VATupdate Newsletter Week 13 2023

Humour

Humour is different for everyone. It depends on the person, but perhaps even more on the background, culture and the social environment. Yet, it’s rare to go through a day and not encounter humour in some form. Humour is a common mode of communication used in media and incorporated in daily social interactions.

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According to scientific studies, Laughter has been found to occur on average 18 times a day in response to various types of humour. And that’s good, because other studies show that humour is good for bonding, social relationships, psychological health, and even has pain-reducing effects.

But what makes a joke funny? There are 2 key elements that are important: unpredictability (or surprise) and comprehension. The surprise-element comes from the logic that is used to ‘build-up’ the joke. The comedian follows the logic that the listener understands. But instead of following the logic, he uses his punchline mislead the listener. There, the second element comes in. The listener must be able to comprehend the difference between the expected outcome, and the punchline. If the comprehension does not take place, the joke is not perceived funny.

Where have we heard that before? Ah yes, with almost any story we tell about VAT. Whenever we tell a VAT story, about a question or situation we dealt with for a colleague of client, or a court case we read, or a presentation we did, it’s always difficult to persuade the listener to laugh. First of all, they have difficulty following the logic of the VAT rules, and if you then try to come up with a surprising element or a punchline, there is no comprehension at all.

Or perhaps that’s just us. You like the stuff we post on our website, right? You agree with us that VAT is Fun? Please share with us you funny (or not so funny) VAT stories by sending us an email or leaving a note on our LinkedIn page.

If you have any comments, questions, or ideas that you want to share with us, please send us an email at [email protected] or leave a comment under the posts of this newsletter on LinkedIn.

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