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Book Leigh Anne now through Gig Salad!
Laughter can improve your health, boost your creativity, unlock your heart, and make your life livelier. And, as, Jimmy Buffett said, "If we didn't laugh, we'd all go insane."
We all have stress - whether it's a major stress such as a chronic illness or having lost a job, or a minor stress such as a bad hair cut or an argument with your teenager about nose rings (you want one, he/she thinks you'd look silly!) But if you can choose a humor perspective from which to view your stresses, you will live a longer, happier life, even if you do have bad hair days every day.
Using humor as a life management tool is not about remembering jokes you read on the Internet or pulling pranks on your friends. It is about choosing to see the funny in life instead of the frustrating. About adding joy to others' lives instead of subtracting it. About avoiding life-o-sucters (people who suck the life out of you) and hanging around with people who make you laugh.
If your organization would like to learn to control stress, manage change, and just plain be happy for a change, you may want to check out the following presentations:
NEW! Unsubscribe! Stress. Impatience. Anger. Perfectionism. Feeling you have to do everything for everyone 27/7. Being connected to everyone all the time and not seeing a way out. What do YOU need to unsubscribe from in order to live a happier, more sane life? This presentation is a fun and funny look how we got in this hand basket and what we can do to opt out. Living the life you want this year may not be quite as easy as pressing the "Unsubscribe" button, but sometimes all it takes is a few simple steps to let go of things you don’t need to hold onto. Learn, laugh, and unsubscribe!
Playing Well with Others: How to Cooperate and Communicate with People (Besides the Ones in Your Head). The only problem with other people is they have their own opinions and agendas... if only they'd see everything exactly the way we do, we'd all get along just fine, right? This session reminds us all of the lessons we knew when we were five about what it takes to make friends, share our toys, and find pleasure and play in everyday interactions with all the people in our lives. A great topic for anyone whose job involves customer service or working in teams.
Becoming Better at Your Job (and Your Life) by Turning Your Brain Off.Is your brain driving you crazy? Do you create stress for yourself by thoughts you can't turn off? Has being plugged in 24/7 started to lead not only to burnout but insomnia, irritability, and ill-timed facial tics (and any other bad "i" words you can think of)? Studies have found that overuse of technology is rewiring our brains in ways that are both good and bad. This session will help you find the power switch on your brain so you can reboot and start over refreshed and relaxed. You'll be amazed at how more productive, creative, and happy you can be.
Don't Get Mad, Get Funny: Using Humor to Manage Stress. A hilarious look at how laughing at stress at work and at home can save your life and your sanity, with a focus on the physiological and emotional benefits of humor and practical steps for finding the funny in the smaller stuff so you have the energy to handle the big things.
Not Talkin’ to Your Generation: Finding Common Ground with People of all Ages. Do you find yourself trying to find a happy middle ground between baby-boomer, Generation X, Y, and millennial co-workers? Don't go prematurely bald wondering what to do, because once you realize that everyone is five on the inside, it's a lot easier for everyone to play well with others. When we stop separating people into BCP and ACP (Before Cell Phone and After Cell Phone) and see beyond age stereotypes, our work and our lives become much simpler and happier.
I’m Flexible as Long as You Don’t Change Anything: How to Embrace Change and Expect the Best. Who are these people and why are they putting stuff in my in-basket? If things around your workplace are changing faster than Superman in a phone booth and everyone is all stressed out with nowhere to go, here's a great opportunity to learn to cope, even thrive, by using your resilience, your optimism and your funny bone as survival tools.
See the Positive, Be the Positive: The Ingredients for Living a Healthier, Happier Life. Life is not always fun. It’s not always fair. And it usually doesn’t go anything like we have planned. Wouldn’t it be great if you could find joy, be optimistic, and laugh anyway? You can and you should. Studies show that people who are joyful, optimistic, and have a good sense of humor not only feel better about their lives, they live longer, healthier lives. You’ll learn simple and fun tips like changing your environment to making optimistic friends, from taking a few lessons from small children and dogs to replacing a negative life philosophy such as "I’m getting nowhere fast" to "Destined for greatness, but pacing myself."
He Said/She Said: Understanding and Optimizing Gender Differences and Work. Do you have trouble communicating with aliens? Recent MRI studies of brain function show just how different men and women are when it comes to how we use language, how we work with others, and even what we do and don’t see and hear. Get up-to-date on how our differences can boost productivity, creativity, and teamwork.
Not Talkin’ to Your Generation: Finding Common Ground with People of all Ages. See description above. This version focuses on management issues created by an increasingly intergenerational workforce.
Humor Them: Using Humor to Educate and Enlighten. If you can get them to open their mouths to laugh, you can get them to open their minds to learn. Try some tricks stand-up comedians use to liven up any presentation. Learn how to balance humor and content, what types of humor to focus on and avoid, how to use music, props, and costumes, and what to do when the Silly String hits the fan.
It’s one thing to sit and listen and laugh and another to roll your sleeves up and break out the crayons or the ukulele! Leigh Anne specializes in creating fun interactive experiences that teach practical skills – from improved communications skills (good for anyone who ever has to open his or her mouth), to dealing with personal and professional change, to learning to be more creative and take more risks. With more than fifty different interactive exercises, props and toys galore, and the ability to create a game show about anything, Leigh Anne’s breakout sessions are more fun than a barrel of monkeys singing polka tunes and hula-hooping.
Interactive sessions give participants a chance to have fun while building their humor skills. Whether playing Pirates of the Cubicle or working with a group of kindergartners to solve global warming or joining a silly sing-a-long about coffee, all of Leigh Anne's exercises and games are hysterical and educational at the same time. You can choose from activities that build teams, enhance communications skills, help resolve conflict and lessen interpersonal stress, and increase creativity.
I don’t have to fly. You don’t have to pay big bucks (just little ones). I don’t get patted down (unless I just make a trip to the airport just for that service). You don’t have to worry about my flight being delayed. I do less commuting and the planet heaves a sigh of relief.
If you have video teleconferencing facilities onsite or in a convenient location, I can be here and there at the same time (it's like Star Trek, only funnier and less logical). Contact me for more info on how this works and why it might be just the option for you.
One-hour keynotes involve lots of props, lots of practical ideas, and lots of laughs. Two and four-hour workshops expand upon the learning process, giving participants an opportunity to work together to implement newly-learned humor tools. Each presentation may be tailored to the specific needs of the organization (more so in the longer workshops.) If your conference has a theme, that theme can also be integrated into the workshop. In addition, if your organization is also searching for evening entertainment, I am available for stand-up comedy tailored to your needs.
In the past 15 years, more than a quarter million people have attended my presentations. Some of their comments: "The most motivating speaker I have ever heard"..."You made me laugh. You made me think. Now I'm going to change"..."You were wonderful! I am amazed at your wonderful knack for providing excellent information coupled with personal insights that bring your presentations home!"..."I laughed so hard, I didn't realize how much I had learned"..."Without a doubt, the best speaker I have ever heard."
Prior to beginning a career as a humorist, stress management expert, and motivational speaker, I was a health educator and ran the wellness program of The University of Texas - Houston Health Science Center. I am also a stand-up comic, comedy instructor, and humor writer (I have 14 published humor books and three self-help books about humor and play, including I'm Not Getting Older (I'm Getting Better at Denial), Give Me a Break: For Women Who Have Too Much to Do, Bedtime Stories for Dogs, and Bedtime Stories for Cats, The Rules for Dogs.)
To join me in a laugh-filled and learn-filled adventure that will make your employees or organization members happier, healthier, and more productive, call (541) 688-1674 or email me at lajfun@accidentalcomic.com . And remember, there is not one single shred of scientific evidence that life is serious!
Here is a partial list of some of the organizations for whom I have presented: