卡耐基演講·2.避免以所謂的幽默故事開頭

也許你已經(jīng)注意到了，有一種開場白是很多演講者所鐘愛的，即所謂的幽默故事開場白，這里不再重復(fù)。為了某些可悲的理由，學(xué)習(xí)演講的人經(jīng)常覺得他必須表現(xiàn)得好笑才算演講者。他的本性可能像百科全書那般嚴(yán)肅，缺乏幽默感。然而，當(dāng)他站起來演講時(shí)，他卻幻想著馬克·吐溫的精神正降臨在他身上。所以，他很可能就會(huì)以一個(gè)幽默的故事來開頭，特別是在吃過晚餐后的場合里。結(jié)果會(huì)造成什么情況呢？大概有二十比一的機(jī)會(huì)，他的故事，他這種臨時(shí)改變的態(tài)度，會(huì)造成字典一樣沉悶的氣氛。他的笑話很可能不會(huì)“生效”。以哈姆雷特的不朽名言來說，正好證明了這種笑話是、不新鮮的、老套的，平淡而且毫無益處”。You may have noticed that there is one method of opening a talk, and one much favored by speakers, that is not recommended here: the so-called" funny" story opening. For some lamentable reason, the novice feels that he ought to "lighten up" his talk by telling a joke; he assumes that the mantel of Mark Twain has descended upon his shoulders. Do not fall into this trap; you will discover to your embarrassment the painful truth that the "funny" story is more often pathetic than funny-and the story may be known to persons in your audience.

也許，制造歡樂氣氛最簡單有效的方法，就是拿自己當(dāng)作笑語的題材，敘述你自己遭遇的一些荒謬而尷尬的情景，這正是幽默的本質(zhì)。杰克·班尼使用這種技巧已有多年，他是個(gè)廣播上最早“作弄”自己的重要諧星之一。杰克·班尼把自己當(dāng)笑柄，取笑自己的小提琴技藝，自己的小氣和自己的年紀(jì)。他妙語如珠，亦莊亦諧，使收聽率年復(fù)一年居高不下。對于謁盡巧思，不驕矜自負(fù)，而能幽默風(fēng)趣，不諱言自己的缺陷與失敗的講演人，聽眾自然會(huì)把心扉打開的，另一方面，制造“空殼子”的形象，或無所不知的專家模樣，則徒然造成聽眾的冷漠與排斥罷了。Perhaps the easiest way to create merriment is to tell a story on yourself. Depict yourself in some ridiculous and embarrassing situation. That gets down to the very essence of humor. Jack Benny has used this device for years. He was one of the first major radio comedians to "poke fun" at himself. By making himself the butt of jokes concerning his ability to play the violin, his miserliness, and his age, Jack Benny works a rich vein of humor that keeps his ratings high from year to year. Audiences open their hearts, as well as their minds, to speakers who deliberately deflate themselves by calling attention to some deficiency or failing on their part, in a humorous sense, of course. On the other hand, creating the image of the" stuffed shirt" or the visiting expert with all the answers leaves an audience cold and unreceptive.