Comedian teaches importance of laughter in relationships at MSU

Russian-born comedian Yakov Smirnoff has stepped off his Branson stage and into a Missouri State University classroom to share his secrets for achieving personal and professional happiness.

“Survival is no longer an issue on a daily basis, but what we’re lacking is an understanding (of) how to achieve happiness,” he said.

More than 30 students enrolled in Smirnoff’s elective course, entitled “The Business of Laughter,” which ran May 21–25. Those who took the intersession course – affiliated with MSU’s College of Business Administration – earned one credit hour.

An online list of summer courses gives prospective students a glimpse into the practical applications of Smirnoff’s teachings.

“The formula for creating laughter, which makes businesses flourish, is the same formula that can be used to create love and laughter in personal relationships as well,” the course description reads.

Smirnoff knows the business of laughter. Since he began performing in Branson 15 years ago, Smirnoff has entertained more than 3 million people with his unique sense of humor.

Smirnoff was sworn in as an American citizen at the Statue of Liberty on July 4, 1986, nine years after immigrating to the United States with his parents and with less than $100 in his pocket, according to his Web site.

Last year, Smirnoff earned a master’s degree in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania. Shortly thereafter, he taught an MSU intersession course entitled “Living Happily Ever Laughter” for the psychology department.

Smirnoff said the central tenet of his more recent course is simple: Laughter and levity are great ways to gauge the health of relationships. Those relationships may be between business partners, family members or friends, he said.

“One of the quickest ways to recognize the success of the relationship is whether people are laughing together or not,” he said. “When we don’t laugh, that – to me – is a sign of stress or distress. Something’s not going well.”

Smirnoff was pleased to learn that a handful of local businesspeople, including Springfield developer Nancy Brown Dornan, had enrolled in his class. Dornan, who also is president of the Springfield Landmarks Preservation Trust, said she appreciated Smirnoff’s honest and enthusiastic teaching style.

“The thing I liked is that the basic premise … is that you need to recognize the roles of people in any kind of relationship,” Dornan said. “Once you start to identify those roles, it becomes a lot easier to understand dynamics.”

Dornan said Smirnoff’s philosophy “attempts to identify roles on a broader basis than the obvious business relationships” and emphasizes straightforwardness.

“It requires people to define their emotions a lot more precisely than American culture allows … and to express those emotions in an honest and open manner,” Dornan said.

Dornan said Smirnoff’s class was recommended to her, and she would definitely recommend “The Business of Laughter” to others. Feedback from her classmates is likewise positive.

Ron Bottin, dean of business administration at MSU, said evaluation forms filled out by Smirnoff’s students were encouraging.

“We think the trial has worked really well, and I think we’d like to try to offer it again as an elective course,” Bottin said.

Smirnoff is scheduled to speak about “The Business of Laughter” at Springfield's Southeast Rotary Club luncheon at noon July 26 at the St. John's Mid-America Cancer Center, 2055 S. Fremont Ave.

Smirnoff’s students sound off

Smirnoff’s students anonymously completed evaluation forms for his elective summer course, including the following comments.

What topics did you find most interesting or beneficial, and why?

I liked the combination of psychology, laughter and business.

Everything – it was inspirational and effective.

What is the greatest strength of the instructor?

His understanding of the human spirit.

His ability to relate to everyone in the class.

Would you recommend this course to a friend? Why or why not?

Yes, great way to understand and improve relationships – business or personal.

Of course, it’s Yakov!

Source: Missouri State University[[In-content Ad]]