How to Make Yourself Laugh

Laughter is a great remedy for both the body and mind, as well as for social well-being. Laughing frequently can help improve your mood, reduce stress, enhance heart health, alleviate pain, and strengthen relationships. People with a good sense of humor tend to be more resilient and better equipped to handle stressful situations in the future. You can still find humor in difficult moments and unfortunate circumstances. Try different ways to make yourself laugh and find what works best for you.

Use the laughter of others to create joy for yourself. Laughter is contagious and has a mirroring effect. When you watch and listen to others laugh, your mirror neurons activate, allowing you to connect with the emotions of those who are laughing. This is what triggers you to laugh along with them. Laughing becomes easier when you share in the moment, and jokes become more enjoyable.

• In fact, this mirroring effect is so powerful that it doesn’t even require a joke to spark it. Try watching videos or listening to recordings of babies laughing for no obvious reason. You’ll notice yourself starting to smile along with them.

Share humorous videos. Watching comedy shows, movies, and short clips is a great way to make you laugh, but they can lose their effect if you watch them repeatedly. After a few replays, you may still feel happy, but you won’t laugh out loud as much. You can share videos with others. Your anticipation of their laughter will make you laugh too.

• Instead of just watching, you can follow the reactions of the person you shared the video with. Their response will become the source of laughter, not the video itself.
• Free video sharing sites like YouTube are a great source for funny clips.

Tell jokes to others. Memorizing a few good jokes means you’re ready to make people laugh anytime. Different types of humor suit different people, so collect a variety to ensure you can get a laugh in any situation.

• Comic books and magazines are rich sources for jokes of all kinds. You can also find plenty of jokes online.

Take funny photos of yourself and friends. Consider funny outfits or make amusing faces. You’ll likely discover humorous aspects of yourself in the photos.

• If you're not in the mood for taking pictures, you can use apps or software to turn old photos into funnier versions.

Modify lyrics and sing popular songs in your own way. People often find humor in unexpected details. You can tap into this by taking something familiar, like a popular song, and altering it slightly to create fun. Find the lyrics and change a few key words. The next time you hear that song with your friends, you can sing your own version.

• You can find cover songs on YouTube or other sharing sites to use as examples.

Share your embarrassing stories. Humility in humor helps make others feel at ease and can also make you feel more comfortable. This is especially useful in tense situations. Besides boosting your mood with laughter, you also bring people closer as shame is a universal feeling we all can relate to.

• Think about the times you tripped or misspoke. These kinds of mishaps are incredibly common, and anyone can empathize with them.

Recall embarrassing events with those who were there with you. Reviving such fun memories shows that you're not too serious and are opening up to others. This lightens the mood and can spark a common topic of conversation.

• When choosing a funny moment to reminisce about, consider situations with surprising endings. The mismatch between expectations and reality is often seen as humorous by many.

Create a reality check for yourself. The prospect of success is the key to feeling happy. Recognize that you're just as silly as anyone else. You have your own irrational beliefs, biases, traditions, and quirky habits.

• If you're trying to identify your own sense of humor, try making a list of things that scare you, even the small ones. You'll find fears that have no legitimate reason. Are you afraid of going into a dark attic by yourself? Have you ever been wary and skipped a horror movie about a place where danger might lurk?

Find joy in the absurd. Acknowledge the crazy things in life. They may seem meaningless but are often tied to emotional energy. Think about those times when you had intense debates over something trivial, like what to eat for dinner tonight or who the greatest superhero of all time is.

• "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" is a prime example of the absurd. If you don't enjoy reading, you can watch the Disney film adaptation.
• If you're stuck trying to find the absurd in your life, create it. You can easily drag a friend into an absurd discussion about anything.

Seek out interesting people, those with whom you can share your sense of humor. Building connections with humorous individuals will increase the frequency of humor in your daily experiences. People with similar comedic traits tend to influence each other, boosting their personal sense of humor.

• If you don’t often share laughter with the people around you, consider finding a comedian. You can explore online comedy shows or live performances. This will also bring you some joy to share with others in your life.

Shift your perspective on a bad situation. Stressful situations can be alleviated by changing the way you view them. Try stepping out of the situation and imagining yourself as an outsider observing everything. A tragic scenario may appear humorous once we detach from the actual threats involved. By referencing an outsider's perspective, you will make the dangers seem more manageable.

• If you find it difficult to step away from a bad situation, consider imagining how much worse things could get. Then, visualize some absurd outcomes that could unfold. This will provide new perspectives and lighten your mood.

Confront stress and discomfort. You may want to quickly get through awkward situations, but taking a moment to acknowledge them can reveal a wonderful opportunity for humor. A simple comment like “this is terrible” can diffuse the tension and bring a surprising sense of relief.

• It’s best to talk about your discomfort with people you are very familiar with. Those experiencing social anxiety may not appreciate your attempt to lighten their uneasy mood.