Those who really enjoy telling a good story of joke know that every once in a while everyone has a joke that bombs. There are variety of reasons that a joke can fail to incite laughter in the hearers. Recovering from a joke that hits the floor depends on why it failed. The old adage, “some can tell them and some can’t” rings true.

Timing and the correct telling of the joke is critical.

Learning to hit the right timing on the punch line and delivering it without revealing it early are critical to a joke working. If you do not work on the joke enough to deliver it correctly, it will be hard to bomb gracefully. If you do not learn how to tell a joke, plan on having a lot of embarrassing moments when they fall flat.

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Jokes need to be told to match the understanding of the audience.

Some jokes will only be understood quickly enough to be funny by a group of fairly intelligent and knowlegeable people. If the joke goes over the head of the hearers, they will not laugh because they do not understand. If you have to explain the joke or educate the crowd too much before telling the joke, it is sometimes best just to keep it to yourself. Telling a complex joke to the wrong group will make you look bad every time.

Jokes need to be in good taste.

You may be able to get by with certain jokes in the right group, but most of the time it is better to avoid telling jokes that demean people or involve racial slurs. These jokes cannot only fail to amuse, but they can cast you in a light that you would rather not be seen in. People have lost jobs and reputations for telling jokes in bad taste.

After the joke has fallen flat, learning to bomb gracefully takes work.

Several ways exist to recover from telling an awful joke or one that just did not work in that situation. The recovery is not always dependent on why the joke failed. Learning how to bomb gracefully will keep people listening to your jokes and keep you telling them.

Always have an easy well-rehearsed joke waiting.

Most people that tell jokes know dozens of them. If you are telling a joke that you know has a risk of dying, make sure that you have a backup ready to go. You may need to wait a few minutes for the attention to shift from you to others. Introduce the second joke as a make up for the first stinker. Tell it well, and you should be alright. If it bombs, apologize for inflicting your humor on the group and change the subject quickly.

After a joke told in poor taste, be prepared to make amends.

Many times a joke sounds much more appropriate in your head than on your tongue. Within seconds of throwing the punch line, you will know that you have committed an error by telling the joke. If it was not over some broadcast media, you can probably just apologize to those you have offended. If it was done in ignorance or too much zeal to fit into a group, most people will understand and forgive. If you did it intentionally to offend someone, you need to just leave.

Make fun of yourself after a joke bombs.

Sometimes, the best fix for a bad joke is to become the next joke yourself. If you blew the punchline, laugh with the group at your failure. When people see that you just wanted to make them laugh even if it was at you and not with you, they will almost always respond positively. You may be able to offer someone else the floor for some other stories while you lick your wounds and think of better material to tell.