Tim Conway has to be one of the best sketch comedians ever. I grew up watching him, Carol Burnett and Harvey Korman make each other laugh.
What impresses me about this clip is that it holds up. It is still funny today. (And how many shows from the 70s can we say that about? Happy Days? No way, Fonzy!
As a professional speaker and comedian, I love watching how he cracks the other actors up, and how their laughter makes the sketch even funnier. He’s funny on his own, but with the his team members busting up he is hilarious. The other folks laughter turns the sketch from good to great.
This fact is relevant to us in our search for a fun business culture. Laughter begets laughter.
If you want to ramp up the fun in your office and the humor in your workplace, you can start by laughing more yourself. And if you are a leader or manager, make sure that you make certain others feel safe laughing around you. Employees are often nervous about letting loose in front of their boss: don’t let your people fall into this trap around you. If you are laughing the hardest, your employees will follow. Trust me on this.
Back to Conway: The fact that Conway was so “in the moment” and authentic makes me think he’d be a
killer professional speaker. Can you imagine having him as your motivational keynote speaker? Heck yeah! Imagine him (and his team of comedians) do one of these killer sketches and then connect the learning points to corporate America. I know he would have the convention or meeting on the edge of their seats because he is so funny. But I bet when he connects his communication skills, timing, teamwork and ability to deal with constant change to the business and corporate culture, he’d hit it out of the park. I know I would pay to see it.
The bad news is that Conway isn’t a pro speaker. The good news is that I know a motivational speaker that would love to fill in for him. : ) (“Hey mom! Pick me!”)
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