So how do you use humor in a speech? Now, let me stop you right there. I don't want you to feel tremendous pressure to be this funny man, this funny character in your speeches and presentations. And nothing is more contrived than starting a speech off with some kind of joke you found in a Milton Berle joke book. Even if it's a little bit funny, people are kind of like, I guess I'm supposed to laugh now. It doesn't seem authentic.
It seems contrived. The best use of humor in a speech is when it doesn't seem like you're trying to be a stand up comedian, when it seems natural, especially if you're making fun of yourself and it seems spontaneous. That's the best way of using humor. Now, here's the thing about humor. If you're getting people to laugh, typically that means a lot of good things have happened. Number one, they're paying attention to you.
Number two, they are responding to you. Number three, they're responding with a type of approval and number For it's it's created variety of sound and experiences turned it from a monologue to a dialogue. So that's all good stuff. If you get people to laugh, some people are better at it than others. Now, personally, I love comedy. I love humor.
I go to stand up comedy clubs in New York City all the time. But I'm not particularly great at telling jokes. So the way I get humor in a speech or presentation is when I'm making fun of myself bad things have happened and I'm giving a speech and I think everything's great. And people are laughing and then I realize I somehow have blue ink or chalk on my face, and that's what people are laughing at. It's not funny here. It's only funny within the context.
So if you're naturally humorous, especially if you can make fun of yourself incorporated into the speech, but if you're not, don't spend a lot of time effort, researching jokes and writing jokes and shoehorning them into the presentation. You don't have to You can still be effective. I've been speaking to you for several minutes now, and I haven't made you laugh once. That's okay.