My wife went into the bathroom the other morning and exclaimed that there were “dribbles on the floor.” Upon closer inspection, she discovered there was “pee all over the toilet!” My 4-year-old paused from eating his breakfast, looked me dead in the eye, and asked, “Was it you?” This led to a second mess when coffee leapt from my mouth in a classic spit-take fashion.
I could not believe the level of witticism from someone who can barely dress themselves. Humor and having fun are innate. Within reason, they should be applied to all aspects of our lives, including business.
I was presenting an offer to a client who is a numbers guy. The offer was for $412k with a $5k closing cost credit. So, I said the net amount was $407k. He arrived at that conclusion and verbalized it at the same time I did. I jokingly said, “Oh good, you can do that math too!” We had a nice laugh about it. Expressing levity does not mean you are not taking the overall task seriously; rather, it means you do not take yourself too seriously and find ways to bring out humor and joy when the moment calls for them.
A super-successful friend of mine is a real jokester. A constant stream of sarcasm spews out of his mouth, except for the 10% of the time when he wants to get his point across. And when he leans in, looks you in the eye, and evens out his baritone voice, the person on the other side listens.
Business does not have to be stuffy merely because the stakes are higher. Be light. Be airy. Be funny. Be you. And when it is time to make a point or negotiate a deal, people will listen.
