36. Cultivating Wit: Part II

Several years ago I was hanging out with a group of friends and we were all having a blast. My best friend was among those gathered. As we all sat around talking and making jokes everyone found themselves being cut off by their own laughter. This was in part because of my friend's diverse humor but mostly because he was so quick to the draw. The thing is, he cultivated this ability to captivate others. So now I'm working on mine!

Here would be a good place to pause and explain what I mean by cultivating wit. If you do a search for how to be witty, you'll find yourself immersed in thousands of webpages where someone merely used a thesaurus to describe how to employ a cheesy pun, often at the expense of others. I find this an unsavory side effect of a poorly educated culture. I say this in full admission of my own previous excursions into this dastardly practice. What we should strive for is the true meaning of wit: the ability to perceive and understand a situation, and to relate to it humorously. These are the two main aspects of wit. We've already talked about how increasing your vocabulary can help. Let's look at these other aspects in detail.

To start we must learn to perceive and understand the circumstances we find ourselves in; whether it be conversation, setting, relevant news, etc. This is simple but not simplistic. The best course of action here is to do exactly what is against human nature: stop focusing on yourself. Begin to pay attention to others, to listen when they are talking. Note the circumstances around you. Be aware of what people are doing, and try to note why they are doing them. What I'm having difficulty explaining in just a few words is this: if you are observant you'll pick up on things much quicker than other people. You'll have more time to process the situation and get out a zinger that'll have everyone cracking a smile.

Also, the more general knowledge you have equals the more general humor you can use. There is a reason that witty people are often portrayed as knowledgeable and educated - because they are! Never stop learning.

Now we come to the more practical part of wit: portraying information humorously. Clever people are often considered such because they appear to think of something that no one else did. But I'll let you in on a secret. There's nothing new under the sun - every thought and action as been done before and will be done again, in some way. It has been accurately said that creativity is the act of remembering what you experience while forgetting where you found it. So grab your billy clubs boys and girls. We're going to knock those smartys over the head and pilfer their humor! Then we'll use it. Here's how:

• Watch TV Most of us suffer bouts of lethargy, and so spend much time in front of the television. Use this to your advantage! Script writers get paid to write good content - if a character says something smart and funny, ask yourself why you laughed. What was the context and is it a line that you can add to your repertoire? This principle applies to movies as well. Movies often have great dialogue.
• Watch OLD Movies This is separate for a reason. Good humor is often timeless. Cinematography was not great in the early 20th century. As such, there was more emphasis on writing than special effects. I can't tell you how many times I've heard a funny line in real life that I later discovered a variation of in an old movie.
• Spend Time with Witty People When in groups seek out the witty people. While they are paying attention to others, pay attention to them. What are they noticing? What conversational cues are they using to deliver with great timing? Watch their intuition and adapt it to your own.
• Quote Comedians But don't always say that you're quoting them. This isn't a research paper. If someone recognizes it, you'll have a great connection there because you appreciate the same funny guy! Just be careful about claiming a quip as your own, so as to avoid egg on your face in case it is recognized.
• Use Your Vocabulary I'm going to stress this again: Use your vocabulary! The only way to get good at applying wit is to practice, and this means you need to say things in different ways. You don't even necessarily need to use big words - just different ones! One word choice could be the difference between laughter or cricket noises. See what words and word combinations people respond to.
• Be Confident and Casual Part of the reason truly clever people are so endearing is because they have an aura of nonchalance. They don't try too hard. If people feel like you're continually attempting to top them (or yourself) then you're missing the point entirely.
• Brush It Off Not everything you say is going to make people laugh. That's okay. You need to first become comfortable saying things you normally wouldn't. It's good to use "smart" words. You really won't look arrogant - unless that's what you're going for. Arrogance is transparent.

Notice a recurring theme? The best way to develop wit is to be around it. Sure, some people have more natural cleverness than others. But that doesn't mean it can't also be learned. I want to add a word of warning that ties these tips together - beware of witty people who want to duke it out. While a battle of wits can be fun between good friends, there are many people who feel personally challenged when this happens. If someone is just out to prove his own intelligence, it's probably better to not get into it. Even if you could accurately call him a sebaceous bovine.

So... what did I miss?