resonate with your listeners. Finally, you reveal the 'rabbit' - the key takeaway or punchline that ties everything together and leaves a lasting impression. Just remember to keep your stories relevant, concise, and clear, so your audience doesn't get lost in the magic.
Telling stories is a great way to get folks engaged and connected with you. It also provides an opportunity to practice. Tell your story to folks you trust first. Is it landing? Does it still keep the focus on the topic and not pivot too much to you? Does it feel relevant and transition well into your next point?
Irony and exaggeration are two common and powerful techniques to make your speeches funnier. Irony is when you say the opposite of what you mean or what is expected, creating a contrast or a contradiction. Exaggeration is when you amplify or distort something to an absurd or ridiculous degree, creating a hyperbole or an understatement. For example, you could use irony to mock a common misconception or a cliché, or use exaggeration to emphasize a problem or a solution. However, be careful not to confuse or mislead your audience. Make sure your irony and exaggeration are obvious and appropriate.
I found joking about a common "big and non-personal enemy" (the government, public services, a mentality) is something that people appreciate. Of course, beware no one in the room will feel attacked and so, stay light in your joke.
Using irony and exaggeration is like being a cartoonist drawing a caricature. First, you select your subject, something that is widely recognized or understood by your audience. Then, you start to exaggerate the features, amplifying the absurdities or contradictions to create a humorous effect. Finally, you add a touch of irony, highlighting the gap between appearance and reality, or between expectation and outcome. Just remember to keep your exaggerations and ironies obvious and appropriate, so your audience can enjoy the humor without getting lost or misled.
The final step to making your speeches funnier is to practice and test your humor before you deliver it. Humor is not something that you can improvise or wing on the spot. It requires careful timing, delivery, and wording. To polish your humor, practice your speech out loud, record yourself, and watch your performance. Pay attention to your tone, pace, pauses, gestures, and facial expressions. To test your humor, get feedback from someone you trust, such as a friend, a colleague, or a coach. Ask them if they found your humor funny, relevant, and respectful.
I don’t necessarily agree with this. If I rehearse my talking points or the humour I want to inject into it I find I become more nervous and the jokes become rigid. Keep it light. Keep it conversational. Add funny items into your slides that are only funny when you point them out - for example a cheesy stock photo. Authenticity and presenting in a conversational way will always win in my thoughts.
As far as rehearsed SPEECHES go (TEDx talks, etc.) - you should 100% be testing them out beforehand (which includes the jokes within them) on practice audiences (friends, colleagues, etc.) This is crucial because: 1. It might not actually be that funny, in which case you will have an awkward pause where you might anticipate a laugh (insanely awkward for everyone involved) 2. Something you say might be low-key funny, and you would step over your own "joke" or humorous statement if you don't know it's coming 3. It gives you an opportunity to "punch up" sections where you feel you've lost the audience or gone too long between laughs. Most people aren't as funny as they think. Wouldn't you want a couple tries to get it right?
I will agree with Nick when it comes down to polishing your jokes. However, I think practicing a presentation or speech out loud is helpful, as is reviewing notes. You don't have to write the jokes in. They should be spontaneous jokes based on how the audience reacts to your speech. Too many jokes can have a bad effect and make a great presentation fail quickly.
Yes, you must rehearse if you want to be come effective and comfortable. That's means you progress through awkward to rigid to natural. The great performers of music, theatre and sports know this lesson well. That's why they practice until if feels natural. Natural does not mean unprepared.
Practice will help immensely, especially for anyone who is not comfortable speaking in front of others. The more you know your subject, the more likely you are to be confident in front of others. I would practice as often as possible, in front of a mirror, in front of other people, until you know it as close to you by heart as possible. Once that happens, you will feel comfortable enough to say it and interject humor, as it will feel much more natural. Make sure that your humor is relevant, timely, and not offensive to anybody.
The importance of humour in a presentation is in its ability to be natural. Therefore, I don't recommend people to use humour if they're not used to or not known to be someone "funny". A flopped joke will condition you for the rest of the presentation and stress you.
Humour in a professional setting can be hit or miss, and before one even attempts to embark on humour, one should consider the impact a bad joke will have both on yourself and on the audience. Instead of rigidly thinking about "humour" vs "no humour", it's better to think about being natural, easy and lighthearted where appropriate. That wins more rapport than simply being funny for its own sake.
Depending on the audience a little spontaneous banter can add humor and lightness to your speech. This of course depends on the setting and temperament of the audience. I find in some settings and cultures people are more active, enjoy to engage and crack a few jokes, whereas in others people are more passive and timid at times.
The effective use of humor can transform a speech. The use of humor, however, is a double-edged sword. Even the best comedians misfire on 5% of their jokes. That number is even higher for most folks. When a joke falls flat, don't dwell on it. Forget it and keep moving forward.
Not everyone is funny. The hardest thing is for someone to admit they are not funny. There are speech writers who specialize in making things funny. It's better to spend smart money than die on stage.