Crossing the Humour Line
Do you know if your humour is crossing any lines at work? What are some red flags when it comes to inappropriate humour in the workplace? Is just asking yourself this question a red flag?
I think back to a time in my military career when new harassment laws had been passed by the federal government and the brass were trying to explain to the troops how this was going to change their behaviour. Some of the ‘boys’ were quite defensive about having to check in before telling a potentially offensive joke. I chimed in at this point. I said that the fact that you’d have to check in before telling a joke is telling you that it’s probably inappropriate to begin with. It was a challenge for some dealing with this change
In all honesty, I don’t know exactly where the humour line is drawn. Very few do. Even something you consider to be an innocent comment might be perceived by someone as offensive. The line varies depending on the workplace culture and your relationship with the people you work with. Even sarcasm can be a risk, especially with people you don’t know well. But if you have a close relationship with someone at work then of course there are times when you might be freer with your words because the relationship allows for that.
Here are a few red flags to watch for:
• You find yourself looking around the room to see who’s present before making a comment or joke.
• Before making your comment, you add the disclaimer: “I’m not racist/sexist/anti-whatever, but…”
• Your humour “punches down”. This means, in theory, you can often get away with humour poking fun at the higher-ups, whereas managers making fun of their employees is considered punching down. It’s far safer and more effective as a leader to turn the punchline on yourself.
• You see pained facial expressions on the people around you. You can’t always trust the laughter because people will even laugh when they’re nervous or trying to fit in or make others happy.
• Someone speaks to you about it later and shares that they didn’t find it funny. If one person found it unfunny, there are probably others that just can’t be bothered to say something.
The bottom line is, like everything else we do with others, to be more compassionate, empathetic, and kind. Humour is wonderful but use the kind that doesn’t target or demean or disrespect anyone, present or not.
Karl Plesz
Your Productivity Guru
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