According to a study reported in the “Journal of Business Communications,” group laughter appears to be a resource that can be used to improve performance and, through this, the achievement of the goals of an organization. Obviously, improving performance and achieving goals is important to a human resource professional who plans meeting, as well as to an event or meeting planner.  It’s also important to those who conduct web conferences or virtual meetings. Therefore, when planning your next event for executives, sales people, employees or customers, here are just four benefits to keep in mind with regard to incorporating laughter and fun at your meeting.

Cohesion:

Laughter is like yawning – it’s contagious. And most meeting planners or human resource professionals would rather hear a roomful of laughter than see a roomful of people yawning. How many times at a web conference do you see attendees turn away from the “action” and start texting on their phone? Laughter brings people together. It allows them to drop their “guard” at a meeting and become “one” with the group. Furthermore, during coffee breaks or networking functions, attendees have a tendency to share what they thought was funny or humorous with each other. This greatly helps those who are not “outgoing” to strike up conversations with others, which fosters communication and teamwork.

Increased Comprehension:

Dr. William Fry, professor emeritus at Stanford University School of Medicine, stated “Laughter aids memory and increases alertness and concentration.” Studies reveal that you can’t think and laugh at the same time. Therefore, laugher acts as a “mental wash,” allowing the brain to take a break. This break then provides the mind with an opportunity to absorb more information. Plus, when you laugh, you remove carbon dioxide from your system at an increased rate and replace it with an increased amount of oxygen, which stimulates not only the brain, but also the whole body. Therefore, you are more alert and can concentrate more efficiently.

Aid in Stress Reduction:

A study at Stanford University showed that laughter stimulates the “feel good” chemical in your blood, which lessens the feelings of stress and makes you “feel happy.” These same chemicals also increase your immune system.

During a web conference, I usually am there to add some humor and fun to the meeting. However, at the vast majority of events at which I am hired to speak, in addition to providing laughter and fun, I also deliver content. One area on which I am most frequently asked to provide information is diminishing stress. The two areas that deliver the most stress are people being asked to do more with less and having to deal with change in the workplace. (These changes may stem from acquisitions, new products or procedures, government restrictions, heightened sales projections, increased competition, etc.) In both cases, the result is unhappiness and stress. Since most meetings focus on the announcement of future expectations from the group, as well as changes that will occur in the workplace — a little bit of humor can make dealing with that information a little easier. As Mary Poppins once said, “A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down!”

Most human resource professionals would agree that stress is a major concern. Numerous reports not only state that stress related illnesses cost employers approximately $300 billion a year, but also affirm that unless these issues are addressed, the costs will continue to go up. Stress attacks your immune system, which causes a variety of illnesses.

In fact, a 20-year study conducted by the University of London stated that unmanaged reactions to stress were a more dangerous risk factor for cancer and heart disease than either cigarette smoking or high cholesterol foods. Therefore, to cut costs, it behooves corporations to be pro-active in reducing stress. Taking this into account during meetings and events is a step in the right direction.

Overall Satisfaction and Productivity:

When your group is having fun, not only is the overall satisfaction of your meeting or web conference increased, but so is participation, which means productivity. After all, if a meeting is just one speaker and power point after another, how much satisfaction or participation from your group would you expect?

Psychologist Maren Rawlings from Swinburne University in Australia conducted an amazing study on humor in the workplace and found a direct link between the climate of good humor in the workplace and employee satisfaction. Rawlings noted, “If employers take measures to encourage a positive humor climate in the workplace, they are more likely to retain their staff.”

Why will the staff be retained? Because they are having fun! Happy employees are productive employees. This finding can easily be translated to meetings, as a happy audience means increased overall satisfaction, which means heightened attention, participation, and, therefore, productivity.

As you can see, there are a few good reasons why providing laughter at your meeting is beneficial. An easy way to obtain these benefits is by engaging a funny motivational speaker for your event. If you would like to see how I have been helping companies worldwide offer this to their groups, visit my funny motivational speaker site.

©2012 Bob Garner. All Rights Reserved. You may use this article, but you must use the byline and author resource.

I work with many meeting planners and not long ago, I was scheduled to be the morning entertaining motivational keynote speaker for a large corporation. In a phone call to the meeting planner, I found out that she – unknown to the actual client – had scheduled me to speak while the audience was eating breakfast.

I’m known as a funny motivational speaker who actually has something to say and my presentations are highly interactive. The meeting planner knew that my client wanted me to kick-off the day with an informative, motivational and fun presentation and having me speak while the audience was eating would not only not achieve that goal, but also was a prime example of poor planning.

Meeting planners and event planners know that speakers are a prime component of meetings and making sure the audience receives the full benefit of the person speaking, as well as ensuring that the speaker has what he/she needs to effectively deliver the presentation, is essential to the success of the speaker, as well as to the overall event. When this does not occur, the result is a poor experience for the speaker and the audience, as well as “egg on the face” of the event planner.

The following 5 steps will aid you in making sure the presenter and the audience, as well as your client receive the full benefit of utilizing a speaker at your meeting.

1 – No Speakers While the Audience is Eating:
People don’t like to be disturbed while they eat. How do you concentrate or even listen to what a speaker has to say while you’re passing the salt? Oftentimes, due to the room set-up, during meals some audience members have their back to the stage, which means the speaker has the pleasure of speaking to the backs of the heads of the audience. (It’s rude to the speaker and the audience.) Presenters like audiences to pay attention to what they have to say and that won’t happen, if the audience is engaged in eating.

2 – Position the Audience Close to the Speaker:
Placing a dance floor or tons of audio/visual equipment in front of the speaker so that the audience is 20-30 feet away from the stage provides an automatic disconnect from the speaker. A good presenter wants to see the faces of the audience to gauge their program and make any adjustments. Keep the audience close to the speaker.

3 – Clarify Walk-On and Walk-Off Music:
Recently at a large meeting, they introduced the chairman of the board by playing an unrecognizable song by the late James Brown. Instead of applauding the chairman when he arrived on stage, the room went quiet… no applause. The COB just stood there. It was a very uncomfortable moment and that’s never good, when you’re dealing with the COB. Pay attention to the details. Make sure that you go over the music that will be used to bring people on and off the stage.

4 – Don’t Clutter the Stage:
I recently did a presentation where the stage was so full of plants and flowers. I thought I was speaking in the nursery section of a Home Depot. When the director of sales came up to speak, he said to the audience, “Wow – look at all these flowers! Who died?” Of course, everyone turned toward the meeting planner and laughed. Let me ask you, is that a “good thing?” Keep it looking simple and smart. Having a nicely decorated stage is appropriate, but don’t go overboard.

5 -Read and Follow the Rider:
Most professional speakers have a rider, which is a document that explains what he/she will need in order to do his/her job effectively. Speakers create riders for a reason – they know what they need. We have all heard the stories about rock bands asking for something as superfluous as brown M&Ms in their riders. Such a request is usually placed deep in the rider to see if – when band shows up – the asked for items have been provided. That way – the band knows someone has actually read the rider and the stage will be set for the band to do what they were hired to do. If those items are not there – someone is not doing their job. The vast majority of speakers have simple riders and will not request brown M&Ms, but they will request water, proper lighting, a/v, etc. Read the rider. If there is a concern, call the speaker and ask for clarification.

With regard to the meeting planner for my morning event – fortunately, I was able to have her “see the light” and she had me go on after breakfast. It was the correct decision.

Remember, the client hired the speaker to either be entertaining, motivating, informative or a combination of the above. You do a disservice to the speaker, the audience, as well as your client if you don’t help the presenter do his/her job as easily and effectively as possible. While the above 5 tips may seem basic to most meeting planners, they are details that are quite often overlooked. A meeting planner gets paid to pay attention to the details and by doing so you make sure that the “eggs” stay on the plates of your audience … and don’t end up on your face.

Funny motivational speaker Bob Garner works with corporations worldwide to improve employee and sales productivity and performance. In addition to being an entertaining keynote speaker, Bob is an author and syndicated writer.

©2011 Bob Garner. All Rights Reserved. You may use this article, but you must use the byline and author resource.

Most companies hold hospitality events and provide the usual drinks and snacks or other food. With regard to hospitality suite entertainment, occasionally, there is a band or disc-jockey, a casino night, etc. These are considered “the norm,” and do little to differentiate your event from the next. Obviously, to go beyond the normal, requires doing something different.

If you want to go beyond the normal, then you may want to enlist the aid of mentalist Bob Garner. Bob is a mind reader and entertainer that adds the “WOW” factor to any event. Primarily because mind reading is such a personal thing, yet it can be performed in front of large groups, as well.

Having your mind read  – in a fun way – is something that most people have never experienced. Bob is a master at getting people involved in his show and making your guests feel special. Unlike walk-around magicians who have a tendency to interrupt conversations, Bob is stationed behind a table with chairs in front. This allows for a more sophisticated setting and allows your guests come to him and stay as long as they like.

Needless to say, his station is always full and, even more importantly, your guests talk about your event long after it is over. You may want to check out the video below, where one of Bob’s recent clients confirmed that Bob “rocked” the house at their latest hospitality event.

When deciding on how to make your next hospitality suite or event more memorable, make sure that you go beyond the normal and provide your guests with something they will remember and talk about… after your event is over.

After all, you can spend a lot of money on food, drinks, or a disc-jockey, as well as a casino night, but how much “mind share” do you think you will receive for that expenditure?

Just click on this link: hospitality suite entertainment – to see Bob’s video demo. You can find more information by going to his mentalist Bob Garner site and scrolling down to “Hospitality Suites.”

Public domain late 1800's

It was 85 years ago on Halloween at 1:26 pm in Detroit, MI, when Harry Houdini took his last breath. Houdini is the person who is probably more responsible for keeping the art of magic alive than any other magician who has ever lived. In fact, if you ask most people to think of a famous magician, Houdini is probably one of the first names uttered.

Houdini’s secret was that he not only understood marketing and advertising, but also, even more importantly, he had a great product – he was an escape artist. He possessed the ability to escape. People desire to escape. People want to “break loose” from reality and their problems, as well as the chains that bind them to their everyday existence.

Houdini used that desire to create impossible situations and then he would escape from them. Houdini would accept challenges from other people and then escape from those challenges, as well. His escapes were based on a vast knowledge of what was going to be binding him – handcuffs, leg irons, a straightjacket, etc. – and then developing an exit strategy that would free him. He had unbelievable patience and a determination to succeed.

You can use that same strategy, when faced with a challenge that seems inescapable. Discover all you can about what the challenge is and then, calmly, create an exit strategy that will allow you to overcome it. The key word here is “calmly.” Even though Houdini knew how he would make his escape in advance, sometimes his idea didn’t work, so he had to devise and try another plan. Houdini, even with his most difficult escapes, knew that he must never panic. He was resolved that “in time,” he would always find a way out of the problem.

Therefore, don’t try and “force” an outcome. Develop a plan and move according to circumstance. If you need to change your strategy, do so. However, with any plan you devise, be steadfast in your thinking that you will, ultimately, find an answer to your problem and that you will succeed.

Undoubtedly, Houdini will be remembered as a great magician. But he will also be remembered as someone who showed people that despite any challenge, there is always a way to escape through an understanding of the situation, the development of a flexible plan and then, the calm execution of that plan … with determination.

At the age of 8, Bob read a book on Houdini and was hooked. Today, as one of the leading funny motivational speakers on the corporate circuit, Bob reinforces strategic points of his presentation with magic and mind reading. You can watch his funny motivational speaker video demo for a quick look at Bob’s work. 

©2011 Bob Garner. All Rights Reserved. You may use this article, but you must use the byline and author resource.

In addition to being a funny motivational speaker, I also work with clients worldwide to help them create a bigger “BUZZ” about their products and services at trade shows. I’m usually referred to as a trade show magician or trade show presenter, but I prefer trade show mentalist.

However, what really counts is that I help my clients draw more attention to their trade show booth, as well as deliver key information and then make sure that qualified attendees get scanned and have access to the sales team. This latest testimonial confirms that is what I do.

At many sales or employee events, there are incentive awards given to the top producers or achievers. As a funny motivational speaker, I speak at many of these events and prior to going on, oftentimes I will sit in the audience. Over the years, the comments that I have overheard from the “non-winners” have been interesting. Many have felt that the goals of the incentive program were unrealistic or that the people getting the awards “always win, so why bother…” etc. While such programs may increase profits, they – sometimes – do very little to increase teamwork or morale. In other words, any incentive program, whether it’s a sales incentive program or an employee incentive program, can either be productive … or counter-productive.

An example of a counter-productive program is where the goal is impractical or where only a specific number of participants will win and, therefore, the rest of the group will lose. Many in the group quickly give up or don’t get involved, because they don’t see how the goal can be reached or how they can win. Conversely, a productive incentive program establishes a realistic objective and rewards everyone in the department for reaching that goal. As opposed to the counter-productive program, this approach reinforces teamwork and increases overall morale.

The following 4 steps can aid you in creating a productive incentive program that enhances teamwork and morale, while simultaneously achieving an important goal. I call these steps the 4 D’s:

1) Define the Goal:
What do you want to accomplish? Who will be involved? What can you do to make the goal uncomplicated, include as many people as possible, and eliminate any obstacles to success?

2) Develop a System of Measurement:
How will you measure involvement and improvement? Allow those in the program to contribute their ideas with regard to the rules and the system of measurement, as well as the reward. Participation in the decision process greatly enhances a “team approach” and aids in increasing overall involvement.

3) Determine the Reward:
What reward can the company provide that acknowledges everyone’s contribution to achieving the goal? Consider a company-wide event where all can attend and have fun. Should you wish to reward individuals for specific achievement, think about something nice, but not “over the top,” such as plaques or certificates.

4) Dedicate Time from Leaders to Help:
Get management involved. Have them provide encouragement to all and keep everyone motivated. Leaders are supposed to provide support and guidance, not stand back with their arms crossed waiting to see how the group will perform.

The end goal of any incentive program should be that everyone has fun but, even more importantly, that the participants know the company is grateful for their hard work and dedication to achieving the goal.

Showing a 10-12% increase in employee productivity is just one result that you can expect when you conduct an employee incentive program correctly. My funny motivational speaker testimonial will prove to you it can be done, as will other testimonials regarding sales incentive programs found on my funny motivational speakers site.

Trade show magician Bob Garner has a new testimonial that confirms how he consistently delivers high quality leads and the “WOW” factor to his clients at trade shows.

More than just a trade show presenter, Bob has been working with this client at their large shows for over 7 years! Check out the video and if you want to generate high quality leads and the “WOW” factor at your next exhibit, call trade show magician and trade show mentalist Bob Garner.

A couple of years ago, I started looking for a new associate for my roster and I found the perfect addition in San Luis Obispo magician and mentalist Derek Hood.

He is a great talent, easy-to-work with, highly professional and a nice guy, as well. He is definitely one of the “up and coming” trade show magicians.

I have used him on a number of corporate events and he always delivers high! Last week we sent him to DC for new client Exxon Mobil and he did a great job. In just a few days, Derek heads for Salt Lake City for AHIMA. I know he’ll do well there too!

Asking for the sale is one question that sales managers and sales trainers spend a good deal of time covering, because it’s one of the most important questions a sales rep should ask, yet the least often asked. Understanding that not all reps feel comfortable using the question, “Do you want to go ahead with this?” as a sales closing technique, the following method provides an effective way to ask for the sale by having your client not only agree that he/she can see how your product/service will help them to solve their problem, but also openly affirm that now is the time to act and close the deal.

I first discovered this sales closing tip in “Ziglar on Selling,” by Zig Ziglar. In this great book, Ziglar refers to it as the “Three-Question Close.” To adapt it to my style of selling, I made some alterations and call it the “C.U.T.” approach. It comes from the term “Cut to the Chase” which was first used when making silent movies. The climax of many silent movies was the “chase scene” and during the editing of a film, when it was time to bring the movie to a close (so that the characters could live “happily ever after”), the director would say to the editor, “Cut to the chase!”

When it’s time for you to cut to the chase and ask for the sale, begin by asking your client:

C – “Can you see how my product will help you to …” (State client’s specific need or problem.) If the client says “No,” then you need to uncover what you missed. However, assuming that your product/service does solve their problem and you have presented your case correctly, the answer should be “Yes.” You then ask:

U – “Understanding that, obviously, you are interested in …” (Solving that problem.) Naturally, your client will say “Yes.” You then ask:

T – “Then, truthfully, if you were going to start (solving that problem), when do you think would be the best time to begin?”

At this point, if the client says, “Well, I guess right now” then you can say, “Great. Let’s get the paperwork started.” However, if the client says, “I don’t know” then you need to use what Ziglar called the “Probability Close.” Ask your client, “Okay. I was wondering, on a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 being that you want to go ahead right now – where do we stand?” 

If the client says 7 or higher, then you say, “Specifically, what can I tell you about how we can help you (solve the problem) to move you to a 10?” Then listen very carefully. Your client is close to making the deal and you need to find the concern and provide a solution. If the client says 6 or less, there is major unresolved issue and you’re far from closing the deal. You’ll need to discover that issue and provide an answer.

In either of the above scenarios, after you have reviewed and answered their objections, you ask, “I think I have answered all your concerns. So, on that scale from 1 to 10 – are we at a 10?”

If the client still says, “I don’t know” or “Not yet,” then you can either further penetrate their concerns or make the decision that, perhaps, you might be “spinning your wheels,” and you need to move on to your next client.

If you have answered all of your client’s concerns, asking for the sale is the easiest part of the sales process. Using the “C.U.T.” sales closing technique is a direct way to emphasize that you truly understand your client’s issue and allows your client to concur that your product or service can help solve that issue and that now is the time for him/her to act. Hopefully, by using the “C.U.T.” approach, your sales call will end just like the old silent movies after the “chase scene”… with everyone living happily ever after.

Recognized as a funny motivational speaker who actually has something to say, Bob Garner has worked with corporations worldwide to improve employee and sales productivity and performance. In addition to being an entertaining motivational speaker, Bob is an author and syndicated writer.

©2011 Bob Garner. All Rights Reserved. You may use this article, but you must use my byline and author resource.

Funny motivational speaker and funny emcee Bob Garner “WOWS” another client at their annual National Convention.

Bob reads minds and gets the audience laughing and involved. Bob was the kick-off speaker, as well as the emcee for the “Spirit Contest,” and then delivered an empowering keynote to wrap it all up.

The result: “Bob Garner astounded our audience… A standing ovation!” Check it out.

If you’re looking for an entertaining motivational speaker who actually has something to say; if you’re looking for a funny emcee who can keep your event moving and energized; if you’re looking for a speaker who will deliver the “WOW” factor, then you need Bob Garner. Go to http://www.bobgarner.com .