Connecting the Joke to their Business
One of the funnest ways
I create quick humor and really, really connect with the client, is to connect with their business. I just did a show for architects and engineers, and even though I know very little about what they do, I was still able to have some fun. What I do know is that they design and build stuff, so I took a quick peak at their website to see just what they build. And wow! Lots of cool stuff like hospitals and science buildings and arenas!
All of it looks pretty complicated
and hard to make a joke about. . . until I got to the part where they designed an indoor track at the University of Nebraska. That got my attention because I know a track is very simple! It’s just a circle. . .which gave me the joke – “you all ‘designed’ a track? How hard is that? I think I could do that!” It got a huge laugh, and I was able to tag it . . . since I had talked to the client and found out that engineers are pretty grounded and practical while architects are more creative, I was able to add the line with “a track is a circle. Of course the architects probably wanted to make it a figure 8.” The joke got a second great laugh and let me connect easily.
Along those same lines,
I found out that the boss was a landscape architect and in his bio he said that he beats bunnies with a shovel who get into his garden. Again, even though I don’t know squat about architecture, I had some fun about his not being able to design something to keep a little bunny rabbit out. . like a FENCE! The moral of this story is . . . just because the subject you’re dealing with may not be in your area of expertise, don’t shy away from looking for a connection.
Keep in mind what they do – in simple terms –
like architects and engineers build stuff. And then look for something that you understand – like designing a track. You’ll get a great laugh and an instant connection.
Jan
Joking with Small Groups
9 People???
This week had I had the opportunity to be in front of a small group. . . 9 people. That’s NINE – single digit. . .no, I didn’t miss a zero. Before this, the smallest I’d spoken to was 12. . . a little bit of a drop from the 4400 people I was in front of at the Mayo Clinic last year? If it gets any smaller, I think I’ll be performing in a phone booth.
In comedy clubs,
whenever there’s a small group, the comic tends to make fun of the crowd. The standard joke is “only 15 people here? This is intimate. Which in comedy language means crappy turnout.” It’s a funny line, but it makes the crowd feel bad that they came out. . hey, it’s not their fault!
Make them feel good. . .
So remember, in the case of small groups, you need to make them feel good about being there. I generally start off with a compliment. . “.I love being in front of small groups.” Then hit them with a tasteful joke “it’s just that if you showed up at your job and there were only 2 people there, wouldn’t you figure you missed a holiday or something?”
- my group of 9 – teambuilding cooking & then me!
It’s all about YOU
Find a way to turn the joke on YOU not them. There’s always the standard “I showered” line, but that’s stock. Maybe something a little more to the point – “this always happens when they hear I’m on stage” might be a better way to do it if you’re really, really confident that you will do well.
I could have started out with. . .
”By the way, there was only 9 people because it was a RETREAT. It was designed that way. . .people didn’t “no-show” because I was speaking.” (Which it really was a retreat designed for just the 9 – just to answer your question) OR maybe the phone booth line above would work. . .hey let’s hold this in my living room and be more comfortable.
The bottom line is, these people showed up, so you want to make them happy they did so. They’re already self-conscientious about it, so don’t add to that.
Jan
The Irony of Ironies
In the previous blog,
I mentioned putting together lists of the environment and then finding the ironies between things in the environment. For one group I realized that they were not getting raises and that they were having a mild winter.. .which lead to the joke “So you’re having a pretty mild winter here in Iowa and there’s no snow and ice? In fact I understand the only thing frozen around here are SALARIES.” That joke was good because I was able to pull out the irony once I had my list of the elements in the environment.
- at the bar after skiing! at 4 degrees the irony that there were more people in the bar than on the slopes
BUT the irony of ironies is that
sometimes they don’t just jump out at you. I also had to go through that list and determine what other words we use when describing not getting a raise. THAT’s how I came up with“salaries are frozen.” The list was something like “Cap on Salaries” “no cost of living” etc. . . AND I had to look at the fact that Iowa was having such a mild winter and, again, come up with other words for what having a mild winter means. . such as no snow, no ice, nothing will freeze. . .ahhh, so I’ve found freeze in 2 of the things in my list. . .and then I’m able to make the connection.
So to find them. . .
when you write down your list of the environment and list of what you know about the group, don’t stop at the first things you write down. Look for other words or phrases or slang terms we use to say those things and then you’ll make even more connections.
Jan
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