Member-only story
Don’t Sell Yourself Short When Telling Your Story
Being self-effacing doesn't help your own narrative.
I think it’s bad form to make jokes at other people’s expense. Truly, the words, “Oh, I am only kidding!” get from me one response and one response only: “No, you are not. You are saying what you mean and passing it off as a joke so that you don’t have to feel bad about what you said but I do.”
That sounds like a mouthful but you’d be surprised at how easily it rolls off the tongue. The response I get is usually a pretty solid blank stare. They know I’m right and it hits. Hard.
Of course, I frequently make myself the butt of my own jokes. Sometimes I need material and, I mean really, I’m standing right here. We joke about what we know and I have a Ph.D. in me.
This week, my friend Jen and I were helping out a friend of ours. We worked hard all day and I felt it was my sole and express duty to crack as many jokes as I could. There are few things that bring me greater joy than making people laugh.
Inevitably, a joke or three escapes me in which I am the center. I didn’t think anything of it until the end of the day when my friend pulled me aside and had the “may I offer you some feedback” moment.
