A trade publication writer visited my website.
Apparently she found a lot of the site’s approach to be humorous, because she called me and asked, “Do you think humor is the great communicator?”
As a radio personality, I did a comedy-oriented show.
For 15 years, I wrote & published two comedy services for radio people.
I’ve written & produced a couple of comedy records.
And I’m here to tell you: Humor is not the great communicator.
The two most important attributes of a successful communicator are:
1. Having a message you want to communicate.
2. Having a sincere desire to communicate that message.
Some people become public speakers, for example, because they think, “Hey, it would be fun to get paid to speak!” And then they flounder around for a topic to offer to the marketplace.
The best public speakers, however, begin with a message.
Herb Cohen, author of YOU CAN NEGOTIATE ANYTHING, speaks on one topic: Negotiating.
That’s his specialty. His passion.
He could read a few books on “Team-Building” or “Creativity” and add those topics to his repertoire. But those aren’t the topics he’s passionate about communicating.
Once you know what your message is, use whatever communicative style works best for you — the one that fits your own personality.
If I’m creating a new seminar, I begin by listing all the points I want to cover. The longer the list, the better.
(When I was a jock, I began with a list of all the notes I’d made since my previous airshift.)
As that trade publication writer noticed, my own style often includes a humorous approach to presenting “serious” information. As I try to arrange that list into some logical progression, frequently a number of humorous approaches to the material occurs to me.
If I think of a “funny” way to get my point across, I might incorporate it into my presentation.
But here’s the trick: I don’t look for humorous illustrations. I discover them as I try to whip the material into shape.
What’s your own personal style?
Humorous?
Deadpan?
Ultra-Serious?
Angry?
Timid?
Confrontational?
Once you know what style is most natural and most effective for you, you don’t need to “try.” Instead, every attempt to communicate is an act of discovery.
And that absolutely includes attempts to communicate via the airwaves.
