What's So Funny about Leadership?

When I wrote my doctoral dissertation about the Vietnam prisoners of war, I hypothesized that interpersonal and group communication explained how the POWs imprisoned in the North returned with almost PTSD. I was right, but only partially. A specific kind of communication played a major role in their survival: the use of humor.

??????????? I learned then that most communication theorists and researchers consider the appropriate use of humor an aspect of communication competence. Nonetheless, one of the obvious and striking facts about humor is that most people most of the time cannot or will not effectively produce it. Most people usually function as receivers rather than as sources of humor. We appreciate humor as a positive force in our lives, so why don’t more of us rely more heavily on this coping mechanism? The simple answer? No one taught them.

??????????? The POWs imprisoned in the Hanoi Hilton came from a fighter-pilot culture that revered and encouraged humor. They sang songs about cheating death and didn’t worry overmuch about political correctness. The POWs created their own class of humor, one that most civilians would consider gallows or “you had to be there” humor. It wouldn’t be for everyone, but it was for them.

??????????? Since personality traits and behavioral repertoire differentiate between high and low humor-oriented people, we know not everyone has the communication skills, personality traits, or cognitive abilities to create humor. Researchers have found links between a sense of humor and personality traits such as extroversion, lower anxiety levels, internal locus of control, and independence. They have also found a positive relationship between humor and expressiveness, interaction management, and overall impression management. In short, we like best those who make us laugh.

Think of humor as the glue that makes stars stick around. If you create an environment where the best people can do their best work—and enjoy some humor along the way—you increase the likelihood that you will retain stars. ???????? ???

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