In the world of public speaking, the difference between a good presentation and an unforgettable one often hinges on a single element:
Humor
There’s an adage from the professional speaking industry regarding this topic:
Question: Do you need to have humor in your speech?
Answer: Only if you want to get paid.
Humor is the secret ingredient that captures and retains the audience’s attention. It transforms a standard speech into a memorable experience.
The Absence Of Humor Leads To Missed Opportunities
When humor is absent, speakers miss a crucial opportunity. A presentation without humor is monotonous and fails to resonate. In these situations, the most insightful content won’t leave a lasting impact. The audience’s engagement and retention of the message are significantly diminished.
This is a costly mistake, especially when your goal is to inspire or persuade.
A Profitable Lesson From Southwest Airlines
Here’s an inspirational insight from an unexpected source: Southwest Airlines.
In their book “The Power of Moments,” Chip and Dan Heath shared a fascinating insight. Southwest Airlines is well known for it’s humorous and entertaining safety announcements. For instance:
“For those of you flying with small children….. why?”
“Wake up, everyone! Good morning! We’d love to welcome you to Aruba… but we can’t, because we’re in Denver.”
Southwest researched the impact of these announcements on their bottom line. They studied the surveys of the people who rated humor as one of the most important reasons they flew with their airline. This represented 1.5% of their customers.
Those customers typically flew Southwest more often, recommended the airline to others, and spent more money with them. Officials discovered that by doubling the number of passengers who were drawn to their humorous approach, the airline could potentially earn an additional $140 million annually.
That’s a nice big number for a service that costs nothing to produce! Well, other than the small amount of energy to pay attention to the world around you, and laugh about it.
Humor doesn’t simply make people feel better, it has the power to dramatically improve your financial health.
For speakers, this is another wake up call. If you want to be more in-demand, create a bigger impact, and earn higher fees, make ‘em laugh. They’ll be much more open to your message.
Need Help With Including More Humor In Your Presentations?
Don’t look at me!! I’m not a comedian.
Alright, that’s not true. I can help. I’ve discovered many insights into adding humor into your stories and speeches that will help you increase your impact and influence. Schedule time to talk with me and we’ll find the funny for you, too. CLICK HERE
Michael’s mission is to help leaders, managers and sales professionals communicate with more confidence, impact, and influence. This passion is born from his own communication difficulties early in his career.
Fortunately, he discovered that public speaking is like riding a bike, swimming or driving a car - it’s a learnable skill. Once he discovered this ‘secret’ he became a voracious student of the craft. He took courses, studied some of the world’s best speakers and storytellers and continues to study presentation and business storytelling skills.
He is hired by companies and organizations, leaders, managers and sales professionals, and TEDx speakers to help them become more confident, impactful and influential communicators.
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