Starting Your Speech with a Joke

The ability to make people laugh is a wonderful gift, but telling a joke is not always an easy thing to do. Different people have various thoughts about starting off a formal speech with a joke. I do not think there is anything wrong with that but there are certain rules to which one should adhere. Most of these rules may seemingly be a matter of common sense but, having taught public speaking for a number of years, there are countless students who are not aware of the proper procedure. I have also heard numerous adults in formal settings ignore the rules. As a result, it is improtant to go over them.

First of all, it is important to make sure the joke is appropriate to the topic. I have seen speakers so interested in getting the audience to laugh right off the bat, they forget that the joke needs to set up the speech.

The second aspect is to make sure the joke is not off color. While raunchy jokes have there place and I enjoy them as much as the next person (if they are funny), they do not belong in a formal speech. Keep bathroom or locker room humor out of your speech.

It is also very important to try and not offend anyone. This can be easier said than done as it can be surprising what will offend people. One time, when I was having car trouble and I literally feared for my life while driving the vehicle (for the last time), I started praying. I had to give a speech shortly thereafter and I used this event as the topic. I started off with a joke about a clergyman and a taxicab driver who died the same day. The driver got right into heaven while the preacher had to justify his existence on earth. Eventually the clergyman was told that when people heard him preach, they took a nap but when those same people got into this taxi driver's cab, they prayed!

The joke was appropriate to my topic. I thought the joke was inoffensive as I had actually heard clergyman tell this joke. Still, someone in the audience was offended that I would tell a joke about a clergyman.

If you have a joke about a lawyer or a doctor, or other professional, you need to realize these individuals might represent at least a portion of your audience. Sometimes, you can get away with it if you too are a member of the profession. Still, it is possible to offend someone.

It is also important to have a backup plan. What do you do if your joke bombs and no one laughs? There are things you can do including jokingly criticizing yourself for telling the joke ("I knew I should have listened to my wife. She said no one would laugh) or just waiting for an extra moment for the laughter (Johnny Carson was a master of that).

Lastly, do not fall into the pattern of feeling every time you give a speech you should tell a joke. It should be just one of the methods you use, but it should be considered an effective method.