A concept I found really interesting in the chapter was humor. Working on a group project or presentation can be pretty stressful. There are time constraints, disagreements, and arguments during the group process. It is always nice to have some humor involved to relieve possible tension and inevitable stress. Usually, it takes an individual’s mind off all the pressure of getting things done a certain way. When someone tells a funny joke, everyone feels relieved and relaxed from working long hours. It makes people think that not everything needs to be taken seriously. Humor also helps the group move forward whenever they are stuck on a particular task. Most importantly, it does not hurt to laugh every once in a while, especially during stressful times.
In my experience in group projects, there were always jokes involved. There were times where I thought it was very distracting and wasted our group time. Back then, I was mainly focused on getting the assignment done the right way and turned in on time. It was bad of me to not listen to someone’s joke. I later understood that humor was a significant part of group work. It helped me relieve all the stress and nerves in working on an important project. I noticed that humor certainly helped bring the group closer together and allowed all of us to be more open.
Ari,
ReplyDeleteI agree! I don't think that people put enough emphasis on humor. It can relax the group, make things a bit easier, and really change the group for the better. It especially helps if a group member can laugh at them self, understanding that it will let the other group members know that it's okay for them to laugh at whatever shenanigans are going on at the time. One thing that took a while for me to understand was that just because someone was laughing at me for a reason doesn't mean that they are laughing at me as a PERSON, just for the fact that I did something amusing. I think that if everyone realized this, groups could run a lot smoother.
I agree with you that humor is definitely an important concept to use. Like you, I also thought jokes were distracting and wasted time; however, I realized that it makes the assignment more enjoyable. For example, for our group facilitation assignment, the group members were unfamiliar to each other but they quickly became comfortable with one another. The purpose of the project was to pick a leader and discuss the given questions. Each person was focused on the assignment and enjoyed the process along the way. I like that each person was at ease because the outcome was positive. When one of the members was sarcastic, the group understood that the purpose was to come to an agreement rather than a crucial decision. By the end of the assignment, everyone continued in conversations and also getting to know each other, which was potential in building new friendships.
ReplyDeleteHi Ari!
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with your blog posts. They say that "laughter can be the best medicine" and that is very true. When we laugh in a stressful situation, we often break the ice. When we are nervous and someone cracks a joke, we instantly become more comfortable.
While I am okay in the small group settings at work or school in terms of stress, I get really nervous at performance evaluations at work. I know I am doing a great job and I end up getting a great review, but I always get nervous. The last review was memorable because as soon as I walked into the Principal's office (she's my boss), she made a joke about the Canadian hockey team losing to the USA in the round robin during the Olympics (I'm Canadian and love hockey) and I instantly eased up. It helped me so much.
Great post!
I like to say I agree with our blog. Not only is humor good for just communication, but it’s just got for the body period. Humor uses the power of verbal communication to share messages, relieve stress, support group fantasies, integrate ideas, support common values, convey messages and meaning to people, and help listener acceptance. (Bolman & Deal, 2003). Humor has played many roles in groups as well as other positions. For example, when working in groups I always have jokes and laughter with my group’s members not to just get them laughing, but just to get them to feel comfortable working around me. In doing this I have brought new ideas in our groups projects and even made things little creative just from laughter. I feel laughter is important in our daily lives it helps the heart and makes us feel young again. I just like to say was a good post to hear because I’m one of them people that incorporate humor in my daily life. Good post to read.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the concept you chose in humor. I believe humor is something that relieve stress especially around a group. This happens a lot when working in groups and meeting people in a group for the first time. Usually when I introduce myself to the group I say, my name is Orville, like the popcorn, and it gets a fell laughs and the group becomes more comfortable with each other and that usually gets everyone to start to introduce themselves and it that is where you can something related to there story or introduction. Also too some teachers like to do ice breakers to introduce each other like telling each other a joke. My favorite joke is what is Bruce Lee's favorite drink...wa ta. I really enjoyed your post and you did a really good job.
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