Learn to be Humorous - Joke Format

Posted by Jason Peck under Communication Skills,
June 25, 2009

When doing a presentation an easy way to connect with your audience is to use humour. Not only do people like to laugh and be entertained but they will also more easily remember your message. But need to know an effective joke format.

My aim is not to turn you into a comedian I am simply going to present you with some ways to add humour to your speech or presentation.

In the first instance, you want to make sure that your speech as an overall objective. What’s the message that you’re trying to get across? From there you should find at least 3 supporting points that support your main point.

Once you have that down, concentrate on creating your speech first. That’s the most important thing. Create the speech first and then focus on finding the humour afterwards.

Punchlines are different from jokes which tend to be mini, self-contained stories. A punchline can just be your personal reaction to something that you’ve said. Here are two joke formats for you to consider when structuring your speech:

1)
Intro

2nd Funniest joke

Main body of Jokes

Theme

Funniest Joke

The second format is as follows:

2)
Intro

Funniest joke

Other Jokes

Theme

This last one ends on a serious note instead of a laugh. Personally, if I'm doing a humorous speech I'd rather end on a laugh. But that's just my personal taste.

You will still also need to make at least 3 points during your speech. People have come to hear your message and not just be entertained by your sense of humour. So during your main body of jokes section, make points that relate to your overall theme.

What you might consider doing is reducing your actual speech or presentation by about a third or even a half. Keep the core details that are necessary to convey your message to your audience. So what do you replace the edited content with?

Funny jokes, funny stories, maybe you could quote other comedians or witty people as long as you give credit where it's due. There's no sense delivering a line by Dave Chappelle in your presentation and passing it off as your own. There will always be someone who can attribute it to the original author, plus it's illegal and highly unethical.

You can legitimately quote another comedian as such: "as Jerry Seinfeld once said..." you can immediately get your audience into a better state to laugh as they'll remember their favourite Jerry Seinfeld moment.

Then if the line doesn't have everyone rolling in the aisles then you can get out of it by saying, "obviously it's much better when Seinfeld did it". Your listeners will love you all the more then because you will have revealed yourself to be slightly vulnerable.

Ask yourself “what are you trying to convey to your audience?” What's the take home message that you want them to walk away from your speech remembering?

If you can follow some of these tips in your next presentation you'll be well on your way to being remembered for your humorous speeches.

Jason Peck is a Humorist, Speaker and Consultant based in London, England. For public speaking tips and to learn how to add humor to your speeches and presentations to win over your listeners visit: Pro Humorist.

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