LIGHTEN UP AND HAVE A GOOD SENSE OF HUMOR

I was flying somewhere to speak for a large group. I was coming off of a long flight. It was not a very comfortable one. I was tired, hungry, and a bit ornery, although you could not tell. I put on a nice smile for the group that was picking me up and away we all proceeded down to the luggage carousel to retrieve my luggage. When we got down there, we heard all these people laughing. Now whenever there is laughter, I have to see what it is about. I looked as all these people where pointing to some luggage on the carousel that did not look right. I looked and saw that some guy’s poor luggage had ripped in half and the airlines taped it up with clear tape, but when they taped it up, they taped his underwear to the outside of the case. It looked so funny. I began laughing as everybody was laughing. As I was laughing and tears were streaming down my face, the funny luggage with the undies on the outside got closer, and it began to look very familiar. As it passed me, shock and reality set in, and I responded to my host, “That was mine!!!!”

He said, “No way! Are You kidding? Are you going to get it!?”

“No way, not with all these people watching and laughing!”

To say the least, I was confused and in shock. My luggage passed me by more than six times. I couldn’t believe it; nobody was leaving! They wanted to see who owned the funny luggage with the underwear packed on the outside. I was now faced with a choice, as we all are in life situations like this. I could scream, complain and tell people to shut up. I could have done that; it was a choice I had. But I saw the joy my situation was creating, so with a smile, I reached down and grabbed the luggage. The crowd began to point, clap and cheer. It put a huge smile on my face. It also changed my attitude. I wasn’t as grumpy. I didn’t feel as bad. In fact, I felt pretty good! That’s the power of humor.

I love to laugh. I have never felt as good as I do when I am laughing or having a good sense of humor about something. A good sense of humor makes us feel good, look good and releases endorphins into the body, which are natural pain killers and give us a natural high. In the workplace, in the home, and in life, having the joy of humor is a must! Without a sense of humor, it’s like driving a car on a bumpy road with no shocks! Some people just choose to look constipated all the time. That’s no fun.
Humor is a like a muscle. The more you use it, the more it develops and the easier it is to laugh. Start by learning to laugh at yourself in a healthy way. In fact, the best humor will be the things you do and say. You have to practice flexing that humor muscle. Learn to laugh at the pure and positive things, not the sick and tasteless. Never laugh at the expense of others. That’s negative and wrong. Laugh at the good stuff around you. Fake it at first if you have to, but soon enough it will transform into real laughter.

I once wrote a very professional letter that went out to all of these important people and I meant to say the words, “Our company has matured over time.” What I accidentally wrote and sent out in the letter was, “Our company has manured over time.” At first, I could have cried, but I began to see the humor in it. I began to think of what all those people must have thought in reading that. It makes me laugh now just thinking about their facial expressions in reading that letter. If you look around you, you will see humor-filled content everywhere.

Sam Glenn is a national speaker and author who empowers people from all walks of life to achieve profitable results through having the right attitude. Visit him at www.samglenn.com