That’s the construction of a joke; the set-up is all the required information, and the punchline is where everything falls into place. Here’s what it means for you and your public speaking:
- After each piece of information, give its application. Sounds obvious perhaps, but unless you give the audience the reason you’ve told them this particular fact, then it loses relevance.
- Keep them hooked with ‘reveal’ moments (see my post ‘Don’t Tell Them Everything First’). Don’t commit the well-known sin of reading lines of text. Just don’t.
- Keep it short and sweet, like the best humour (“Brevity is the soul of wit” – Polonius, Hamlet).
Don’t try to be as funny as a comedian, but as effective instead.