Stand-up comedy vs. comedy speeches

There is a common misconception that the process for generating laughter during a speech or presentation is vastly different from delivering stand-up comedy.

This notion is FALSE.

No matter what environment you speak in, the comedy mechanics for generating audience laughter are the same.

The main difference is that speeches and presentations typically include “essential informational content” that is not designed or intended to generate laughter (which is NOT required for a stand-up routine).

My new website dedicated to funny public speaking has one of the most extensive articles I have written on the topic of adding humor to speeches and presentations:

If you are a trainer, teacher or public speaker looking to add humor to your speeches or presentations, here is what you need to know:

1. To be funny for an audience, one must have AND apply some baseline comedy talent - just like with comedians .

Writing differs vastly from verbal communication in the way it is learned, executed, and received by the audience.

As a result, "writing" cannot be completely substituted for talking in order to achieve the desired results 

2. When it comes to creating laughs with "original" comedy material (based on an individual's sense of humor), speakers have two choices:

• They can react to the material (information) they are delivering with humor or...
  
• They can add content that they CAN react to using their sense of humor relative to the “informational content” that is presented.

In either case, the frequency of laughter a person wishes to generate from a speech or presentation depends on:

• A punchline is what it really is relative to the person who uses it and...
  
• It's important to structure what one wants to say in relation to the speech content so that it gets the most laughs possible.

3. Public speakers have the advantage of being able to inject street jokes (aka joke jokes) into their presentations (not the usual case in the comedy club scene) along with other open source comedy material such as funny quotes so long as credit is given to the original source.

4. The majority of a speaker's power to generate laughter comes from the delivery and effective use of their already developed expressive comedy features - not from the actual words and sentences they use.

Generally speaking, those critical visible and audible aspects are not considered (or incorporated) when speech content or stand-up comedy material is "written" in a manner that is intended to be read by an individual reader versus that which is intended to be expressed and experienced by an audience.

Bottom line:

In terms of the comedy mechanics, there is NO difference between public speaking and stand-up comedy when it comes to generating laughter. The focus is still on structuring what one wants to say in a natural and organic way that generates as much laughter as possible.

Furthermore, if speaking is your thing and you really want some detailed insight into the process of adding humor to speeches and presentations, do not skip this important resource:

That's why the Killer Stand-up Online Course can help speaking enthusiasts and professionals alike utilize their natural humor and sense of humor more effectively in any public speaking situation.

Additionally, in the near future I will offer an online course that is exclusively designed for public speaking but is based on the same strategies and techniques that pro comedians use to get laughs on stage.

If you are having a casual conversation with friends, family, coworkers, and colleagues, you do not "write" notes to get laughs.

What exactly do you do to generate laughs for public speaking audiences if you suddenly start "writing" anything?