"A Joke is like a Bonus Check"

          

Everybody loves the class clown. This society is full of class clowns getting more respect and popularity than the hard working students. Advertisers get paid for coming up with snappy jokes to buy the attention of a mass audience. It could be a unhealthy snack or a produce that stretches the truth but if the commercial is funny someone will buy. But what about in an office of health insurance, or a firm, is having a sense of humor good?   According to Sue Shellenbarger in the Wall Street Journal, having a sense of humor could possibly lead to a good career. In her article "Secrets of Effective Office Humor" she explained her studies about humor in the office using different media to demonstrate her point.  

She opened the print of her story with Margot Carmichael Lester, the owner of "The Word Factory". By beginning with Lester admitting that she would most likely hire someone with a sense of humor, this quote gives solid evidence that all the stiff uptight hard workers like myself need to learn to loosen up during interviews. I have gone through several group interviews for jobs and internships practicing what I am going to say while watching the happy, smily jokers get a faster connection with the boss. So I could agree that everybody loves a class clown.  

There are positive effects and negative effects. The rest of the printed piece supported her topic as well as expanded the dangers of making jokes at the wrong time in the office, for this she used another life experience. Fred Kilbourne is known for making jokes but he recalls a moment when he made a joke at a time that was too serious and was confronted about it.

The printed part of her article had all the major details from her study, using personal experiences. The point that drove it home to me was the statement from Paul Spiegelman expressing that humor within the office strengthens loyalty and productivity which is needed in a business corporation. Shellenbarger used print to elaborate on her research taking quotes from credible people who used humor to ease the stress at work, but it was the pictures that brought out the article. 

  

Throughout her printed form of the article there were pictures of improv classes. There, you see people laughing and interacting. This is what made her article interesting as I read it. One of the best pictures is the first picture of Brett Cromwell, who is in a leadership-development program at a medical-device firm, attending an improv class. He looks humorous with his arms up like he is acting out a scary scene. This picture demonstrates the craft of the art of humor and made me want to read more into her article.


Another picture showed was the yoga teacher Jill Braverman laughing and engaging with her Improv Boston class. She looks calm and relaxed and had a smile that made me feel like I could relate to her.

Towards the end of the article was the audio which was about six minutes. In the audio, Shellenbarger was being interview by radio spokesman of "What’s News," Gordon Deal. Her voice was smooth and sweet which gave me the impression that she was honest and genuine. During the interview she did not say too much outside of what she has written, which gives more emphasis to the print. Her point that "laughing activates the same regions of the brain as getting a bonus check" gives the importance of having a good since of humor in a stiff serious place like in the office. The audio also complemented her article by making me relate to her not only as a writer but as a person. Hearing her voice made her more believable than black letters of the screen. I could hear the emotion in her voice as well as sense her personality. The audio was more effective than the video because it allowed me to see more with my mind’s eye of what type of person Sue Shellenbrger could be. To me she seems like a nice, family loving and caring person which grows my trust to take her points in the article and apply it in my life. A person could read a well written article but without a connection between the reader and writer it is not influential.

 

Personally, I am a uptight individual. I have to have my work done before a certain time. This article helped me to see that I could use a little time to goof off. I have problems relaxing even around the house, but to know that a laugh simulates the brain the same way as a bonus check, helped me to see life is more than working for success. We all could take a lesson from the class clowns, to keep good relationships with people at work, family and friends and keep a smile on their face.