Time for a Humour Audit? Good Humour Creates Wealth and Wellbeing
28 July 2023
The iconic Red Nose Day Friday, 28th July, provides a wonderful opportunity to fundraise for a great cause and have fun. Of course, fundraising can happen all year round, and there are many great initiatives to get behind. Red Nose Day highlights the value of looking on the light side of life while making money and making a difference as an ethical investor or ethical business leader.
It's a day that reminds us of the power of positivity and how viewing life with a twinkle in our eye can spark meaningful change. Given the many benefits this day generates, we would all benefit if, at least metaphorically, we took up the challenge of wearing a red nose on more than one day a year.
Introducing the Fourth Dimension
My research into ethical investment and business over the past four decades, including my PhD, has helped me advocate for a holistic approach towards business, adding extra dimensions to how investors evaluate companies. Increasingly there has been a shift from the conventional lens to seeking out visionary ethical leaders who can demonstrate how their business purpose, principles, practices and performance measurement are different from ‘business as usual’ by being:
longer - beyond next quarter’s bottom line to an intergenerational view,
wider - beyond a focus on those shareholders solely seeking short-term financial gains to consider all stakeholders (including ethical investors, customers, employees, suppliers, community, and the environment) instead,
deeper – beyond the shallow end of the leadership development pool with relatively superficial efforts to increasingly undertake in-depth transformational development,
lighter – beyond taking themselves so seriously that their businesses are dull and grey, stress-filled and unhealthy, instead of harnessing the wisdom and power available from encouraging more joy, light, levity and laughter.
I have written about these first three dimensions extensively in my blogs and published work, and today I will share more of the fourth dimension of my 4D approach with you. I want to encourage ethical investors to look for this from ethical business leaders and those leaders to take up the challenge.
Why Laughter and Lightness is Often the Best Medicine
Describing work as “often a humourless endeavour”, The Harvard Business Review highlights that whether we are earnestly attempting to solve big problems (and solving the world’s environmental and social problems certainly qualify as “big”) and/or striving for good financial returns, “jokes and laughter often seem out of place. But levity can actually help us achieve those serious goals”.
Research shows that leaders with any sense of humour are seen as 27% more motivating and admired than those who don’t joke around. Their employees are 15% more engaged, and their teams are more than twice as likely to solve a creativity challenge — all of which can translate into improved performance.
Humour is about making things lighter, and in these challenging times, it can be extremely powerful, especially in the workplace. We need to laugh together, which not only releases three of the four ‘feel-good’ hormones (endorphins, dopamine and oxytocin) but could even have a positive effect on the immune system. It affects our physiology and behaviours. A large-scale Norwegian study conducted over 15 years found that people with a sense of humour have a much better chance of survival if severe disease strikes them. They also live five to eight years longer on average.
According to research from institutions as serious as Wharton, MIT, and the London Business School, every smile brings business benefits. Laughter relieves stress and boredom, boosts engagement and wellbeing, and stimulates creativity and collaboration, analytic precision and productivity.
Research from the Bell Leadership Institute of 2,700 employees in various workplace settings over two years found that humour is highly regarded. When asked to describe the strengths and weaknesses of senior colleagues in their organisations, “sense of humour” and “work ethic” were mentioned twice as much as any other phrases. People are used to associating laughter with the best medicine, but they are often surprised that “sense of humour” is the phrase most frequently associated with the best leaders. Leaders rated most highly are those who have fun and work hard to get the job done.
Political and business leaders have highlighted the value of humour. President Eisenhower once said, “A sense of humour is part of the art of leadership, of getting along with people, of getting things done.” Eric Schmidt, former CEO and Executive Chair of Google (Alphabet), reflects that: “I've learned (often the hard way) that the best way to be taken seriously is to not take yourself too seriously. My teams are always at their best when approaching problems with levity, which entails both humility and optimism and always engenders trust. Plus, it's more fun!”
The reality and bottom line is we can’t afford to be humourless.
Have You Fallen Off The Humour Cliff?
The need for exploring lightness and humour in business was highlighted in a recent RNZ ‘Ted Radio Hour’ titled ‘Humour Us’. This included the Ted Talk: ‘Why good humour makes for good business’ by Jennifer Aaker and Naomi Bagdonas, who teach a class at Stanford's business school called 'Humour: Serious Business’ and co-authored the book: ‘Humour, Seriously: Why Humour Is a Secret Weapon in Business and Life (And how anyone can harness it. Even you).'
Highlighting that “There’s a huge lack of humour in the world, especially among serious people (which many of us are)", they add that what’s surprising is that not laughing is a “costly mistake” - costing your health, creativity and relationship-building amongst a range of other factors. Aaker and Bagdonas believe: “It’s an easy mistake to make because there’s so much social reinforcement for the idea of being buttoned-up all the time, which we know because we’ve been teaching at business-school, which is ground zero for over serious attitudes”.
They maintain that: “Levity is a mind-set, an inherent state of how you approach the world”. They champion the power of humour and lightness, elements often overlooked yet ”vastly undervalued” in the landscape of good business and leadership.
Here’s how the Ted Talk begins:
How often do you laugh at work? I mean, really laugh. We asked some of you this question, and here's what we heard “rarely”, “seldomly”, and then our personal favourite: “Wow. I study climate change”.
Aaker and Bagdonas refer to a 2013 Gallup survey that asked 1.4 million people in 166 countries, "Did you smile or laugh a lot yesterday?" The frequency in which we laugh or smile on a given day begins to plummet at around age 23, "…right when we enter the workforce". The survey is illustrated by a sobering graph of 'the humour cliff'. They add: "We're all going over it together, tumbling down into the abyss of solemnity below - It's global, and it's disheartening".
The average 4-year-old laughs as many as 300 times per day. In comparison, the average 40-year-old laughs 300 times every two and a half months. Aaker and Bagdonas observe that: "The good news is things look up again around 80. The bad news is the average life expectancy is 78". Aaker and Bagdonas say we asked ourselves, "How would our businesses and our lives change for the better if we had more joy at work?" More broadly, we wanted to understand how would our world change for the better if each of us navigated our lives on the precipice of a smile?"
A New York Times interview, 'How to Laugh at Work’ with the authors explains that:
Humour at work is much less about wisecracks than levity: the shared moments of lightness that propel relationships forward and balance the seriousness of labour. Levity is strikingly absent from a lot of adult life, particularly in professional settings. "On Tuesday, I did not laugh once. Not once," a Stanford student wrote once in the "humour audit," the instructors ask students to fill out at the start of the term.
Levity is a powerful bonding agent. A workplace that embraces laughter is likely one that also encourages the kind of creativity, authenticity and psychological safety that allows people to perform their best. Humour is a Trojan horse for humanity — and that, Aaker and Bagdonas argue, is the thing that knits people and organisations together.
In another interview, Aaker and Bagdonas said their first tip is “Do a Humour Audit”:
At the beginning of our course at Stanford, we have our students complete a Humour Audit—asking ourselves and others when we do, or more often don’t, show a sense of humour and looking for those gaps where we aren’t bringing our full, funny selves to the table. They spend one week and simply write down the moments when they laughed and when they made someone else laugh. So, for the next week, start a list and jot down these moments.
Don’t overthink it. These moments don’t need to be knee-slappingly-funny. They can be moments that made you smile or even just tilt your head a little and go…“Huh!”
This sounds quite simple, but it puts into practice a psychological principle called the priming effect, which essentially shows that we find what we set out to look for. Meta, I know.
This habit creates a mindset shift. By the end of the week, you’ll be navigating your life on the precipice of a smile rather than a frown.
Other questions they invite you to consider as part of your humour audit are:
When was the last time you really laughed?
When was the last time you made someone else laugh?
In general, who or what makes you laugh most in your life?
Who do you feel the funniest around – who appreciates your humour?
A Fun Business Case Study: Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream
In the 90s, when 'ethical investment' and 'business social responsibility' were largely dismissed in business and investment circles, the early pioneers of a new movement stood out.
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, founders of 'Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream' were rockstars of ethical investment and socially responsible business. Equally groundbreaking, their fellow pioneer and soul sister Anita Roddick, the force behind The Body Shop, was challenging business as usual. As I sought to contribute insights to the emerging new paradigm of ethical investment and ethical business leadership as part of my PhD studies, these companies were my North Star. Looking back 30 years later, I count my time with these leaders as a real privilege and highlight.
A key part of Ben & Jerry's philosophy and successful business formula was summed up in their slogan that appeared as a bumper sticker and on T-shirts: "If It's Not Fun, Why Do It?". In their book 'Ben & Jerry’s: Double Dip – How to Run a Values-Led Business and Make Money, Too’ Cohen and Greenfield describe how the company won taste buds, earned the admiration of Wall Street and established a model for business owners and employees eager to earn profits without compromising their principles.
The company’s purpose was stated as: ‘the creation and demonstration of a new concept of linked prosperity creating value for all stakeholders’. In addition to their ‘product’ and ‘economic’ dimensions the ‘Ben & Jerry’s Statement of Mission’ included a ‘social’ dimension: ‘To operate the company in a way that actively recognises the central role that business plays in the structure of society by initiating innovative ways to improve the quality of life of a board community: local, national and international’.
In his book ‘Ben and Jerry's: The Inside Scoop - How Two Real Guys Built a Business with a Social Conscience and a Sense of Humour' Fred "Chico" Lager, the former CEO of Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream, describes the creation of a 'Joy Gang'. This was a company culture initiative with the mission to infuse joy and fun in everything they did. Activities included an Elvis Day, during which employees participated in look-, sound- and sneer-alike contests. Lager describes coming to work in a white stretch limo, dressed as the “Las Vegas Elvis” in a jumpsuit with flashy epaulets”. He notes that not all musical-themed Joy Gang events were as successful as Elvis Day. The celebration of Barry Manilow’s birthday bombed, mostly because they kept playing “Mandy” over the PA system!
Other Joy Gang activities included pizza and 15-minute massages for the manufacturing employees who were working 12-hour marathon shifts, Halloween, Valentine's Day, Jungle Party (where every employee dresses up in jungle outfits), a Wild West Party, Vegas Night and Dead Day (in honour of the Grateful Dead's last Vermont concert). There was also their annual Dress-Up Day. Unlike conventional businesses that back then had a Casual Day once a year, Ben and Jerry's employees had to dress up in business suits.
Initiatives like the Joy Gang were examples of leadership and conscious culture creation. Lager notes, "If we're not consciously creating our culture it devolves into cynicism - the prevailing mode of the national culture."
From its inception in 1978, Ben & Jerry's founders recognised the importance of humour to employees and connecting with customers. They understood that by combining their passion for ice cream with a light-hearted approach to business, they could differentiate themselves from their competitors. This led to the birth of their "Peace, Love, and Ice Cream" motto, which resonated with the counterculture of the time.
Their quirky and pun-filled flavour names, such as ‘Wavy Gravy’ and ‘Chubby Hubby’, became a trademark of the brand. These playful labels not only brought a smile to customers' faces but also made the ice cream memorable and shareable. Through humour, Ben & Jerry's built a brand identity that stood out in a crowded market and captured the hearts of ice cream lovers worldwide.
Ben & Jerry’s and The Body Shop were pioneers of ‘ethical accounting’. In 1995, the two businesses provided comprehensive reports on their performance regarding issues impacting stakeholders. These reports, coupled with the reports of the early ethical investment research firms, contributed to The Ethical Profile and Ethical Scorecard I developed in my PhD and applied in a wide range of contexts, including New Zealand's first ethically managed funds. A key aspect of the reporting was that these forerunners encouraged employees to “tell like it is” and express disappointment when the reality didn’t meet the rhetoric.
As many investment research firms and businesses now seek to develop their impact reporting, they could take up the challenge set down by these early pioneers and provide investors with a humour audit. This would provide insight into the nature and extent of activities to encourage lightness and laughter, along with qualitative and quantitative measures of the degree of employee satisfaction with the way the business encourages humour and laughter, fostering fun and joy. Back in 1983, I was awarded The University of Auckland Senior Prize for my research into Corporate Social Accounting – I’d love to see the 2023 winner’s research include accounting for this fourth dimension of light and levity.
I loved my time with Ben and Jerry and other team members. Touring their factory and Head Office in Vermont and experiencing the 'good vibrations' first-hand felt like being on a pilgrimage. Notwithstanding that it was mid-winter with snow everywhere, I demonstrated my commitment to my research by eating plenty of ice cream! Ben, in particular, was like me, deeply interested in the concepts of 'Spirituality and Consciousness' in the realm of business, and I valued his presentations and our conversations at those gatherings – often in warmer locations than Vermont.
The book cover for 'Ben & Jerry’s Double Dip’ concludes by stating: “Unlike their imitators, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield are “two real guys” who built a unique, successful company around strong values and an unfailing sense of humour”. I can vouch for that and the value of their formula.
An Invitation to Lead with Your Laughing Heart
Demonstrating and developing in others good humour and a levity mindset are not simple and easy in a corporate context. They require courage, wholehearted commitment, and wise guidance. This might be one of the reasons why this has disappeared from the main competency frameworks of the corporate world. Twenty years ago, it was quite common to find "has a positive and constructive sense of humour; can laugh at him/herself and with others; is appropriately funny and can use humour to ease tension” – among valued leadership skills.
As part of my professional development supporting my ability to offer unique guidance to ethical investors and businesses, I am a facilitator with the USA-based Center for Courage & Renewal that seeks to “help people meaningfully transform their organisations from the inside out”. The time-tested principles and practices of the Courage & Renewal approach have been applied with individual leaders and teams “to help transform uninspired organisational cultures into life-giving cultures rooted in authenticity, community, and trustworthy relationships”.
In following the Courage & Renewal approach, I'm offering a poem that, coupled with my questions that follow, invites each of us to consider opportunities for more light in our life:
The Laughing Heart
your life is your life
don't let it be clubbed into dank submission.
be on the watch.
there are ways out.
there is a light somewhere.
it may not be much light but
it beats the darkness.
be on the watch.
the gods will offer you chances.
know them.
take them.
you can't beat death but
you can beat death in life, sometimes.
and the more often you learn to do it,
the more light there will be.
your life is your life.
know it while you have it.
you are marvellous
the gods wait to delight
in you.
- Charles Bukowski
The Center for Courage & Renewal encourages ‘honest and open questions’ - a special type of question designed for working with what the Inner Development Goals (IDGs) describe as ‘IDG 1: Inner Compass’ (see my IDG blog for more on that). In that spirit, I offer you these questions to use for your inquiry:
Where and when has your life been ‘clubbed into dank submission’?
What helps you ‘to be on the watch’ for and know when ‘the gods’ ‘offer you chances’ to experience more light?
How have you taken chances to ‘have more light’ in your life?
What steps could you take to experience more light and delight in your life?
You may find extra value in undertaking this inquiry process with one or more trustworthy people and each sharing your answers.
For myself, a delightful experience I was blessed with recently was my friend Rawiri putting on his red nose and listening to my heartbeat and the heartbeat of the taonga gifted to me. The party had a hippie theme – hence my attire in the photo accompanying this blog.
As an avid student of fun, lightness, levity and laughter, I’m always keen to connect with individuals and businesses wanting to explore this territory. On that note, I was honoured to write a reference for a friend who has now been accepted into the next Courage & Renewal Facilitator Preparation Programme. The competencies required to qualify for this program include the following that I’d love to see as part of the main competency frameworks for leaders in the corporate world:
Presence/Way of Being in the World
self-awareness of gifts and limitations and learning edges,
strong sense of identity and integrity,
humility: an ability to take oneself both seriously and lightly,
open-heart/compassion,
sense of humour,
non-anxious presence,
a commitment to ongoing inner work, personal reflection and renewal,
a commitment to nurturing ways of being with ourselves and one another that move against the violent, oppressive forces that create personal and societal division.
Best wishes for your Red Nose Day and ongoing exploration of at least metaphorically wearing a red nose more often!
PS If you want to see a master of levity at work – check out this hilarious video of the recently announced winner of Britain’s Got Talent 2023.