"The shortest resignation letter would be, 'Dear boss, I love your wife'. Either your boss will fire you or he will make you the CEO," opines funnyman Sajid Khan. We guarantee you that such an audacious joke at office will only land you in trouble. We also guarantee you that a good joke will go a long way in soothing frayed nerves and making you popular with your colleagues. Trust us, a sense of humour at work is as important as fancy degrees and serious experience. Here's why: 

Please repeat the question?
How often have you encountered a situation when someone asked you question at a presentation and you were left blinking? There really isn't any point trying to wriggle out of these embarrassing situations by concocting answers and tossing hi-sounding words to make the answer sound at least a wee bit convincing. When you're talking crap, everyone knows that you're talking crap. The best thing to do is to crack a joke at your own expense. Make people laugh and people will forget that you really couldn't answer the query.

Tickle their funny bone
Imagine a situation when you've had a tiff with a colleague. One stray joke can do much more than a detailed peace treaty. We're sure you don't really enjoy giving explanations. So, we're telling you to abandon all the serious talk and just go to your colleague and crack a joke on yourself. If s/he finds it funny, you could be cheeky enough to crack one on him/her too. Statutory warning: Do it at your own risk.

You're funny, honey!
If you want to be loved at office, we suggest you start taking jokes on yourself lightly. Be magnanimous enough to allow colleagues to take pot shots at you, but don't forget to return the favour. A little give and take is necessary in office. If you want your fanclub to grow, a sense of humour is very important, feels Sajid. "If you're funny then you're wicked, which makes you charming and interesting to most people."   

Climb the funny ladder
With a sense of humour comes confidence. So if you have to talk to the heads of your company, you'll invariably be comfortable with them. A joke here and there will win you a few brownie points from the biggies because everyone enjoys being in the company of cheerful and witty people.

Joke after a storm
So what if you've made a grave mistake! Agreed that you were wrong and probably even negligent and foolish and irresponsible and impetuous and lazy ….  but now is the time for some damage control. Just go up to your boss, say you're sorry, give an explanation and laugh off your mistake. But make sure your boss has a funny bone and is in a good mood when you approach him/her. Because as Sajid puts it, "What is funny to a person may not be humorous for the other. A person's sense of humour can't appeal to all." So study your boss before you start firing your jokes at him/her.

Laugh till you drop
Style statement: I am most comfortable in a pair of jeans and T-shirts. Previously my size was XL and now I have moved to M and it's a great feeling. I like to dress for myself and I don't believe in changing fashions or hairstyles just to be in vogue
Fashion Faux Pas: I feel that many people get bored with their appearances very fast. They try to change styles very often. Personally, I find a man's obsession with his looks a little silly. A man should be basic and simple 
Humour me: I am not very funny. I love to interact with people and derive my funny quotes from their statements. Over a period of time, I have realised as to what you should say to whom and where

What makes them funny…

Rakhi Sawant
Brand of humour: Crass, audacious
Image portrayed: Dumb blonde
Message sent: Rakhi is inadvertently funny and her outspoken nature makes her hilarious. We laugh at her because she's garish and loud

Jim Carey
Brand of humour: Quirky
Image portrayed: Naive and foolish 
Message sent: Jim's ability to crack jokes at himself, his expressions and his bubblegum movements have us on splits

SRK
Brand of humour: Irreverent
Image portrayed: Witty and suave
Message sent: SRK's quick wit and irreverent disregard of all and sundry make him the charmer that he is

Lalloo Prasad
Brand of humour: Tongue-in-cheek
Image portrayed: Brazen, unsophisticated
Message sent: Even though his clothes aren't the hippest and his accent isn't too polished, we still love his intelligence

sheena.thomas@mid-day.com