Jokes Can Get You Fired – No Kidding!
Telling a joke at work can cost you your job.
Lisa B. Marshall
Off-color jokes at work are no laughing matter. You can easily offend people in ways that never even occurred to you. And that can lead to a reprimand, or even a pink slip.
This is where the old adage “Better safe than sorry” has merit. If you hear or read a great joke while at work, please wait until you get home to share it with your friends and family. Or, if you want to be funny at work, consider telling self-deprecating jokes instead.
Don’t get me wrong, I love a laugh. In fact, I highly recommend big belly laughs every day, because it lowers blood pressure and activates endorphins that make you feel good! What I don’t recommend is telling jokes at work that are indecent, impolite, or politically incorrect.
It’s just not worth the risk.
Co-Workers image courtesy of Shutterstock
About the Author
Lisa B. Marshall Lisa holds masters with duel degrees in interpersonal/intercultural communication and organizational communication. She’s the author of Smart Talk: The Public Speaker’s Guide to Success in Every Situation, as well as Ace Your Interview, Powerful Presenter, and Expert Presenter. Her work has been featured in CBS Money Watch, Ragan.com, Woman’s Day, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, and many others. Her institutional clients include Johns Hopkins Medicine, Harvard University, NY Academy of Science, University of Pennsylvania, Genentech, and Roche.