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ATTENTION: To join David Granirer's FREE Ezine mailing list, please go to: www.psychocomic.com/subscribe.htm Thank you. GET MORE LAUGHTER IN YOUR LIFE! Please help us grow by forwarding this e-zine on to others! IN THIS ISSUE PRIVACY STATEMENT: WE WILL NOT DISTRIBUTE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS TO ANYONE. PERIOD. 1. WELCOME FROM THE PUBLISHER ****Come Have A Laugh!***** My stand-up comedy shows start again on January 12 at Cafe
Madeleine, 3763 West 10th Ave., Vancouver. Clean, intelligent
comedy in a smoke-free environment, Fridays at 8:00 p.m. Reservations
recommended (604) 224-5558. Bring in this newsletter and buy
one entree, get second for 50% off. Opening the show are students
from my Langara College Stand-Up Comedy Clinic Course. 2. THE HEALING CLOWNS Youíve probably heard of the organization Doctors Without Borders. Well now thereís Clowns Without Borders, which travels the world entertaining children who are refugees, street kids, and victims of poverty, violence, and war. Theyíve been to Kosovo, Bosnia, the Phillipines, Nepal, and have chapters in Spain, Canada, France, Sweden, Mexico, and the United States. So why send clowns to these places? After all it seems like a frivolous idea. But nothing could be further from the truth. A Canadian foreign aid official who saw Clowns Without Borders perform in Pristina said the effect was magical. Kids whose lives had been filled with hatred, violence and hardship, and who were normally quiet and reserved, were all of a sudden laughing, playing, and running around with clown noses. According to Andrew Hamilton, the Canadian aid official "Children are the key to Kosovoís revival because only they can break the cycle of violence and reprisal typical of the Balkans." And though we may not live in a country at war, that cycle of violence is pervasive. A study at Wake Forest University found that among teenagers who watched wrestling in the previous two weeks, girls were 18% more likely and boys 11% more likely to have a physical fight with a date. Those numbers more than doubled if the teens watched wrestling twice within that period. Watching wrestling may not directly cause violence, but the research suggests that it certainly reinforces it. And then multiply that by all the other violent movies, lyrics, video games, and TV shows that kids are exposed to (the average kid watches 28 hours of TV a week), and you can get a sense of how big the problem is. One way to look at this is that when people experience a regular diet of anger, anxiety, frustration, depression, and fear, then that becomes the sum total of their lives. Groups like Clowns Without Borders can help change that balance, especially in situations like the ones described earlier. Now think about your work environment. What kind of emotional diet are you experiencing? Do the good moments outweigh the bad, or vice versa? Like the children in Kosovo, you may not be able to change some of the external circumstances, but you may be able to change the balance of your experience by creating some good moments for yourself and your coworkers. Though Clowns Without Borders exists as a literal reality, I think it also symbolizes the fact that we all have a clown inside of us, and that sometimes we need to let him or her lead us into a more joyful way of experiencing and reacting to our external reality. Also, most organizations have their own Clowns Without Borders, employees who create good moments by regularly cracking up their coworkers. As far as Iím concerned, these folks are worth their weight in gold. Unfortunately, these workplace clowns often go unrecognized. There is often recognition, bonuses, or awards for employees who achieve certain goals or who improve profitability, but nothing for the folks who bring laughter and a positive spirit to work. So who are the Clowns Without Borders in your organization?
Send me a short email at david@psychocomic.com. Include your
name, the name of your organization, the name of one of your
clowns, and a bit about what he/she does to keep the workplace
humming, and Iíll give this person a mention in this ezine,
as well as sending both of a you a free copy of my tape "Iím
OK But YOU Need Professional Help!" For other free articles about laughter go to www.psychocomic.com/Articles.htm For free back issues of this ezine go to www.psychocomic.com/Newsletter.htm *****GET MORE LAUGHTER IN YOUR LIFE!***** 3. WHAT'S GOOD STORIES It's so easy to see all the bad things around us, that sometimes we forget about all the great things that go on. And we need to hear about good things because that gives us hope and inspires us to go out and do more good things. In this section, I want to hear from you. What's happened in your life that's good? What things have people done that inspire you to be kind to others? What funny things have happened? Email your short stories to me at david@psychocomic.com, and if I publish yours, you get a free copy of my tape "I'm OK But YOU Need Professional Help!" Steve Barkley of New Hope, PA, a trainer who works with schools training teachers and administrators submitted this monthís story: One of my topics is quality. I say that quality is generated by people going above and beyond requirements. Here is my example that happened to me. I arrived at breakfast in the hotel I was staying in to find a wonderful breakfast buffet consisting of omelets, meats, waffles, etc. Since I am watching my weight, I knew I shouldn't indulge. So I asked the host for a menu and a seat with my back to that buffet. I asked the waitress for oatmeal, and in a little while she showed up with my little bowl of it, but I noticed she had a large tray. She said "Mr. Barkley, I didn't know how you'd like your oatmeal so I brought everything I like with mine at home." She had raisins, bananas, strawberries, sugar, brown sugar, Nutra-Sweet, Equal, and the whole array of milk, 1%, 2%, skim, whole. In short, she had brought me an oatmeal buffet. Leaving the restaurant, I got the name of the waitress and
her supervisor and wrote a letter complimenting the quality of
my experience. You'd expect a waitress to be motivated by tips,
but how big of a tip can you expect on a $2.50 bowl of oatmeal?
4. AN OPPORTUNITY TO HELP Clowns Without Borders can be found at http://www.yoowho.org/cwb.html
If anyone has a good cause they'd like to promote please email
me at david@psychocomic.com
5. CLASSIFIED ADS Speakers: Learn how to incorporate stand-up comedy into your
presentations. Check out David's stand-up comedy skills coaching
for presenters at: www.psychocomic.com/ComedyCourse.htm
6. CONTACT INFORMATION David Granirer gives laughter in the workplace presentations helping hundreds of organizations throughout North America reduce stress, increase wellness, and cope with change. For more information on his presentations, stand-up comedy, products, and articles call (604) 205-9242 or go to www.psychocomic.com Special thanks to www.e-zinez.com If you would like to join David Granirer's FREE Ezine mailing list, please go to: www.psychocomic.com/subscribe.htm If you would like to be removed from the mailing list then
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