Studies show that humor can increase your mental and physical health, improve your ability to lead, and boost your attractiveness. There are many styles and theories of humor that can help you understand the subject. Humor is a vital life skill, but can it be taught?

What is Humor?

Humor is a common word. Many people talk about humor in the workplace or sense of humor. What is humor? What is the difference between humor and comedy?

Humor, Comedy, and Jokes

Let’s look at humor in two other words that most people can relate to humor and comedy.

Comedy refers to any humorous or comical incident or series.

A joke is something that’s said or done in order to cause laughter or amusement. 

Have you written those logic problems? They wanted to see if you could understand that all lions are cats, but not all cats are lions; this is how humor, comedy, and jokes relate: All jokes are comedy, and all comedy is humor. But not all humor is a comedy, and certainly, not all jokes are humor.

Humor can be defined as YOUR ABILITY to laugh at something you see, hear, or think about.

People assume that humor must bring out laughter in order to be considered funny. While stand-up comedians might use this as a measure of success, it is not true for humor at work. Humor is anything that relaxes, makes people smile, makes them laugh, or causes happiness.

Mark Twain stated that “humor is the great thing and the saving thing after all.” It is the moment that all our hardness gives way to it, and all our frustrations and resentments are replaced by a sunny spirit. He is undoubtedly correct. Humor could very well be great. It’s an essential quality that touches almost every aspect of life. 90% of men and 81% of women say that having a good sense of humor is very important. Leaders also consider it a vital quality, and, even better, it has been proven to help with cancer treatment. It’s clear that humor is an essential skill, but can it be taught? The answer to that question is yes. You can find humor in almost any story, no matter how serious, and you can laugh at the situations of others, and most definitely yours. It is essential for people to learn how to laugh.

Psychologists have attempted to explain jokes, which is the best way to kill a joke. 

There are three major theories about Humor and where it comes from.

According to the relief theory.

Laughter and humor can let out psychological steam and release psychic energy, which is why jokes at funerals are not met with the appropriate silence but with laughter.

Plato and Aristotle created the superiority theory.

To explain a particular kind of humor, namely, why we laugh at others’ misfortunes, humor is used to declare one’s superiority; this is not the type of humor you should be trying to develop to enhance your leadership abilities.

Incongruity theory.

It states that humor is created when two opposing, distinct ideas are mixed. Humor can often be unexpected and subvert expectations. Punchlines are often the result of a surprising reversal.

What Are The Advantages Of Having A Good Sense Of Humor?

Humor is one of the most important things you can do to improve your health. A good sense of humor can be thought of as your mind’s immune defense system. When exposed to negative stimuli, humorously reframing negative events can act as an emotional filter and prevent them from becoming depressive episodes.

Humor doesn’t just guard against depression. Humor can also enhance people’s quality of life. Research has shown that people with high scores in certain types of humor have higher self-esteem, positive affect, greater self-competence, better control over anxiety, and better social interaction. However, not all types of humor are created equal. The researchers also identified four types:

• Affiliative humor or humor that strengthens social bonds.
• Self-enhancing humor, which is similar to having a humorous outlook on life.
• Aggressive humor, such as mocking other people.
• Self-defeating humor encourages jokes about oneself or makes fun of self-deprecating humor.

Positive contributions were only made by individuals who scored high in self-enhancing and affiliative humor. Aggressive and self-deprecating humor were associated with lower overall well-being, higher anxiety, and depression. It’s crucial to cultivate a good sense of humor.

Humor can improve your physical immune system. Research has proven that humor is not only good for the mental immune system. Laughter can increase cardiovascular health, lower heart rates, and blood pressure, as well as reduce muscular tension.

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Read More: How Emotionally Intelligent Are You, and How to Build it?

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Is A Good Sense Of Humor Possible To Teach? 

Like I said earlier, yes. Stanford College offers business courses in humor in the workplace to teach “the power and importance of humor to create and scale social change in the world.” Surprise!- To achieve business goals, create more innovative and effective organizations, foster stronger bonds and make more lasting memories.

Humor can be a valuable tool in your toolbox for enhancing relationships. 

A Good Sense Of Humor: How to Use It:

1. Humor should be used as a tool and not a weapon. 

The first rule of relationship-building humor: Do No Harm. It is a recipe for disaster to laugh at the expense of someone else. Hurtful humor includes sarcasm, ridicule, and put-downs. Making comments about controversial or personal topics, such as race, religion, weight, appearance, or gender, can also cause offense if the other person isn’t open to your jokes; even “good-natured” teasing could backfire.

Please do not laugh at other people; have fun with them. Laughing with other people brings people together and makes us laugh at our common problems.

2. You can laugh at yourself or let others do it. 

You will never run out of funny material if you learn to laugh at your own mistakes. Self-deprecating humor while holding yourself to a high standard can help you lower your walls and be more open to others. Tell past humorous, self-deprecating stories about yourself.

3. Humor or laughter can be used to reduce tension.

Conclusion

You now have a good understanding of humor. It’s time to use it to help your partner, family, friends, and the entire team.