Yesterday I was on a phone conference with some of the leaders of our Simply Youth Ministry Conference and we were putting the finishing touches on the program elements. Not only are these guys some of my best friends, they are some of the funniest on the planet. Eddie James & Tommy Woodard (the Skitguys) make their living off of humor, Jake Rutenbar is hilarious and his videos are famous in the youth ministry world, Josh Griffin is a riot and one of the guys who always makes me laugh, and Andy Brazelton (big cheese at Group/Simply Youth Ministry)…well, he’s one the nicest and smartest guys I know. But, he’s not that funny…which is totally fine! Well, it would be fine if Andy would just admit that he’s not funny. Instead he tries to compete.
During the phone conference he tried to explain how something he said really was funny. Here’s a rule Andy doesn’t understand: when you have to explain to your audience that something was funny…it wasn’t. We decided to come up with a pact that we’d sign to help Andy come to grips with his lack of humor. While we were on the phone conference (working), Tommy (who apparently was not working) wrote the below pact for all of us to sign. Obviously, fictitious, it’s a symbol of the type of fun we have when we’re together.
I’ve been on a lot of teams, and I’ve led several of them. There’s something about having fun in the context of knowing that you’re loved that adds to the depth and effectiveness of the team. If you just have fun, and it’s not apparent that you’re loved, it can lead to wounding, hurt feelings, and an environment of fear. I don’t know all the elements of building a great team, but I do know two important ones: (1) loving one another & (2) having fun together.
To Whom it may concern:
Being of sound mind and understanding the difference between humor and poorly timed odd interjections into conversations, we the below stated feel compelled if not required to inform and express that of all the people God has created, both past and present, Andy Brazelton is the least funny, that is to say he does not have an ounce of humor in his entire body.
Having made this statement, we expressly warn anyone who may have contact with Andy in any way, be it physical, verbal, digital, viral, etc. to keep this in mind and not expect anything humorous to come from him. Please prepare yourself to be offended and possibly confused by his bizarre, non-humorous statements.
With this statement, consider yourself warned.
Sincerely,
Doug Fields Esq.
Josh Griffin
Jake Rutenbar
Eddie James
Tommy Woodard
Do you have fun with the people you work with? What would it take to create a more joy-filled, playful, environment?
Leave A Comment