What fun is life if I’m not making jokes all the time?

Easily amused is supposed to be an insult.

Cynical people use this label to imply someone is stupid, simpleminded and unsophisticated. It’s code for low brow, undiscerning and prone to infantile joy.

The easily amused person is satisfied by the lowest common denominator. Our social norms view them as inherently negative individuals who lack intellectual and emotional depth.

After all, we live in a culture that emphases productivity and achievement. Being easily amused can be viewed as a distraction or a hindrance to progress. Joy is but a sin away.

But did you ever notice that people who are pleasantly occupied and entertained by virtually everything tend to be happier and more engaged with life? They’re rarely the uptight, sad, critical people with sticks up their asses. They’re just glad to be here.

They possess a lightness of spirit that feels like a cool breeze on a hot day. The easily amused are deeply curious, perpetually grateful, fundamentally affirmative, delightfully present, usefully optimistic, and undeterred by popular opinion. They understand there’s no reason to call bullshit on every goddamn thing all of the time. They can just take it all for a good chuckle and move on their merry way.

The question is, if this is not an insult, then what is it?

Simple. It’s a skill. Being easily amused is a habit that anyone can learn.

Below I will offer recommendations on how to do it.

First, acknowledge that there is social and situational pressure to not be impressed.

If everyone around you acts like a humorless twat, it’s normal to feel a little odd. Possibly even guilty or shameful about being easily amused. Because people will almost certainly judge you as being shallow and wasteful.

That’s a normal feeling. The reptilian brain is merely expressing its evolutionary fear of separation, abandonment and rejection from the herd. Of course you’re afraid to laugh out loud.

This is textbook mob mentality. In fact, it’s no different than standing in the town square for the daily beheading. If we’re not out for blood, screaming off with his head, then the mob will turn on us. Our silence means acceptance, and suddenly we’re just as bad as the offender, which means the guillotine is coming for us next.

To counteract this response, challenge yourself to actually get a buzz from the process of finding the humor in anything. Treat it like a game to play and a puzzle to solve.

Seinfeld comes to mind, the sitcom epitomized being easily amused. That show was about nothing, and it was the most popular program of its generation. Hell, they did an episode about everyone wearing nametags. Doesn’t get more ridiculous than that.

Jerry himself was one asked during a popular interview, do you ever dream of a day where you go to a restaurant and don’t make fun of the chopsticks?

To which the billionaire comedian replied, if that day came, I would shoot myself in the head. Every second of my existence I’m thinking to myself, how can I used this. What fun is life if I’m not making jokes all the time? If that’s not a form of enlightenment, I don’t know what is.

The second suggestion is, consider the possibility that the key to happiness is having uncomplicated and easily fulfilled desires.

Make it a goal to take greater joy from smaller things. Figure out what your minimum requirements are to be maximally happy. You might surprise yourself with how little you actually need to feel fulfilled. Think of it as an existential formula where you simplify your needs and focus on the fundamental aspects that bring you joy, rather than chasing complex or extravagant desires.

Don’t worry, you can still use as many complex and demanding strategies for happiness as you like. But not to the point that contentment eludes you.

The pandemic revealed this formula in spades. People who were easily amused spent three years living their lives to the fullest, and the rest of humanity felt restless, resentful and depressed. Which one were you?

Ebert famously wrote a movie review of a parody film that summarizes this idea best. Here’s what he said.

I did not record a single laugh during the running time of the film, and although I admittedly saw the movie at a press screening and not on a weekend matinee at the multiplex in the mall. Somewhere out there is an audience for this film, I have no doubt, and somewhere this weekend someone may laugh at some of its attempts at humor. Those who laugh at the movie should inspire our admiration, because in these dreary times we must treasure the easily amused.

Imagine if all of our people’s desires were that uncomplicated and easily fulfilled. The world would be a much better place if everyone could just get over themselves.

Our third recommendation for being easily amused is, zoom in on trivial matters.

Find amusement in the minutiae of life. Doing so doesn’t mean you lack depth as a person. I would argue it’s the opposite. People who dive into the inconsequential will often reveal profound and significant insights that the rest of us miss. Sometimes it’s simply a matter of time.

Because deeper meaning is there, if people would only invest their intention and attention properly. Easily amused people typically have a heightened sense of awareness, so they notice details, patterns, and connections that would have otherwise gone unnoticed.

I was doing research on the easily amused phenomenon just now, and stumbled across an insightful five star customer review. Amazon sells this precision stainless steel spinning top that’s marketed as a desk toy for relaxation.

It’s the perfect gift for all ages! Ready to play in only one second. Kill idle time, clear your mind and relieve stress. When you’re out with friends, kids or your boss, have fun by trying to beat each other’s records!

Sure enough, there are over five hundred reviews for this ten dollar toy. My favorite one goes like this.

I bought two of these as stocking stuffers, and they ended up being, oddly, the most entertaining presents of the holiday. Our family was blown away. Jesus himself would have enjoyed playing with this toy. I’m definitely going to buy a couple more. My husband wants one for his office. T

These are either really cool or we are just very easily amused. In conclusion, I will leave you with one of my top ways to become easily amused, a limerick. In a world where being amused is derided, the easily amused are quietly delighted.

Called simple and unsophisticated, they’re actually happier and more elated.

Their lightness of spirit leaves others benighted.

LET ME ASK YA THIS…
How much happier would you be if your desires were uncomplicated and easily fulfilled?