Stress is no laughing matter . . . or is it?  According to a report by the United Nations International Labor Organization, “Stress has become one of the most serious health issues of our times.”  While stress is part of everyone’s life and there are many ways to contend with stress – everything from jogging to biofeedback and from aerobics to herbal tea – apparently the quickest and most effective way to relieve stress or diffuse a bad situation is literally to laugh it off.

Why use humor in daily life? The answer is simple.  You get immediate results. It takes no special talent or ability, no physical prowess or skill.  You aren’t required to have a masters degree or a license.  It makes you feel good.  It’s fun, fat-free and you don’t need batteries. 

Humor is also a great tool to diffuse bad situations and an even better training tool. You can use humor to enhance corporate training situations from teamwork to customer service. By poking fun at different situations, employees have a chance to see the humor in their own actions as well as those of others. Laughter relaxes. It changes the mood.  People become more receptive.

Great leaders have known about this valuable tool for centuries.  During the Second Punic War, Hannibal retreated from the Roman army until he found a place where he wanted to fight. He stopped and turned his army of Carthaginians, Spaniards, and Africans to face the much larger Roman force. Hannibal positioned his men and then they all watched as the Romans brought more and more troops onto the fields of Cannae. “Will they never stop coming….” wondered a commander by the name of Gisko with a little fear and awe. Hannibal said, “Yes, the Romans count their men in the tens of thousands . . . but not one of them is named Gisko.” The joke was passed up and down the line with guffaws and rough humor. The message was clear, “The Romans are not us. They are the ones who should be scared.” Hannibal wasn’t worried. He had confidence in his men. They were well trained and Hannibal knew how to use them. Outnumbered 77,000 to 35,000, Hannibal slowly unveiled his strategy and the ability of his army to the enemy and surrounded them. Barely 5,000 Romans escaped. None of them were laughing.

As it turns out, laughter may actually be the best medicine, as the saying goes.  A good laugh may be good for the heart.  In a study, a team of Maryland medical researchers found that people with heart disease were 40 percent less likely to laugh in humorous situations than those with healthy hearts. 

In the book Treating Type A Behavior and Your Heart, Dr. Meyer Friedman wrote “The person most effectively protecting himself against the continued progress of coronary artery disease is the person willing to see himself and his affairs as ludicrously unimportant in the planetary scheme of things.”

It is also a great stress reliever.  The healthful benefits of laughter are also cause for great celebration among psychologists who now recognize the therapeutic value of humor in the workplace and have begun to prescribe it for their patients. Humor can aid problem-solving as well as contribute to creativity in the business environment.

David Abramis, a psychologist in the School of Business Administration at California State University (Long Beach) surveyed 382 people from a wide variety of workplaces. Abramis found that “those who felt their work was fun performed better and got along better with co-workers than did those who were satisfied with their jobs but did not see them as fun.”

The knowledge that it is possible to cope more easily with stress by emphasizing humor has already had a profound effect on the business world.  Companies, such as Southwest Airlines, are profiting from infusing laughter into their workplace. Corporations are hiring humor consultants for training sessions to help execs loosen up, so they can take their work seriously without taking themselves too seriously.  And in What They Don’t Teach You At Harvard Business School, Mark H. McCormick writes that “Laughter is the most potent, constructive force for diffusing business tension. If you can point out what is humorous or absurd about a situation or confrontation, you will be guaranteed the upper hand.”

Important meetings, presentations or job interviews can be highly stressful. Loosening up with a couple of chuckles beforehand can sharpen your concentration and pleasantly prepare you for a positive and successful approach.  Laughter is also the best way to start a meeting or presentation. You don’t need to have them falling in the aisles. But a mildly pleasant remark at the outset will create the right atmosphere for everything that follows.

Here are some easy steps to start you on your way to defusing stress, improving your mood and that of those around you, and increasing your efficiency.

1. Take a Humor Break
If it makes good sense to keep a first-aid kit for medical emergencies, why not a mirth-kit to deal with stressful situations?  Keep a book of jokes or cartoons handy. Ten minutes before a meeting or potentially stressful situation, read some funny stories. A smile or chuckle will relax and better prepare you for a confrontation. A good laugh makes you feel good and allows you to think more clearly and quickly.

2. Laugh at Yourself
Being able to laugh at yourself is healthy.  When you make fun of yourself it takes the sting out of what other people say.  It is not necessary to constantly put yourself down in the workplace, but self-deprecating humor shows that you’re human. It reveals that you are so self-assured, you can readily poke fun at yourself. And guess what? People like you more!

3. Create Your Own Funny File
Figure out what makes you laugh and nurture it. Each of us has an individual sense of humor. There are many life experiences we can look back on and laugh about uproariously. Childhood incidents, school situations, even marriage mishaps. Remembering the embarrassing moments that were so painful when they happened can now be funny now when you think about them.

The next step in developing your funny file is to put together a humor library. Gather up your favorite cartoons, comedy records, joke books, funny video films — anything that will bring a smile to your lips. Bookmark your favorite humorous websites.  Keeping your own humor collection provides comic relief when you need it most.

Medical science has made us aware that there is now another way to cope with stress. People who may need a cure for one of the most depressing and debilitating maladies of our times can now access the newest and best prescription: Humor.  It turns out that laughter can diffuse bad situations, and that’s no joke.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Against the assault of laughter nothing can stand.” Mark Twain

© 2010 – 2011, Keren Peters-Atkinson. All rights reserved.