A presentation created by me about injecting into the workplace a little bit of humour and how / when to use it. This presentation combines two things I do well and enjoy - teaching/training and cartooning.

1. Using Cartoons in the Workplace
http://www.twistedmusings.com.au
Using Cartoons in the Workplace

2. Why use Cartoons in the Workplace?
 variety
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 use of humour
 targets different ways in which people learn
 visual memory cue
makes message „unforgettable‟

 audience identifies with the message
Note:
The cartoon MUST be relevant to the subject matter. You need
to be aware that your attempt at humour is appropriate to your
audience and does not discriminate.
Using Cartoons in the Workplace

3. What if I don’t have excellent drawing skills?
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You don’t need them!
Your picture only needs to convey your idea.
Using Cartoons in the Workplace

4. Using Cartoons in the Workplace

5. Creating a Cartoon
The process is similar to Project Management
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philosophies:
 You have an idea
 You create you plan
 How will you present it?
 What framework will you use?
 What will the picture display?
Will your message be subtle or „sledgehammer-like‟?

 You create a draft
 Rework your draft
 Tidy
 Complete
Using Cartoons in the Workplace

6. Using Cartoons in the Workplace – an example
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“New email policies were implemented at a previous employer. The
initial response from the employees was that the policies were very
strict, harsh, a restriction of civil liberties. The guidelines for the use of
email were much tighter than they had been and those caught
breaching the policies were severely reprimanded.
“Management knew the workforce would be unhappy, and in an
attempt to „make light‟ of the situation and show that „they too
understood and empathized with the workforce‟, a cartoon was
suggested to create a connection between management and the
employees.”
Using Cartoons in the Workplace

7. Example – Brainstorming Session
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The email policies are now much more strict, what else is strict?
 The law
 Policemen
 Courts
What happens when people break strict laws? The go to jail
Ah HA!
And the following cartoon was created from this idea:
Using Cartoons in the Workplace

8. Example – Finished Cartoon
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Using Cartoons in the Workplace

9. Your task
The OH&S department are releasing a email communication to
send out to the rest of the business and want to attach a cartoon
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to break the seriousness of the message. It is your job (in small
groups) to create a cartoon to be attached with the
communication.
Idea starters.
 What is OH& S?
 What do they do?
 What would be the opposite of what they do and how could you
do a cartoon that would have an OH & S spin?
(Slipping/falling / dropping things on yourself for comedic
purposes is always funny, see the Coyote and Road Runner as
examples)
Are there any „plays-on-words‟ in OH & S that you could use?
(e.g. bear / bare; you could have a grizzly bear carrying a pot of
acid and the OH&S worker scolds him for carrying the liquid with
his „bear hands‟)
Using Cartoons in the Workplace