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For sixteen years, I have been showing audiences how to find humor in not-so-funny stuff. Thousands of people have laughed a lot in my presentations yet I don't tell jokes. Below are some ways I get people to la

According to USFDA, a combination product is one composed of any combination of a drug and device; biological product and device; drug and biological product

ugh. And you can too.

1- Set the Scene for Laughter

If you want to lighten up your program, you might want to let the audience know this, even before you say one word. Project some lighthearted visuals as the

; or drug, device, and biological product and fixed dose combination would include two or more combinations of drug.

Examples of combination products may in

audience is entering the room. Play some copyright-free uplifting music as they enter. Or, add some humor to your presentation title or program description. My bio, for example, has my list of accomplishments, p

lude drug-coated devices, drugs packaged with delivery devices in medical kits, and drugs and devices packaged separately but intended to be used together.

layfully followed by "His mother is very proud of him."

2- Poke Fun at Yourself

Again, even before you open your mouth, you can show the audience that you don't take yourself too seriously by adding some playf

here is enormous increase in the number of combination products entering the market in the recent years. Combination products have proven advantages but fixe

ul things about you in your introduction. I, for example, have the introducer tell the audience that I am the author of seven books which have sold well over 30 copies. Then the person corrects their mistake and

d dose combinations are still in the process of convincing regulatory authority on their advantages over the single ingredient formulations.

Combination pro

says, "Oops, that's 300,000 copies."

3- Get a Laugh with a Prop

It has been said that 80% of what people learn is visual. If this is true, then speakers need to enhance their talks with something to visually i

ucts have become life saving products for the pharmaceutical companies who doesn’t have many innovative molecules in their product pipeline and have been inc

llustrate what they are saying. A prop is a great way to do this because it not only makes your message memorable but it can also get a laugh. Among other things, I use balloons to illustrate how people can let

easingly used in the product life cycle management. Even the companies having product patents are trying to extend their product life cycle through the combi

go of their stress; an inflatable globe to illustrate how we often carry the world around on our shoulders; and a plastic hammer which I use to hit myself on the head when I goof up. All make a point and all get

nation products and maximize the revenues. But the companies involved in this practice are overlooking that they are burdening the patients both economically

a laugh.

4- Your Humor Stories

Open your humor eyes and ears and look and listen for the funny things that happen all around you. Families are an especially good resource for finding humor stories. Not too lo

and physically. They need to rightly judge the benefits of the combination products and they have to even look at the risks involved when combining the produ

ng ago, my Mom, who will be 93-years-old this year, told me an incident which I have now incorporated into my opening. Every time she goes to the doctor, she hires a van service to take her their and back. One l

ts. Some of the combination products were well accepted by physicians while others suffered. Companies involved in development of combination products are fi

te afternoon it didn't show up to take her home. Since the doctor had to close the office for the day, he suggested that she wait for the van in the pizza parlor next door. After waiting a long time without the

ding difficulty in defining their combination products and facing various challenges from selecting a combination to marketing it.

Following aspects would a

van arriving, my Mom went up to the counter and asked, "Do you deliver?" When the man behind the counter replied, "Of course, we do. We're a pizza place." My Mom said, "Great. Then I'd like a pepperoni pizza and

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

Which markets to tap where the combination products can do fairly well?
Which combination prod

I'd like to go with it."

5- Borrow Some Witty Words

While waiting for your own humor-related stories to appear, you might want to borrow some funny short quotes for famous folk to lighten up your talks. Quota

cts are meaningful and rational?
Which therapeutic categories to select?
Which Combinations can address unmet needs of the patients?
Do combin

tion books, the TV, newspapers, and magazines such as Reader's Digest are great resources for locating great quotes. Since I frequently speak to hospice groups, Woody Allen's comments about death and dying are a

tions increase the patient compliance?
What would be the developing cost?
How to tackle the risks encountered during combination product developmen

ppropriate. My favorite, "There are worse things in life than death. Have you ever spent an evening with an insurance salesman?"

6- Collect Audience Anecdotes

Sometimes audiences say the funniest things. When

t?

As combination products don't fit into the traditional categories of drugs, medical devices, or biological products, the USFDA is in the process of devel

hey do write it down. It could be a big laugh in your next presentation. For years, I've been asking audiences, "How do you spell relief?" My answer is "L-A-U-G-H". Then one day a woman in the back row called ou

ping new procedures for reviewing their safety, efficacy and quality.

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

t, "D-I-V-O-R-C-E." It got a huge laugh for her that day and continues to get a laugh for me when I retell it.

7- Make it Relevant

One final word about using humor in your presentations. Make sure it is releva

y and representatives from various regulatory agencies are working out to design the regulatory requirements for manufacture and sale of combination products

nt. Amusing an audience for the sake of getting a laugh might be ideal for a stand-up comedian or an after-dinner humorist but it's probably not OK for most speakers. If your humor doesn't make a point or have a

.

As there is an increasing trend of the combination products companies manufacturing such products should be able to tackle the problems involved in the de

purpose‹don?t use it!

8- The Bottom Line

For non-humorists, some of the ideas presented here may seem too frivolous for your subject matter. Nevertheless, I would still encourage you to seek some way of uppin

elopment. They need to be wiser in analyzing the market trends and the regulatory requirements.

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

g the entertainment value of your talks because it might also increase what you charge. As Steve Allen once noted, "People will pay more to be entertained than educated."

© 2003 Allen Klein. All Rights Reserved

tion in industry events and feedback to regulatory authorities would be able to face the challenges and will be successful in developing combination products

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The service industry in the United States is providing an increasingly important portion of the gross national product. This means that the concepts and principles of “production” have been advantageously adapted to non-manufacturing activities as banking, health care and tourism.

Have you ever been caught up in the vicious cycle of wanting more? If you have ever thought that what you have is not good enough, that you want more, that you are insatiable, then this series of articles will stop you in your tracks and change your life forever. In an unusually vulnerable style, Chuck Gallagher brings home the consequences of the decisions he has made in his attempts to build the great American dream for him and his family. You will never forget this dramatic story filled with success and failure, ethics and illusions, and consequences and choices.

Can you imagine how efficient the government would be if you could get anything you needed or any information you wanted online? It is happening, just not fast enough

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