Flex funny bone to ease work stress, speaker says/ Humor can allay

When you're known for your humor, people tend to expect you to be funny all the time.

Such was the case when Dr. Joseph Michelli was recently hired by a woman named Susan to speak at a conference on humor.

Apparently Michelli's business persona was in stark contrast to his comical presence on the daily radio show through which Susan had come to know him.

"Susan confirmed with the referral source that I was the same guy that (she) listens to every day on Newsradio 740 KVOR radio and then Susan remarked 'he isn't that funny,'" Michelli recalls.

"I may not be a barrel of laughs in all situations, but helping people learn to see the humor around them is one way in which the fun side of me gets a chance to come out and play."

That side of Michelli will most certainly "come out and play" when he speaks at the 2001 Women In Business Conference. Focusing on the topic "Humor in the Workplace," Michelli will be flexing his funny bone and encouraging conference attendees to do the same, particularly once they return to the workplace.

Michelli stresses the importance of humor in the workplace, asserting that "humor is not a 'sense' like taste or touch but a set of skills."

"Failure to master these skills can make the workplace a living nightmare," he says.

Sure, there will be bad days at work, days filled with disagreements and distractions. But making light of the situation can make a world of difference, Michelli teaches.

"Mastering humor skills," he says, "helps develop shock absorption for the bumpy days at work."

Those vital skills, Michelli says, include set-up and exaggeration - skills that "serve to build teams, diffuse conflict and increase creative problem-solving."

"Most importantly," Michelli emphasizes, "humor skills increase flexibility in a world where your competitive edge may rely on your ability to think 'out-of-the-box.'"

Michelli says utilizing humor as a strategic skill is particularly important for women because of the unique pressures and "stress-triggers" associated with balancing home, work and other obligations of women's often-harried lifestyles.

"Specifically, women frequently track interpersonal relationship difficulties on the job and are more likely to personalize conflicts," Michelli says. "Developing a humor perspective can often insulate women from the emotional distress of workplace adversity."

It's during those distressing times that Michelli believes humor is most beneficial.

"Mark Twain said that 'Humor is pain plus time,'" he says. "I think we need the laugh most when the pain is pushing against us."

Michelli is a psychologist, radio talk show host and author of two books, "Humor, Play and Laughter" and "Surviving Sibling Rivalry."

He lectures internationally on topics involving the use of humor in the workplace and as a parent. Michelli recently traveled to China with Dr. Patch Adams on a goodwill tour of Chinese orphanages and hospitals.

In addition to speaking on the power of humor, Michelli will help conference attendees discover the power of tracking joy in their lives.

"My mother always told me 'you are what you eat,'" he says. "I believe 'you are what you attend to.' People who track negatives tend to become negative. People who track joy tend to be joy-filled and life-giving."

Copyright 2001
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