---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Humor disarms people. It opens them up to…"
description: "\"Humor disarms people. It opens them up to starting a dialogue about things they wouldn't normally talk about. I don't understand how people who don't h..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/214/zach-anner-4934_comedy_humor-disarms-people-it-opens-them-up-to_571212.jpg"
---

#  Humor disarms people. It opens them up to starting a…

![“Humor disarms people. It opens them up to starting a dialogue about things they wouldn't normally talk about. I don't understand how people who don't have a sense of humor get through life.” quote by Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/214/zach-anner-4934_comedy_humor-disarms-people-it-opens-them-up-to_571212.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/214/zach-anner-4934_comedy_humor-disarms-people-it-opens-them-up-to_571212.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/214/zach-anner-4934_comedy_humor-disarms-people-it-opens-them-up-to_571212.jpg)

> “Humor disarms people. It opens them up to starting a dialogue about things they wouldn't normally talk about. I don't understand how people who don't have a sense of humor get through life.”

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Humor lowers defenses, enabling open conversation about taboo topics; lacking humor hampers social navigation.

**In simple terms:** Humor opens dialogue on tough subjects.

Key Takeaway

Use humor to connect.

Themes

communication humor social dynamics

Mood

thoughtful encouraging

Type

educational inspirational

When to use this quote

- conflict resolution
- public speaking
- networking

Key Concepts

psychology of laughter dialogue initiation

Questions to Reflect On

- Why does humor disarm people?
- How can you use humor responsibly?

A Different Perspective

Humor can be misread or offensive.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Comedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comedy/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Sense of humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sense-of-humor/)

## Related quotes

> [Keeping a sense of humor about life. My parents divorced when I was 8, and whenever I felt down, my mom would remind me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-louis-dreyfus/keeping-a-sense-of-humor-about-life-my-parents-divorced-when-i-was-8/)

[Julia Louis-Dreyfus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-louis-dreyfus/)

> [Humor disarms people. They don't feel threatened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bette-midler/humor-disarms-people-they-don-t-feel-threatened/)

[Bette Midler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bette-midler/)

> [I dnt understand why people dnt have a fucking sense of humor .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-aveyro/i-dnt-understand-why-people-dnt-have-a-fucking-sense-of-humor/)

[Nathaniel Aveyro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-aveyro/)

> [Always have a sense of humor about life - you'll need it - but always be courteous to boot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-jennings/always-have-a-sense-of-humor-about-life-you-ll-need-it-but-always-be/)

[Peter Jennings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-jennings/)

> [My parents and my brother instilled in me my sense of humor. That's kind of the way we communicate with each other, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/my-parents-and-my-brother-instilled-in-me-my-sense-of-humor-that-s/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [I've often said that the seventh paramita should be a sense of humor, so we don't take ourselves too seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/i-ve-often-said-that-the-seventh-paramita-should-be-a-sense-of-humor/)

[Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/)

> [Nowadays, you cannot be a very Effective political figure without Having a demonstrable sense of humor. People take to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-orben/nowadays-you-cannot-be-a-very-effective-political-figure-without/)

[Robert Orben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-orben/)

> [Senses of humor define people, as factions, deeper rooted than religious or political opinions. When carrying out everyday tasks, opinions are rather easy to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/criss-jami/senses-of-humor-define-people-as-factions-deeper-rooted-than/)

[Criss Jami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/criss-jami/)

> [A sense of humor is the pole that adds balance to our steps as we walk the tightrope of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-sense-of-humor-is-the-pole-that-adds-balance-to-our-steps-as-we/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I think anyone who behaves boorishly but without a good sense of humor is not as fun to watch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaby-hoffmann/i-think-anyone-who-behaves-boorishly-but-without-a-good-sense-of/)

[Gaby Hoffmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaby-hoffmann/)

> [A sense of humor saves your life, and being able to make friends wherever you go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-o-mara/a-sense-of-humor-saves-your-life-and-being-able-to-make-friends/)

[Jason O'Mara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-o-mara/)

> [“I'm quite certain that if I lost my sense of humor, it would most definitely need to be replaced by a padded cell.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/comic-strip-mama/i-m-quite-certain-that-if-i-lost-my-sense-of-humor-it-would-most/)

Comic Strip Mama

> [The person who has a sense of humor is not just more relaxed in the face of a potentially stressful situation, but is more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-morreall/the-person-who-has-a-sense-of-humor-is-not-just-more-relaxed-in-the/)

John Morreall

> [A sense of humor...is superior to any religion so far devised.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/a-sense-of-humor-is-superior-to-any-religion-so-far-devised/)

[Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/)

> [The most irritating people are those without a sense of humor, amirite?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-most-irritating-people-are-those-without-a-sense-of-humor-amirite/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## More by Zach Anner

> [I just love all the music. My grandma was a church organist for 40 years, and she got me into jazz music and great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/i-just-love-all-the-music-my-grandma-was-a-church-organist-for-40/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [The most important thing is to have the conversation, and let people who do make mistakes feel comfortable enough to continue the conversation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/the-most-important-thing-is-to-have-the-conversation-and-let-people/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [I talk about Breaking Bad being the most brilliant show ever, and even minor characters have subtle nuances and are fully drawn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/i-talk-about-breaking-bad-being-the-most-brilliant-show-ever-and-even/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [I used to be an insult comic, and I didn't end up liking the way that I felt about myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/i-used-to-be-an-insult-comic-and-i-didn-t-end-up-liking-the-way-that/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [Religion is such an important part of so many people's lives, and I don't understand it at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/religion-is-such-an-important-part-of-so-many-people-s-lives-and-i/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [My grandma was a church organist for 40 years, and she got me into jazz music and great songwriters, Harold Arlen, George Gershwin, all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/my-grandma-was-a-church-organist-for-40-years-and-she-got-me-into/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [This country is pretty amazing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/this-country-is-pretty-amazing/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [You may not have a physical impairment, but you have things, whether it's finances, self-esteem, it doesn't matter. It's cut from the same cloth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/you-may-not-have-a-physical-impairment-but-you-have-things-whether-it/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [For me, cerebral palsy wasn't the biggest deal, because I always had it. You know, you always work with what you got.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/for-me-cerebral-palsy-wasn-t-the-biggest-deal-because-i-always-had-it/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [I didn't feel like I was putting anything good into the world, even though it was funny. I wanted to do something more positive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/i-didn-t-feel-like-i-was-putting-anything-good-into-the-world-even/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [My parents instilled in me a sense of self that I was more than just a diagnosis or a condition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/my-parents-instilled-in-me-a-sense-of-self-that-i-was-more-than-just/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [My parents and my brother instilled in me my sense of humor. That's kind of the way we communicate with each other, and it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/my-parents-and-my-brother-instilled-in-me-my-sense-of-humor-that-s/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [My stance has always been that my issue compared to everything else going on in the world is really, really small. Once you realize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/my-stance-has-always-been-that-my-issue-compared-to-everything-else/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [Depending on where my self-confidence was, growing up, I would use humor either to bring people closer, or to keep them away from certain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/depending-on-where-my-self-confidence-was-growing-up-i-would-use/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

> [I have one of the worst voices in the history of recorded time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/i-have-one-of-the-worst-voices-in-the-history-of-recorded-time/)

[Zach Anner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

[Explore all 105 Zach Anner quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/)

## More Comedy quotes

> ['Mad TV' is one of my most favorite shows of all time and is a huge part of my obsession with sketch comedy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-dawson/mad-tv-is-one-of-my-most-favorite-shows-of-all-time-and-is-a-huge/)

[Shane Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-dawson/)

> [You can laugh at me, but I understand show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ksenia-sobchak/you-can-laugh-at-me-but-i-understand-show-business/)

[Ksenia Sobchak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ksenia-sobchak/)

> [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/)

[Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/)

> [I wouldn't want people to laugh at me. That's why I have to give all that I can, and at least produce something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhao-wei/i-wouldn-t-want-people-to-laugh-at-me-that-s-why-i-have-to-give-all/)

[Zhao Wei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhao-wei/)

> [“Our world will not die as a result of the bomb, as the papers say, it will die of laughter, of banality, of making a joke…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/our-world-will-not-die-as-a-result-of-the-bomb-as-the-papers-say-it/)

[Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/)

> [I've been funny my whole life. This is a gift God gave me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-morgan/i-ve-been-funny-my-whole-life-this-is-a-gift-god-gave-me/)

[Tracy Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-morgan/)

> [“Laugh and grow strong”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ignatius-of-loyola/laugh-and-grow-strong/)

[Ignatius of Loyola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ignatius-of-loyola/)

> [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. Perhaps comedy, which is something I have done in theater but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/in-the-future-i-would-like-to-do-more-films-with-contemporary-themes/)

[Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/)

> [That's something a lot of folks don't know about me - I'm pretty darn funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jai-white/that-s-something-a-lot-of-folks-don-t-know-about-me-i-m-pretty-darn/)

[Michael Jai White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jai-white/)

> [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/)

[Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/)

> [There's a difference between delivering real funny and just silly funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-rel-howery/there-s-a-difference-between-delivering-real-funny-and-just-silly/)

[Lil Rel Howery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-rel-howery/)

> [Oh to that corkscrew, the useful tool to unlock the treasure of wit, the treasury of laughter, the front door of fellowship, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-guzaldo/oh-to-that-corkscrew-the-useful-tool-to-unlock-the-treasure-of-wit/)

[Andrew Guzaldo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-guzaldo/)

> [“Men circle like bees around honey, buzzing to communicate their sexual despair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-h-krueger/men-circle-like-bees-around-honey-buzzing-to-communicate-their-sexual/)

[Carla H Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-h-krueger/)

> [I do love to laugh!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teresa-giudice/i-do-love-to-laugh/)

[Teresa Giudice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teresa-giudice/)

> [I really enjoy making people laugh; I've discovered that's a great technique. That's as powerful as stirring their sorrow, stirring their compassion, because that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/i-really-enjoy-making-people-laugh-i-ve-discovered-that-s-a-great/)

[Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/)

[Browse all 19,795 Comedy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comedy/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Humor disarms people. It opens them up to starting a dialogue about things they wouldn't normally talk about. I don't understand how people who don't have a sense of humor get through life.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Zach Anner"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/humor-disarms-people-it-opens-them-up-to-starting-a-dialogue-about/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Comedy"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/humor-disarms-people-it-opens-them-up-to-starting-a-dialogue-about/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/214/zach-anner-4934_comedy_humor-disarms-people-it-opens-them-up-to_571212.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/214/zach-anner-4934_comedy_humor-disarms-people-it-opens-them-up-to_571212.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/214/zach-anner-4934_comedy_humor-disarms-people-it-opens-them-up-to_571212.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Humor disarms people. It opens them up to starting a dialogue about things they wouldn't normally talk…” — Zach Anner",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Zach Anner",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zach-anner/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Humor disarms people. It opens them...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/humor-disarms-people-it-opens-them-up-to-starting-a-dialogue-about/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zach-anner/humor-disarms-people-it-opens-them-up-to-starting-a-dialogue-about/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
