Courtney Bickert – Employing Humor For Competitive Advantage

SEASON: 4 EPISODE: 10

Episode Overview:

I’m sure we could all agree that we could use more laughter and humor in our personal and professional lives. Humor is universal, it’s empowering, it’s safe, and it’s scientific. Humor can help you create innovative solutions and products, improve staff morale and retention, increase sales, and the ability to tackle key challenges. 

To help us understand the power of humor and laughter for building impactful, resilient, happy, and healthy leaders, teams, and organizations is my guest, speaker, facilitator, and comedian, Courtney Bickert.

Guest Bio: 

Courtney Bickert is a global citizen, leader, and management expert and stand-up comedian committed to positive social impact around the world through innovation, partnerships, endless curiosity, and humor. She is currently a Senior Executive Recruiter in the nonprofit and purpose space with DRiWaterstone Human Capital where she works to match amazing talent with important missions. 

Courtney has proven organizational leadership with 30 years’ experience in international development and foreign affairs and has worked in, and traveled to, over 100 countries. Courtney has led organizational transformations and the development of new revenue models and communications for large international organizations. As a skilled fundraiser, she has raised over $100 million dollars for international non-profits. 

Courtney is also a stand-up comedian with significant formal training in the techniques of stand-up comedy, including Second City, the DC Improv, and the American Comedy Institute. She uses this knowledge to work with leaders, organizations, and teams to maximize their effectiveness and impact and bring the power of “funny” into their lives, work, and organizations. Courtney has an MBA/MPP from The University of Chicago. 

Resource Links:

• Website: https://www.laughing-matters.com/
• Product Link: https://www.laughing-matters.com/services/

Insight Gold Timestamps:

03:04 It was knowledge, attitudes, practices, all of the above

03:59 So I’m starting the condom training with 200 Siberian nurses

07:12 I really liked humor, so I started doing standup while I was looking for a job

09:25 I have never seen a team consistently have so much fun together 

10:33 You teach that humor is universal

13:15 You’re actually mimicking and mirroring more than just their facial expressions

15:02 Children laugh something like 4,000 times a day

16:32 A sense of humor is really understanding, seeing, and expressing incongruities

18:39 Jokes at others expense are always on the edge

19:32 Humor has to be genuine and has to be authentic

19:54 An exercise that we do in comedy school 

23:13 They did a study with a group of students

23:55 All the pleasure and reward parts of your brain are being stimulated when you laugh

26:01 Is there a formula or process that you follow?

27:54 That’s one way, just observing, taking note, and then sharing

29:27 I think my superpower is curiosity

31:11 Why do we laugh at those things and circumstances that are like that?

34:45 Mark Twain: Humor is mankind’s greatest blessing

Connect Socially:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/courtney-bickert/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/courtney.bickert/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7DeLtP4HLwBMj2wWiFyZhQ

Email: cbickert@gmail.com

Sponsors: 

Rainmaker LeadGen Platform Demo: https://bookme.michaelvickers.com/lite/rainmaker-leadgen-platform-demo

Rainmaker Digital Solutions: https://www.rainmakerdigitalsolutions.com/

Resources: https://becomingpreferred-podcast.com/resources/

Next Episode: Creating Cross Culture Connections with Dr Kristina Wachter!