Tony AlessandraThe ONLY Official Site to Book Tony for a Speech

I thoroughly enjoyed your speech and found many new, useful ideas to use immediately in my business... That's a great presentation. Thanks!
--Rose Clayton

I wanted to pass along my personal thanks to you for speaking at our annual Program Manager's conference. All of the feedback that I received, both in person, as well as in writing, was overwhelmingly positive, and your talk was a big part of that! Thanks again, and I hope that we'll see you at a future Harris event.
--Amos Morse

Thank you for the kind words. Your presentation was the best of all outside presentations - everyone thought you were great! I look forward to the opportunity to put you in front of other clients of ours in the future.
--Jay

Tony's presentation had real impact. The points he made were not only relevant to our audience, they were delivered in a way to make them memorable and fun. It was great to have such an important topic delivered with punch as well as humor. His anecdotes were fabulous. Ask him about the pots and pans.
--Corrine Smith

Thanks so much for your presentation at NSA San Diego last week. It was the best combination of practical tips and inspiration that I have seen at an NSA meeting ever! Thanks again for your powerful message and willingness to spend so much time with those of us starting out.
--Jim Cartmill

The Genius of Humor

You do have a good sense of humor, don't you? I thought so, because most people think they do. People may realize that they cannot do math, or cannot spell, or have no aptitude for musical instruments, but not too many of us will admit to deficiencies in the humor category.

Let's explore the genius of humor, an extremely underrated quality. Why don't we take humor more seriously? To an extent, this is understandable, but it prevents us from consciously recognizing the importance of humor in our thoughts, feelings, and behavior. We want people to be funny to some extent, whether they are our politicians, our teachers, our writers, our film stars, or our family members. We also want to be funny ourselves. However, for the most part, we are not ready to acknowledge humor as a category of genius on the scale of mathematics, music, science, or art.

Today, we generally equate seriousness with intelligence, or at least with importance. When you are in a crucial business meeting, or making a major sales presentation, it is not a good idea to act childish or tell many jokes, not even if they are funny. Actually, you may have noticed how there is almost a procedure for getting humor out of the way in meetings or speeches. Somewhere near the beginning, early on, you can tell a joke, or maybe even two: "A duck walks into Home Depot and says, 'Put everything on my bill!'" Then when that is over with, you can get down to the serious business at hand. A person who keeps being funny can be seen as destabilizing or even subversive. That is not good in our day and age. We do not have court jesters anymore and they will not be coming back any time soon.

Henry Louis Mencken, the 20th century essayist and critic, confronted the prejudice against humor very directly. He wrote, "What is the origin of the prejudice against humor? Why is it so dangerous, if you would keep the people's respect, to make people laugh? Is it because humor and sound sense are essentially antagonistic? Has humanity found by experience that the man who sees the fun of life is unfitted to deal sanely with its problems? I think not. However, why, then, that widespread error? None other, I am convinced, than the fact that the average man is far too stupid to make a joke."

Humor is not just a way to break the ice at parties. It is a basic need for both the giver and the receiver. It is, or should be, a basic element of your interactions with other people. Humor is an instrument you should use, and you should learn to use it well. That does not mean you should memorize joke books. It does mean that you should see the necessity for a light and humorous touch.

I am a lifelong admirer of Lucille Ball, and I consider the Lucy Show a work of authentic comic genius. These days, when I watch re-runs of the show from the perspective of many years of marriage and fatherhood, it seems funnier than ever, One of the things that strikes me is how the show reveals the comic reality that domestic life can make us take so seriously. For instance, if you have ever actually had the boss and his wife over for dinner, you know it is not a laughing matter and, if the roast burns, it is not an easy thing to forgive. However, I think Lucy's humorous take on these things is much closer to the truth than the way we experience them when we are so stressed out. Her touch is light, forgiving, affectionate and very funny!

Mark Twain made a distinction between humor and wit. He described wit as a bright feather launched into the air, and it is quickly blown away. However, in many situations, that light touch is exactly what is needed. When the tension is high, you can be a hero just by making the right kind of amusing remark. Keep that in mind the next time you feel like screaming aloud!

Studies have shown that three year olds laugh hundreds of time each day. After three, the laughing curve turns downward throughout life and, in some people, the muscles of the face are so weakened through years of glowering that laughter is literally impossible in old age. I urge you to do everything you can to bring laughter into the world, for yourself and for those around you. Nothing is more healing and healthful. Nothing is more courageous. Moreover, nothing is a greater expression of genius.