Ha,
Ha Stress Reduction
Written
by Richard Paul
A Funny Keynote Speaker/Trainer/Author/Ventriloquist
Someone once said “he
who laughs last, laughs best!” When we laugh we reduce stress by bringing
oxygen to the cells of our body, in addition to that we exercise our
muscles and allow our blood to flow freely. Sheila Feigelson in her great
book “Energize your Meetings with Laughter” writes; “laughter relaxes us,
makes us feel better, helps us to think clearly, builds camaraderie and
makes the day go faster. It allows us the freedom to feel more optimistic
and certainly more positive”.
Laughter sheds a different light on
any situation. It allows us to step off the boardwalk of stress and helps
us to take a dip in the sea of tranquility. When faced with a stressful
coworker or client it does you no good to step in their pool of misery and
gloom to find the answer. In that frame of mind one cannot find a
solution, instead we create more mountains out of Larry, Curly and Moe
hills.
Master Peking Duck says in his
motivational, CD, “Duck Sense”TM “STRESS WILL KILL YOU! It
creates a blockage, which manifest a breakdown of the internal flow
sometimes causing headaches, self-depletion and disease.” Master Peking
Duck goes on to say: “Our bodies are like a river constantly flowing,
giving and receiving. For example if there is a blockage in a certain part
of the river, the water in that area becomes stagnate, looses nutrients
and soon dies. When we allow stress to take us over we are like a
bumbling beaver who built a big damn that block the flow.” That is a song
I wrote if you want to hear it click on
www.richardpaul.com and you can hear it. It is destine to be a top-10
hit.”
Laughter is the tool needed to pull
away the twigs, stumps and junk that is blocking our inner flow.
How can we be more cheerful and funny?
Robert Frost said, “every morning
make your bed and make up your mind that it is going to be a great day.”
You decide to how you want to handle your daily challenges. Face it, you
can’t change another’s disposition but you can change yourself.”
I have a dear
friend of mine who was one of two librarians at a school library. The
other librarian had a very negative and poor attitude on life. She would
see only the bad and never the good when it came to the children, the rest
of the school staff and generally most people she came in contact with at
work. My friend on the other hand demonstrated a positive uplifting
attitude. She only focused on the good and made it a point daily to have
fun and enjoy her daily work and interactions with the children and staff.
One day the other librarian asked her,
“how can you be so happy all the time? “
My friend quickly replied, “Because I
want to be happy!”
Soon the other librarian began to be a
little more cheerful and playful with the students and staff. My friend
said, “she not only changed her attitude, but she was finally expressing
her inner beauty.” When we make up our minds to include laughter in our
daily routine, we strike a spark that ignites a happier, healthier way of
life.
As an events planner for many major
corporate events I found myself with clients that were not always the
easiest to work with. In most cases these events were not part of their
regular job and because of this they were stepping into uncharted
territory. It was my job to stay calm and collect during these sometime
loud outbursts of verbal abuse.
One time I booked
in a nationally known act for a client who wasn’t familiar with backstage
demands from the artist and their entourage. The morning of the event she
was so stressed out she was screaming and hollering at all the staff and
volunteers. On the two-way radio I heard her scream my name,
“RICHARD PAUL WHERE ARE YOU?”
Her voice was heard through mine and
four other walkie-talkies in the area. It was so loud it caused the
glasses that were stacked up in the VIP tent to tremble. The staff told me
I should run for my life. To tell you the truth my first reaction was to
run, but instead I decided to try something better. When she pulled up in
her golf cart, before she could scream my name I gave her a big bear hug
and then I got on my knees and cried; “I am so sorry I ate the last
pretzel in the VIP bowl, please forgive me!” She laughed then told me to
get into the golf cart. Together we went backstage to find a solution to
the minor crisis.
Neil Simon wrote: “I love living. I
have some problems with my life, but living is the best thing they’ve come
up with so far.”
With laughter there is living, it is
the fuel needed to get through the tough times and helps add flavor to the
good times. It is the one thing we have over animals. If you don’t
believe me tickle your dog; the most he can do is shake his leg.
Any comedian will tell you that most
comedy is something funny that has happened or something that happens
opposite of what we think is going to happen. I have heard of some offices
where in stressful moments they did something as silly as walking down the
hall as penguins or standing on a desk to recite the days goals and
objectives like a Shakespearean actor.
I guarantee that if we all are a
little more comically creative during the rough moments at work we will
bring forth a laugh and ignite a more positive productive workplace.
Copyright Richard Paul 2003
Richard Paul is a funny professional
keynote speaker, trainer, author and ventriloquist who promotes positive
thinking through laughter. His new CD “Duck Sense” offers up seven
hilarious lessons on how to release the negative and affirm the positive.
Each lesson is stuffed with useful information that will change your life
and keep you
QUACKING UP!
For more information visit Richard
Paul’s web site at
www.richardpaul.com or call the
Duck Sense World headquarters at: 800-579-8051 Sign up for the Free Duck
Sense Monthly Ezine:
ventking@richardpaul.com
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