Leading with Laughter: Using Humor to Reduce Stress and Boost Performance

The North American HR Leadership Network (NAHRLN), of which HRLF is a proud member, is pleased to present this very special Summer Program via Zoom!

Leaders with a sense of humor are not only seen as more competent and more motivating, but they also have higher levels of employee engagement and are more likely to solve complex problems creatively.

Humor increases social connection and reduces the hierarchical distance between leaders and their teams. You might be thinking “It would be much easier to use humor if my job wasn't so stressful!"  Believe it or not, one of the most effective tools to decrease stress and enhance overall wellbeing is… your sense of humor!

This Zoom content-rich session not only provides the foundation of why humor is such an effective leadership trait, but also how to incorporate more humor into your leadership style and everyday life. Using a combination of proven strategies and research from positive psychology, neuroscience, cognitive behavioral techniques, and improv and stand-up comedy, you’ll learn evidence-based techniques for how you can develop your sense of humor into a powerful leadership tool to enhance well-being and boost performance! 

PROGRAM OBJECTIVES: 

• Identify at least 10 ways to reduce stress using humor intervention strategies
• Practice humor intervention strategies to boost resilience
• Discover the impacts of humor on the brain and body
• Learn strategies for using humor positively in professional and personal settings

Paul Osincup is a Humor Strategist who helps organizations create happier, healthier, and more connected places to work. Paul’s global mission for workplace happiness has provided him the opportunity to work with hundreds of organizations including the Harvard Kennedy School of Leadership, Google, Discover, and The U.S. Air Force. He’s a content creator for the emotional health and well-being app Happify, and his TEDx Talk on Humor in Leadership has been viewed over a half million times. Paul is a certified Stress Mastery Educator with the American Institute of Stress and the past President of the Association for Applied and Therapeutic Humor, an international organization dedicated to the study and application of humor to enhance health and human performance. Paul’s work has been highlighted in The New York Times, Forbes, and on his mom’s refrigerator.