Laugh more and lead better

Author: Miguel Geli

20.09.2022

Recently I read an article on the above subject, where Stanford Graduate School of Business faculty members Jennifer Aaker and Naomi Bagdonas talked about their book, Humor, Seriously: Why Humor is a Secret Weapon in Business and Life

I was reminded of what a powerful tool this can be. 

As I reflect on my own career, I can see how humor helped in many cases to create the ability to bond faster, reduce stress, create better cohesion in the workplace, develop closer relationships, put people at ease, etc. 

Of course, even though humor in the workplace brings many benefits, inappropriate humor can quickly have the opposite effect.  As a leader, you set the tone, and here are a few things to avoid:

·     Offending or isolating co-workers.

·     Sarcasm as it can degrade a person’s self-worth and sense of belonging.

·     Teasing which can promote deviant behavior from “followers”.

In the article, I was baffled to read the conclusion of a research study with over 1.4 million people in 166 countries, who were asked the simple question:

“Did you smile or laugh a lot yesterday?”. 

At age 16, 18, and 20, people responded largely by saying yes. 

At age 23, the answer quickly becomes no, and we don’t start laughing again until we retire. Literally, we go to work and stop laughing!  

So, who is with me?

Let’s change the trend and laugh more and lead better! 

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