Notes from Chris

Episode 364

After taking improv and stand-up comedy classes in college, project manager Andrew Tarvin wanted to inject a level of humor into the usually dry corporate environment. In his interview for Procter & Gamble, he gave a humorous but on-topic presentation to the panel of executives that he made entirely in Microsoft Paint. It was engaging, enjoying and ensured that Andrew landed the job.

Once in his new position, he went out of his way to make humor a prominent part of the workplace. He held improv workshops for staff members and gave his projects quirky titles like, “Project Awesomeization.” This quickly earned him the improvised title of "Corporate Humorist."

One day Andrew was approached by a member of his team. She told him all about how she’d been planning to quit her job and hated coming to work. But working on a project with him was fun and engaging, and reignited the passion she’d lost for her work. This conversation would go on to give him the idea for his highly profitable side hustle.

He realized many people in the workplace felt that humor would either be frowned upon by their bosses or that it would make them seem unprofessional. Having used humor for his entire career, Andrew set out on a mission to change that.

He decided he would start a side hustle as a "Humor Engineer." If you’ve never heard of that job title before, it’s because he made that one up too.

He called the project Humor That Works.

This wasn’t too profitable in his first year, making him just $250, but it earned him $10,000 in his second year. The prices for these services depend a lot on the event (size, type of event, location, etc), but range from $3500 for local workshops to $10,000+ for full-day programs for companies.

Andrew was also asked to deliver one of his keynote speeches as a TEDx Talk at Ohio State University. This had a big impact on his revenue and brought awareness to the topic of humor in the workplace. In his third year, Andrew was able to quit his job and turn Humor That Works into a low, six-figure training company.

Because of the flexibility of his work and the increased income, Andrew became a nomad and traveled to all 50 US states, taking his keynote talks and workshops with him. He’s written a book about it called The United States Of Laughter, which he launched out of a catapult to say he did a literal book launch. His future focus is combining humor and nomadism to improve the corporations of the world.

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MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

• Humor That Works: Learn more about Andrew's humorous take on the corporate world on his website!
• The United States Of Laughter: The book that Andrew wrote about his experience taking his show on the road with him to all 50 states
• Wordpress: Andrew used Wordpress to create Humor That Works, and here you can learn how to install your own Wordpress site in 5 minutes
• Meetup.com: One of the online platforms that Andrew used to help put his keynote speeches in front of audiences containing decision makers
• MailChimp: The email marketing platform that Andrew used to connect with his followers and bring in potential clients

SEE ALSO:

• Mindreading Performer Goes from Dorm Room to Paid Corporate Gigs: A fascination for why people think helps a performing artist shift from earning $2,000 for college shows to $20,000 for corporate events
• Marketing Consultant Creates Private Retreats: In the foothills of Tennessee, a marketing consultant designs a quarterly, high-end retreat weekend to help attendees take stock of their lives and businesses
• Introvert Builds Networking Experience to Help Women: A Denver transplant learns new skills and creates a networking group that now includes a podcast, magazine, and $30,000 in side income

Inspiration is good; inspiration combined with action is better. Now get back to work!

Yours in the revolution,

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