This is From The Balance Beam

[TheBalanceBeam] - Laughing Out Loud

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THE BALANCE BEAM
Ideas and Inspiration for Creating a Life that Works
Vol. 2 No. 11, May 26, 2000
Published by Success Builders, Inc.
http://www.SuccessBuildersInc.com
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"He who knows others is wise; he who knows himself is enlightened."
Lao-tzu
In this issue: LAUGHING OUT LOUD
====================================================================== Dear Friends:
One of the greatest stress relievers in the world is a good laugh. Whether it's the sound and feel of your own laughter, or the sweet giggles of a child, or the collective chuckles of a group of friends sharing a funny moment, laughter is some of the best medicine around. In this issue of The Balance Beam, we consider the incredible power of humor and laughter in improving the quality of our lives and businesses.

If you want to check out earlier editions of The Balance Beam that you may have missed, you can easily retrieve them by clicking on http://www.successbuildersinc.com/newsletter.html and going to the Archives section. If you are not yet a regular subscriber to The Balance Beam, you can also enter your subscription information at this location.
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Today's Topic: LAUGHING OUT LOUD

I was having this very serious conversation with a client of mine the other day about organizational change and the fine line between an environment of stretch challenges and a state of overwhelm. As she was searching for just the right way to describe her concerns, I saw this light bulb go off. She said, "You know, it's like that 'I Love Lucy' episode with Lucy and Ethel in the chocolate factory. The conveyor belt is speeding up, and Lucy and Ethel are frantically trying to figure out what to do with all the chocolates coming at them down the assembly line. Pretty soon, they're both hopping around stuffing chocolates in their mouths, in their pockets, anywhere they can think of, and the chocolates just keep coming at them."

I spent the rest of the day chuckling to myself as I pictured the Lucy and Ethel show. And something else very interesting happened. Out of the blue, I started getting a ton of good ideas about how to deal with the proverbial chocolate assembly line in organizations.

What made this little metaphor so powerful? Plain and simple - it was funny. And in that moment of shifting from the heaviness of business life to an analogy that was lighthearted and fun, creativity was fueled, solutions became more obvious, and the whole matter of organizational change began to seem far less complicated.

Knock-knock.
Who's there?
Ben.
Ben who?
Ben a long time since we've had some fun around here.

Sound like a working environment you know? It may be that what's missing in this picture is a few hearty belly laughs and a better sense of humor. Organizational experts are becoming increasingly aware that humor is one of the most important tools to helping a business navigate change and sustain organizational effectiveness. Humor facilitates better communication, builds relationships, stimulates innovation, reduces stress, provides perspective and releases incredible energy. In a crazy, unpredictable business world, a strong sense of humor just may be one of the most critical (and available!) competitive advantages.

C.W. Metcalf and Roma Felible, authors of Lighten Up: Survival Skills for People Under Pressure, discuss humor as an antidote for what they call "terminal professionalism". This is the term they use to describe the way many of today's overworked, overstressed, and very, very serious individuals work. They walk around with their teeth clenched and their blood pressure elevated in company cultures that believe that humor and playfulness have no role in the workplace. Not only do these folks pay the price in terms of negative
effects on their health and well-being, their employers lose out on the tremendous creativity that never makes it to the table in a stifling, buttoned-up environment.

So how do you make the shift from dead serious to lighthearted? And how does an organization move from a culture of terminal professionalism to one of innovation and creativity? Southwest Airlines, one of the classic contemporary turn-around companies, does it by defining a humor "code of conduct":

- Think Funny. Intentionally try to zero in on your most outrageous thoughts and ideas. Make them funny, not embarrassing.

- Adopt a playful attitude. Allow your mind to be silly, zany, and nonconformist. Bring your toys to work.

- Be the first to laugh. When there's a tense or awkward moment, jump in to diffuse the situation. Everyone will heave a sigh of relief and the problem will be more likely to be solved.

- Laugh with, not at. The only productive humor is the healthy kind. That means no laughing at someone else's expense.

- Laugh at yourself. This is the key to objectivity and self-acceptance.

- Take your work seriously, but not yourself. Resist taking things so personally, and you will find they get resolved much more easily.

Life really can be like a box of chocolates, so the next time you find yourself in a jam, just think about Lucy and Ethel and the chocolate factory. Smile. Lighten up. Laugh out loud. And that's all I have to say about that.
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Words to live by:
"The human race has one really effective weapon, and that is laughter."
- Mark Twain

"Everything is funny as long as it is happening to somebody else."
- Will Rogers
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