Workplace Humor – the correct approach

There are times when work gets so stressful and critical. Sometimes it is ideal to lighten the burden on your shoulder and make the environment lively. That is where humor comes to play. Practicing the right approach to humor can cultivate positivity in the workplace. But it is very necessary to note that jokes can go sideways too quickly. The wrong approach to humor can lead to serious problems in the work place. It is important to draw between lines because you would want your company to be a great place to work, but at the same time want to make sure that tasks are taken seriously and not trivially. So here is what we have to say about humor in the workplace and our guide on how to use it correctly as well as the advantages and disadvantages.                    

The correct approach.          

Being a union leader or just an employee You might want to ask ”What is the correct approach to humor in the workplace”  CollegeOver has the best answer(s) to that question with the following points:

1. Identifying your office humor style: Josie Dikkers, the professor at the university at Utrecht, says that humor in the office functions positively when it brings the team together. As a union leader of employee it is imperative to identify your team’s humor style. That is if they like Social jokes(Positive and negative jokes about themselves and what they do), Self jokes(Positive and negative Jokes mainly about Yourself) This will help to categorize type of humor and guide you on the type of jokes that are ideal in your workplace.
   
2. Social Positive humor: Even after examining the humor style of your team we believe that there is no team that would hate Social-Positive jokes. These are jokes that talk about the joke’s audience in a positive way. Are they appropriate?:Yes, all the time. These jokes create strong bond among the team members rather than belittling members of the team. Whether you are an Employer or employee in the work place  always make sure that you use Socially positive Humor as every one wants their egos to be boosted. 
   
3. Manually create a  Humor culture: As we  all know people come from different backgrounds and preference of jokes may differ and to fight these cultural differences, one must manually create a humor culture. It is your decision to make whether Self or social humor(both positive and negative) is what you want for your business. Whatever choice you make, as a leader be more of a role model for behavior. Consider humor styles in your hiring and interviewing processes. 
   
4. Basically understanding the use and misuse of humor: Generally understanding humor is very important for managers, executive members, union leaders and whoever is responsible for establishing a workplace. Humor is the key to bringing employees together and produce a work-friendly environment when used correctly, When used wrongly it can cause division and counterproductivity.
   
   

The wrong approach                 

Humor is meant to provide solidarity but with the wrong approach it will cause a total division and destruction of morale. Let’s take a quick look at the wrong ways to use humor in the work place.          

1. Overuse of self-positive humor: There is nothing wrong about using self positive jokes as explained in the correct approach section but there is everything wrong when it is over used. Always talking positively about yourself especially as an employee seriously or through the use of humor will make other employees to look down on themselves thus not making them to give their all to the tasks at hand.                  
                                                    
2. Sexual humor: Sexual humor is wrong on all levels. Sexual jokes and comments in the workplace often seen as harassment. This type of conduct shows hostility towards a persons gender, race, skin color, and disability. It also causes an offensive work environment which must certainly interfere with the persons ability to focus at work.
   
3. Overuse of social-negative humor: Yes it is agreed that all types of humor as explained in the article are effective but overuse of negative humor is bound to cause disengagement. Even when you have been able to identify that your team prefers the use of negative humor it is still advisable as a manager to not over use it. At a point, some of your colleagues will feel belittled. Make your employees feel good about themselves by using positive humor.
   
4. Inappropriate humor: In a union, inappropriate humor should not be practiced as it is a very bad approach to humor in the workplace. inappropriate jokes include the following:                                      

Advantages of humor in the work place  

Humor plays a vital role in functional business. Humor has a lot of benefits when used in the office. There are many advantages of humor in the work place which we are going to list out. 

1. Building of staff morale: Any good business leader or manager will know that high staff morale is very essential in having a positive work environment. Where good morale is present employees tend to feel valued and naturally they will work better under such conditions. Humor in the workplace is sure to bring up the mood in the office and assists your staff to work as one. 
2. Creativity boost: It does not matter the nature of your business, creativity is what will always be an essential part. A fun environment with both employers and employees having humor sense will go a long way to boost creativity.
3. Building Of Trust: This is very important for managers and workers to take note of. Union leaders who have a good humor sense are bound to get the best from their employees this is because having a laugh with your employees builds trust. These employees will  the feeling of approval to always communicate with their bosses which is very essential in business.
4. Fosters team work: Humor between colleagues leads to better and stronger bond and thus better team work.  ”I am a teacher. I teach kids and adult classes and i love to hear the sound of laughter coming from my students and i always inject humor in most of the topics i teach and this makes my teaching method so Unique and effective. Even with my colleagues i love to joke around them a lot because it brings about a strong connection.” said Constance Sog, the head professor of communications at Auchi Polytechnic.