The Humor Advantage

Bridesmaids

Anchorman

Clueless

Wedding Crashers

Legally Blonde

Tommy Boy

A conversation in the breakroom with your boss

One of these things is not like the other…

I’m laughing, I’m giggling, I’m happy, I’m safe, I’m free, I’M GONNA PUKE

That list is made up of 6 things that make us laugh, and 1 thing that probably, definitely does not.

But it doesn’t have to be this way.

This is your official invitation to join me in Making Work Funny Again.

And it’s not just because I love a good laugh (though I most certainly do).

It’s because our workplaces are missing laughter and it’s costing us money, honey.

According to research from MIT, laughter relieves stress and boredom, boosts engagement, and spurs not only creativity and collaboration but also analytic precision and productivity.

And yet, nobody is giggling.

Did you know that babies laugh around 400 times a day?

That number PLUMMETS when we turn 35, where we laugh only an estimated 15 times per day.

I’m crying and not in a good way????

If it could BE any worse, the same study found that we laugh significantly less on weekdays than we do on weekends.

Work is a wet blanket on a cold night AND FOR WHAT!

You know who wouldn’t stand for this?

Sara Blakely, founder of SPANX.

Now I would let Sara lead me around New York City with my eyes blind folded. I trust her an awful lot for someone I’ve never met. So it’s not really a surprise that I would sing her leadership praises. I am, after all, a fan girl.

But what choice do I have when Blakely has built a culture at SPANX that encourages funniness?

I can already hear some of you. “But what if I’m not funny?”

Using humor to your advantage at work isn’t performing a stand-up monologue at the quarterly meeting.

Though, SPANX has been known to take stand-up comedy lessons together as a company. If you can laugh at yourself, you can do absolutely anything, prove me wrong.

They also host “Oops Meetings” where the team can openly and without judgement talk about an embarrassing mistake they made recently in business or life.

Embarrassment holds power over us. Just like a mushroom, if left in the dark and moist (don’t unsubscribe I’m sorry) breeding ground of your mind, it grows and consumes. When you bring it to the light, embarrassment loses it’s power.

So you’re telling me that a workforce could have a lighter mood, reduced stress, closer relationships, reduced inhibitions, more happily resolved disagreements, higher probable profit and a greater sense of belonging? Just from a little jokey joke?

Say less.

You can catch us laughing all the way to the bank.

Xo, The Salesgirls