Importance of Laughing at Yourself | Jack Canfield

Hi, I'm Jack Canfield. And today I want to explain why learning how to laugh at yourself is one of the most important secrets to a happy and fulfilling life. You know, one of the most valuable skills you can develop in your life is the ability to laugh at yourself. And yet, far too many people never make the effort to develop it. So why is being able to laugh at yourself so important? Well, the reason is that we all embarrass ourselves from time to time. It's inevitable. We're human. But it's not the mistakes that you make in life that define you. It's how you respond to those mistakes that matter. And when you respond with laughter rather than defensiveness or self criticism, it helps you stay focused on the positive and not take your mistakes too seriously, which actually helps you recover from those mistakes much, much faster. For example, let's say you made an embarrassing mistake at work. You know, maybe you flubbed a presentation or you said something really thoughtless in a meeting. There are all sorts of ways you could respond to it. You could pretend it never happened, even though everyone obviously knows it did. You could torture yourself and agonize over it and be afraid to show your face around the office for the next few days. You could refuse to admit it or even blame someone else for it. But none of those responses are going to make you feel better or improve your relationships or produce a desirable result. On the other hand, if you fully own up to your mistake and show that you are able to find the humor in the situation, you'll find more people admiring you for your vulnerability and your candor. And they'll be laughing with you instead of laughing at you. Laughing at yourself is something that not all people know how to do. But if you want a better life, it is something that you need to learn how to do. Laughing, especially yourself, has a lot of powerful benefits. You've probably heard the phrase that laughter is the best medicine. Well, that's because laughter has been scientifically proven to reduce stress, alleviate anger and and shame and bitterness, or any other negative emotions that you might be feeling. It also releases endorphins into your system, which reduce your stress, put you in a more positive mindset, and make you feel both physically and emotionally better. And as you probably already know, it's almost impossible to feel bad when you're laughing. And laughter goes beyond simply relieving stress and making you feel good. Studies also show that laughter actually boosts your immune system, because when you're stressed, your body releases chemicals that weaken your immune system. And when you're laughing, you are dramatically reducing your stress so you don't release those chemicals and you're able to stay more physically and mentally resilient. Not only that, it also lowers your blood pressure and helps to improve your blood flow, which makes laughing really good for your heart. And it increases your oxygen intake and gives you an energy boost. It even helps you to burn a few more calories and works your ab muscles a bit. It won't give you a six pack, but it will help you feel more alert and more alive. So why do so many people have a really hard time laughing at themselves? Well, the main reason is fear. Maybe it's difficult for you to admit any kind of weakness or allow yourself to be seen as vulnerable in any way. Perhaps one of your parents demanded perfection from you, and admitting that you're not perfect is scary. Not being seen as perfect meant losing their respect, their approval, or their love. But when you take yourself too seriously and don't allow yourself to see the humor in a situation, you close yourself off from the opportunity to bond more deeply with the people around you by being more open and more transparent. And that makes life less fun for you and all those people that spend time with you. Now, another benefit of laughing is it increases your ability to retain what you're learning. Research shows that if someone uses humor, such as a joke or a funny story, when they're teaching you, you're more likely to remember what they're teaching. Now, finally, laughter is a powerful tool for cultivating a stronger sense of community and connection. Have you ever been in a room where people are so uncomfortable with each other that you could cut the tension with a knife? It happens to all of us at some point. Well, one of the best ways to defuse a situation like that and turn things around is with laughter. One of the secrets of success of Presidents John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan was their ability to ease the tension in the room and and build rapport with laughter. Let me give you an example of the benefits of laughing at yourself from my own life. About 30 years ago, when I was working for a company called Insight Awareness Trainings, I was scheduled to teach a course for the teachers at a school in Connecticut. Now, I had flown to Connecticut and stayed in a motel the night before. And I was leaving the hotel in my rental car the morning of the workshop, and I took a left turn out of the motel parking lot, ignoring the no left turn sign posted at the exit. Now, I had looked both ways, saw no traffic in either direction, and I went ahead and decided to risk it. But as soon as I completed the turn, I heard a siren and saw a set of blinking blue lights on top of a police car coming up behind me. And when I pulled over and gave the police officer my license and my registration for the rental car, he asked me if I was aware that there was a no left turn sign at the exit of the hotel. I said I was, but that I was not aware of a police car anywhere when I made the decision to make the left turn. He then asked me if I was aware that I didn't have my seatbelt on. Now, in my rush to get to the school on time, I'd forgotten to put my seatbelt on, so I said I wasn't aware of that either. Then he asked me if I was aware that the fly on my pants was unzipped. I looked down. I totally wasn't aware of that. But it was Then he asked me, where are you going so fast? I told him I was going to conduct a workshop at the local high school, and then he asked me what I did for a living, what the workshop was about. I said that I was an awareness trainer. Awareness trainer, huh? He said slowly, with a slightly sarcastic tone in his voice. Then we both laughed as he wished me luck with that, and then he wrote me a ticket for $90. Now, I could have let that event ruin my day, but instead I chose to see the humor in it. And when I shared that story with the teachers that day, we all had a good laugh. And to this day, whenever I tell the story, I still laugh at it. Now, humor is especially powerful when you're able to laugh at yourself in this kind of situation, because not only do you cut the tens, you also show everyone else that they don't have to take themselves so seriously either. And the result is that everyone else is given permission to show up more fully as their authentic selves and thereby forge stronger, more meaningful relationships with each other. And I think you'd agree that that's exactly what the world needs more of these days. Now, I'd like to hear your thoughts after watching this video. Do you think that you could learn to not take yourself so seriously and laugh at yourself more? What kind of impact do you think that would have in your life? And if you have a funny story out of your own life, please go ahead and share that with us all below. So if you feel inspired again, please leave a comment below with your answer or your story. And I'd love to read what you have to say. Maybe we'll all have a good laugh. So thanks for watching today. And remember, everything in your life will only change for the better when you change now. If you found this video helpful, please make sure you like it, share it with a friend who may need it, and go ahead and subscribe to my channel for more videos like this one. And for some additional resources on the power of laughter, be sure to visit my website at jackcampfield. Com. Thanks again for watching.