National Tell a Joke Day-Landon Tells You How to Deliver a Good One

I've been telling jokes on the radio in Lubbock, and some other Texas cities when I was syndicated, since 1996. It's not easy to tell a joke for some people. Heck, it's not easy for ME, and I get paid to tell dumb jokes every day!

Here's the thing: I'm NOT a comedian. I never have been and I'll never claim to be. A comedian does 'bits', which take time (sometimes YEARS) to personally create, craft, work out and tell in front of an audience.

What I do is basically 'dad jokes' on steroids. I used to do a daily joke when I closed my show. Those were more 'street jokes' that are the standard 'Guy walks into a bar...' type comedy. By 'dad jokes on steroids' I mean that I try to do a basic short, one line 'dad joke' that's more topical and crafted for a wider audience. (Full disclosure: I also use professional writers who come up with most of my jokes that you might actually laugh at.)

So, since today is National Tell a Joke Day, here are five elements of telling a great joke...

1.  Relax. If you feel awkward, so will the other person or your audience.

2.  Set up the premise. That's what the joke is about. Otherwise the audience might not "get it" and your joke will fall flat.

3.  Timing is crucial. A great comedian knows when people are going to react to a bit, what to play up, and when to pause. Timing is also important for setting up punchlines and making a joke come off as natural rather than rehearsed.

4.  Bring some drama. This might include changing your voice to emphasize certain words, or using hand or body gestures to go with certain parts of the joke.

5.  Tighten things up. Every word of a great joke matters, either to the story or to the rhythm of the bit. It should be tight and condensed, with no extra words or information.  Otherwise your audience might get bored. This is sometimes called 'economy of words'.

Now, take those tips, get out there and tell a joke! Here's one of my all-time favorite 'street jokes' that you can use to practice. (PG-13):

Two men are walking through the forest when they stumble upon a large sinkhole.

Guy says, "Woah! This thing looks deep; how deep down do you think it goes?"

The two men search around for a long stick or branch to assess the depth, but find nothing of use.

They continue their search and they stumble across an old, rusty anvil; and naturally, they haul the anvil over and toss it into the hole.

They wait and wait, but they don't hear anything happen.

Suddenly, a donkey comes running full speed ahead and just leaps into the sinkhole!

The two men are shocked, "Did you see that donkey!? I've never seen an animal sprint like that!"

Minutes later, a farmer comes sprinting into the scene and says, "Guys! Have you seen my donkey? He was just on the farm and completely took off!"

One of the men answers back, "He was just here! He came sprinting through the woods and took a leap into this sink hole!"

The farmer answers back, "No, that's absolutely impossible. He was tied to an anvil."