THE EDGE ( COMMON SENSE): Tips on Using Humor in Your Wedding Speech

When you see wedding speeches in movies, humor is almost always a part of the performance. The laughter comes easily most of the time in the films but when it comes to real life that might not be as easy for inexperienced presenters. If you're interested in using humor, here are some tips to help you do it well.

Don't Use Jokes

Unfortunately, many people think standard joke are going to be the best route to humor in their wedding speech. That's rarely the case. If you've ever heard a bad comedian trying to deliver jokes, you know how difficult it can be to get the timing just right. If you're nervous, that is going to be even more difficult.

You are better off avoiding standard jokes in your wedding speech. Not only are they hard to deliver well but they just aren't a good choice for this of event. Plus, they rarely seem natural and have a higher risk of falling flat which will only make the rest of the presentation harder.

Choose True Stories

Because most weddings involve a lot of family and friends, adding anecdotes can be your best method of infusing the speech with humor. Almost everyone has done something that could be transformed into a funny story fairly easily. Because the story is true, you will have an easier time presenting it. There won't be a punch line to remember and you're not going to have to worry about timing.

Practice

The most important thing with humor is practice. Comedians may seem like they are winging it on stage but they've done a great deal of rehearsal. If you want to really wow the audience, you need to practice the humor frequently before you present. Practicing will make you feel more comfortable with the story and will help you deliver it in a more natural way. That's important for good humor.

Also, practice will help you whittle down the story into a workable length. Most stories are much longer when we first tell them and you don't want to bore the audience with a bunch of details. Edit the content so it is concise but also as descriptive as possible. Remember that practice will help you make these decisions.

Avoid Being Rude

One of the biggest mistakes people make in their attempts at humor is to mistake insults for legitimate humor. Insult comedy can be funny for some audiences but it is not appropriate at a wedding reception. Although you can make some playful stabs at the groom, you want to avoid saying anything that might be misconstrued as an insult to him, his new wife, or any of the guests. If you're not sure, ask someone else for their opinion.

Keep It Clean

Explicit humor is not a good idea at weddings either and neither is foul language. Even if children are not going to be present, you want to avoid these elements of humor because they may be offensive to some of the guests, such as the parents or grandparents of the couple.