A New Book Applies the Techniques of Comedy to Business Success
11/14/23 – – Management gurus point to emotional intelligence as an essential element of inspired leadership. The Harvard Business Review defines this highly-valued interpersonal skill as, “the ability to understand and manage your emotions, as well as to recognize and influence the emotions of those around you.”
According to a terrific new book, “The ROI of LOL – How Laughter Breaks Down Walls, Drives Compelling Storytelling, and Creates a Healthy Workplace,” an important expression of emotional intelligence is humor.
Authors Steve Cody and Clayton Fletcher — Steve is the founder/CEO of PR agency Peppercomm, Clayton is a comedian — make a strong case that laughter in the workplace contributes to productivity and a healthy work environment. They’ve been working together for 15 years, building humor into Peppercomm’s DNA and helping clients do the same with theirs. Every member of the firm is trained in the art and science of stand-up, improvisational and sketch comedy. “The ROI of LOL” shares some of the fascinating secrets and outcomes of that training.
Today’s world of crisis and chaos is no barrel of laughs, but I was surprised by these depressing statistics presented early in the book:
Despite laughter’s many well-documented benefits, scientists estimate that we’re laughing 70 percent less today than we did in the depths of the Great Depression in the 1930s. The average toddler laughs four hundred times per day. The average forty-year-old needs two months to reach the same total!
Cody and Fletcher offer some reasons for our “broken funny bone”:
- Disconnectedness from other people due to virtual work
- Widespread addiction to social media
- Sensitivity and political correctness
- Anxiety over job security due to massive layoffs across many sectors
- Compound responsibilities and unrealistic expectations
- The mistaken idea that if you’re having too much fun you must not be working hard enough
If you’ve been unlucky enough to toil in a humorless workplace or report to a never-smiling boss, you know how debilitating and stressful the absence of laughter can be. But if you and your colleagues have been free to see the lighter side of things, even when times are tough, you’ll agree with Cody’s and Fletcher’s thesis that humor helps create a healthy, collaborative environment of “Trust, Openness, Authenticity, Storytelling and Teamwork (TOAST).”
In addition to enhancing workplace cultures, appropriate use of humor — Cody and Fletcher are clear about the dangers of channeling Don Rickles or Louis C.K. at work — makes individuals at any level of a company more effective. We learn in the book how comedians connect with audiences and create a “positive-feedback loop,” and how transferring their comedic techniques to the workplace can help business executives:
- Build compelling, confident presentation skills
- Listen and observe actively and effectively
- Be truthful and compelling in storytelling
- Get a conversation back on course
- Get someone who’s multitasking or otherwise distracted to pay attention
- Display authenticity, empathy, vulnerability, and transparency
- Handle objections or hostility from a group or an individual
- Close a sale/move your audience toward your desired outcome
- Stimulate innovative and creative thinking
- Differentiate yourself as a leader or your company as a brand
On a personal note, I have never met Mr. Fletcher, but Steve Cody and I have been friends for more than 40 years, having both started our communications careers as junior account executives at Hill and Knowlton in New York.
One of our H&K colleagues was a funny, creative young man from Brooklyn named Richie Colangelo. After work he would spend time at Dangerfield’s, the Upper East Side comedy club founded by Rodney Dangerfield. Honing his skills on stage by night and at Burger King over lunch with us, he went on to be successful stand-up comedian/actor Richard Jeni. We lost Richie in 2007, but you can still enjoy his hilarious HBO specials and Tonight Show appearances online.
Steve has always had a great sense of humor. But, I have to think his relationship with Richie contributed to Steve’s appreciation for the power of laughter, which has differentiated Peppercomm and led to the publication of this entertaining, informative book.
“The ROI of LOL” is a must-read for all business people, marketing gurus and anyone wanting to improve their emotional intelligence. Pick up a copy and I promise you won’t need two months to laugh 400 times.
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