Jonathan Rogers’s Blog

The Brazen Careerist wrote a story about a study that examined why guys are always trying to make jokes and be “the funny guy” in the group.

They found that women tend to find men who are funny to be more attractive. Ever notice that girl who you know has a crush on you laughs at all your dumb jokes- even though no one else is?

This is probably part of women being hard-wired to select an appropriate mate; people who are funny are generally smart and creative people, because humor is about putting two unlikely things together in a clever way.

So, funny guys can show they are witty and likely to be intelligent and therefore probably earn a lot of money. In the traditional sense, they can be providers that women are looking for in mates and future family.

And men are somehow aware of this, because they are more likely to make jokes if women are around.

Everyone knows this deep down as well. I know I am not the smoothest or best looking guy on the planet, I tend to crack alot of jokes around girls. I tend to think it is just because I am nervous, but maybe subconsciously I am trying to flirt.

But fellas, even if you are already in a relationship, there is a reason to practice that stand up routine.

Chris Robert, professor of management at the University of Missouri-Columbia, says his research shows that people who are funny are more likely to be promoted.

People like to work in a fun environment, if the guy at the copy machine always cracks you up, then you probably don’t have going to work as much, and you are probably more productive.

Finally, most interesting is the take on the common (mis?)perception that girls aren’t as funny as guys generally. The story is that women don’t have to rely on it for flirting and finding a mate, since they only receive and judge it, so they aren’t as sharp at telling a good one-liner.

She notes that many of the really good female comedians are  either gay, (think Ellen DeGeneras, Margaret Cho) and are displaying male traits to pick up females,  or, interestingly, Jewish - Sarah Silverman, but displaying male humor qualities like angst and self-depreciation (and in Silverman’s case poop jokes).

The takeaway: try and be funny. It will either get you the girl or get you the job.