How To Be a Fun-to-be-with Personality Even If You're Not Naturally Funny

I used to be boring and dry.

I used to be too serious.

But things have changed.

I might not be able to do a stand-up comedy, but I know how to be funny when necessary.

And I’ll share the tips that helped me to know how to be funny with you.

First, let me answer some questions you might have.

Why should anyone even learn how to be funny?

People love to stay around anyone who makes them laugh.
Laughter indicates happiness. Laughter makes us feel good. You wonder why ladies fall in love with men who make them laugh or smile. ?
Laughter indicates positivity, and no one wants to hang around people who release negative vibes.
A good sense of humour makes you attractive.
Laughter eases people’s stress and relieves tension in conversations.

Needless to say, a good sense of humour is an enviable attribute for anyone to have.

Is being funny natural or learned?

While some people naturally know how to be funny, some of us aren’t that lucky.

But, just as with any skill, it can be learnt.

Yippee!

And another thing is, some have the potential to be funny. They just need a trigger to help them unlock the hidden ability. I think I belong to this category.

Can I be an introvert and still know how to be funny?

Absolutely!

Knowing how to be funny isn’t about being loquacious. You can be talkative and dry.

Have you met some people who talk and talk until you are bored? Gush!

Guess you have.

So, it’s not about being garrulous.

You don’t also have to be the life of the party to be funny.

As long you’re fun to be with in your close circle, that’s good. We all can’t be extroverts.

So, how can you be funny?

1. Don’t be too serious

The reason I was dry and boring years ago was because I was too serious.

Not that I wasn’t smiling. I was. People even told me I had a beautiful smile, but that was it.

I wasn’t the reason people laughed.

Loosening up doesn’t mean you are not serious with life.

No one wants to be around someone who goes around with a serious face every time.

Chillax, please.

2. Don’t think you can never be funny

Another reason I wasn’t funny was because I thought I couldn’t be funny.

As an introvert, I thought being funny was for extroverts. I thought I didn’t need to be funny, so I didn’t work at having a good sense of humour.

You need to have a change of mindset if you want to make people comfortable with you.

3. Study your environment and the people

You need to do this because norms are different for every society.

What people in a society find funny might not be funny to another people in another society.

Observe and study the environment you are in and the people you are with, so that you won’t say things they find offensive in a bid to make them laugh.

4. Listen attentively

Having a good sense of humour requires giving intelligent remarks or responses during conversations.

How will you be able to do this if you don’t get what is being said?

Paying attention during conversations can give you an idea of a humorous reply.

5. Make fun of yourself

Learn to make a joke out of your embarrassing moments.

People find it funny when you make a joke out of something that should naturally embarrass you.

Don’t take life too seriously.

One way I do this is to call my best friend to share my embarrassing moment with her or write my experience on social media.

People are usually encouraged to open up on their own embarrassing moments.

So, make stories out of your embarrassing moments.

This will not only make you feel better about it, it’ll also make others feel better about theirs.

6. Read books

One way to learn a skill is through reading.

You can sharpen your sense of humour by reading books that have humourous descriptions or dialogues in them.

As a writer and a novel fanatic, I enjoy reading novels laden with intelligent dialogues than boring descriptions.

They sharpen my sense of humour.

Generally, reading makes you more intelligent.

And having a good sense of humour requires some level of intelligence.

Even if you’re a born jester, you need to sharpen your skill by reading.

You can’t develop a good sense of humour without broadening your horizon through reading.

7. Think funny

As a writer, I think before I put my posts out there – blog or social media.

When I think of something funny that makes me laugh and I put it out there, I realize it makes others laugh as well.

If something is funny to you, it’ll most likely be funny to others.

Not all. But some or most.

And that’s fine.

Think funny. See the humour in situations.

8. Associate with people with good sense of humour

Honestly, this is one great tip that helped me to loosen up.

My best friend is one funny girl. She plays too much. She’s the most unserious lady I know.

She’s an ambivert – an extrovert when she’s with friends, an introvert when she’s in the public.

Being friends with her has made an ambivert too.

I graduated from being an introvert to an ambivert.

Can we drink to that?

As I write, I remember some of the crazy things she used to do back in school.

Even though we are oceans away, we still make each other laugh whenever we communicate.

I also have some friends who have a good sense of humour. I don’t get to see them often but whenever we chat on phone, they challenge my sense of humour.

I encourage you to associate with or learn from people who have a good sense of humour.

9. Don’t be too self-conscious

If you are too conscious of yourself, you will shy away from interacting with people.

And how will you practice your sense of humour if you want to remain in your own world?

If you are always scared of making mistakes or saying the wrong things, you’ll miss out on opportunities to develop your sense of humour.

I’m not saying you should be all up in people’s faces, but encouraging you to be yourself and develop yourself at the same time.

Don’t aim to impress people. Just relax and be friendly.

Oh, I just remembered this – social media.

You see, social media is one of the best things that has happened to this generation because it can be a great blessing to people who understand its power.

One of the things I enjoy doing on social media is reading people’s comments on posts.

You see that comment section?

You can learn how to be funny from there because you’ll find intelligent people there.

Ignore the annoying ones and focus on the intelligent comments with humour.

Some of us enjoy spending time alone especially on our devices.

In fact, people spend more time with people online than with people in real life.

If that’s true for you, get to socialize online.

Share your thoughts on social media (this is another great tip that helped me to be humourous), and comment on other people’s posts as well.

Trust me, this will help you immensely.

10. Practice makes perfect

Last but not least, learning how to be funny can take some time.

As with everything, practice makes perfect.

The more you work at practicing your sense of humour, the better you become at it.

I’m not saying you should try too hard to be funny.

No.

When you do that, people will see that you’re trying too hard to be funny, and that’s not funny.

Don’t also forget that everyone cannot find you funny just as you don’t find everyone funny.

Even comedians don’t make everyone laugh.
We are different and different things tickle our fancy.

If you apply the nine tips above, you’ll know how to be funny without trying too hard.

Your change will be subtle but obvious.

In summary, if you want to learn how to be funny,

1. Don’t be too serious
2. Don’t think you can’t be funny
3. Study people and environment
4. Listen attentively
5. Make fun of yourself
6. Broaden your horizon through reading
7. Think funny
8. Associate with funny people
9. Don’t be too self-conscious
10. Practice makes perfect

I hope these tips will help you in developing a good sense of humour and creating positive vibes around you.