Pace Yourself…
Don’t talk too fast. The audience needs time to process what you are saying. This is especially true when delivering a humorous speech. Not only does the audience need to process the information but they also need time to process the humor. The audience will not laugh if they are too busy trying to understand what you are saying. This doesn’t mean to talk so slow that you sound like you are talking down to the audience. It just means that you should speak at a natural conversational rate so the audience can pick up the nuances of the humor.
Also, when you speak too fast it can give th audience the impression that you are nervous and want to get through your speech and off the stage as fast as you can.
But Don’t Pace
Don’t pace when telling a joke. If you have a tendency to pace a little in your presentations, try not to do it while you are telling the joke. It can distract the audience from you humor. Stop, stand still, look relaxed. But don’t stand too rigid. Pacing too much or standing too rigid can make you appear nervous. It can also cut down on the amount of laughter you might get.
Don’t fidget or play with something in your hands. It’s distracting in a speech but when you are trying to tell a joke it’s even worse. I have seen speakers stand with a pen in their hand and click it while they are giving a presentation. Not only is this distracting, it tells the audience you are nervous. Don’t clench your fists s tight that you can see white knuckles. This also shows fear.
Don’t Try This at Home (or anywhere else)
Don’t tell the audience you are telling a joke.
“Did you hear the one about…?”
“This is really funny…”
“That reminds me of an old joke…”
The only time I would use “that reminds me of an old joke…” is not to announce you are going to tell a joke, but to emphasize a point you are trying to make. Don’t expect a big laugh, more like a chuckle.
“Never say “but seriously” after a joke. It doesn’t work. Just move on to the next joke or the next part of your speech.” - Jay Leno
Make Them Laugh
Avoid the temptation to laugh at your own jokes. Sometimes speakers have a tendency to laugh while delivering a joke. This is detrimental to getting a laugh from the audience.
Many times when a speaker is laughing while they are telling a joke it is nervous laughter. This can be annoying to the audience and ruin the joke.
Laughing while telling your joke can also make it hard to understand. If they can’t hear the joke because you are laughing, you won’t get a laugh (other than your own).
“The most important thing is to keep it short. It’s like knowing when to leave the table in Vegas. Get your laugh, or if you’re lucky, laughs, and then get off the stage. If you don’t trust yourself, hire a friend to tackle you after four minutes.” – Conan O’Brien
Watch Where You Step
Timing is everything. One of the biggest mistakes comedians or speakers make is to step on their laughs. You don’t want to start telling the next joke or story before the audience finishes laughing. When you speak over your laughs you choke them off. The audience stops laughing in order to hear what you are saying. If you do this often enough in your speech, you train your audience not to laugh.
Many comedians use a timing gimmick. George Burns, Alan King, and Milton Berle used a cigar. They would tell a joke and then take a puff as a subliminal message to the audience that it was time to laugh. Jack Benny would put his hand on his cheek. The longer they paused, the bigger the laugh.
When I started doing stand-up comedy, at the age of twelve, my parents gave me a yo-yo. I would tell my joke, then do the yo-yo which would cause me to wait for my laughs. I used this method until one day my yo-yo was stolen. I told my parents I couldn’t go on without my yo-yo. They told me I didn’t need it anymore and to just imagine I still had it. I went out and told my jokes imagining that I was still doing my yo-yo. Sure enough, I didn’t step on my laughs.
