Perhaps a few times a day, we have those magical moments, where, almost wordlessly, we share an emotion or experience with someone. This might be through a moment of human understanding or simply something comical happening, but the internet has allowed us to connect and document these things like never before.
The “Hilarious Textx” Instagram page makes funny and relatable captions for images and experiences we all might find familiar. So get comfortable, scroll through, comment your thoughts, and be sure to upvote the most relatable images here.
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There is nothing like humor to lighten the mood, keep someone entertained, or just make yourself look interesting. While the traditional things one looks for in a partner are attractiveness and the ability to provide, studies show that both men and women report that humor is a vital characteristic when looking for a potential partner. 90% of men and 81% of women in one piece of research rated it as attractive and something they actively seek out.
While the statistics would show that men value humor more than women, men still value physical attractiveness even higher, while women are willing to compromise on attractiveness if the potential partner is funny. Self-deprecating humor, which often does fall into the “painfully relatable” category, is often considered particularly attractive, as it conveys the person’s self-confidence, in that they can actually laugh at themselves.
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Of course, “attractiveness” is just how we measure things we like in other people. Humor and hilarity aren’t fun because they make us attractive to potential mates, it’s just an enjoyable human experience in general. It’s also a great shortcut to bonding, as humor relies on shared experience or understanding, so if two people find the same thing funny, it’s a marker that they might get along. Not just romantically, but as friends, coworkers, or even just neighbors.
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Besides entertainment, humor does have a host of other psychological benefits. First and foremost, feeling good is good for you, surprise, surprise. But research shows that positive humor, as in the ability to be funny and find things funny is connected to better health outcomes. It might not offset a Big Mac, but a few jokes a day could keep the doctor at bay, for a bit at least.
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However, not all humor is created equal, and maladaptive humor does not necessarily help a person with their health. Self-deprecating humor is good, but some people take it so far that they start to believe all the negative things they say about themselves. Similarly, aggressive humor that attacks others or has a lot of negative energy tends to not really make anyone feel better.
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So just being relatable isn’t enough, we can relate to pain and sadness, depression and loss just as easily as anything else. Even if a person is making a self-deprecating joke, it’s pretty easy to reflect those same negative feelings on one’s self. So perhaps reconsider when you make the same “I’m a lazy slob” joke for the ninth time today, it’s definitely no longer funny.
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Certain aspects of life do end up with more joking and humor, however. The workplace is a classic example of this, as jokes are a way to relieve stress. Similarly, the workplace involves a number of shared experiences among a group of people, so it’s a lot easier to set up jokes with an audience that understands you.
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While work is the most common venue for “relatable humor” one can find examples in most areas of life, public transportation, traffic, pet ownership, and ordering a coffee, just to name a few. All of these involve some similar difficulties, experiences, and moments that a clever or funny person can exploit to garner a few laughs. They also are good topics for small-talk humor, unlike politics or religion.
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From this perspective, humor is also a tool, as it humanizes us. A manager might throw in a few self-deprecating jokes now and then to show that they are still in touch. We are more likely to remember something if there is a punch-line attached to it, which clever markers will exploit. The cost of your laughter is a few moments of attention and memory.
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On the flip side, laughter and humor help with endorphins, which make us more creative. Incidentally, this is why you often have good ideas in the shower, the pleasure of hot water literally makes your brain work a bit better. But electricity bills being what they are, some jokes might be the cheaper solution.
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So if there is any takeaway, it’s a lot easier to be relatable than outright funny, but once you understand what things and experiences people tend to share, it will by proxy be easier to be funny at the same time. Just remember, laughing with someone tends to bring both pirates benefits while laughing at someone is more hit or miss.
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