Bored Panda reached out to Consulting Comedy, a platform which connects over 600k consultants and other business professionals globally through its lighthearted business humor to learn more about their content.
In particular, we reached out to J, the author of this page, who kindly introduced himself and will be answering all of our questions. “My name is J. and have been working as a consultant in a top-tier management consulting firm for nearly 10 years. I have remained the sole and anonymous author of Consulting Comedy since its inception - picture Mr. Bean in Johnny English. Being extremely professional at work during the day and a clandestine joker during the late hours of the night has allowed me to enjoy my job and connect with a rich global community looking for an escape from their daily grind.”
First and foremost, we were curious to learn what inspired J to create a parody account and what content they mostly share. J replied: “Consulting is a profession that can cover a varying range of topics and industries (strategy, HR, IT, implementation, marketing, etc.) Despite these differences, what unites all types of consultants is the difficulty of explaining what we do to others - my grandparents think that 'I am a doctor but for companies' - the incessant traveling and long working hours, and the overuse of PowerPoint slides. We also take ourselves and our jobs a little too seriously.
I created the channel in 2017 (Consulting Comedy) as an outlet to expose the inside circle of consulting, what we really do, and some of the ridiculous behaviors that we all adopt on the job. My colleague had a great sense of humor, so their support encouraged me to share my sarcasm on social media, which quickly resonated with many and turned into the 600k community across social media platforms that it grew into.”
Recent years have not been the best for our pockets since the prices are rising, and let’s not forget the international political tension in the air. Overall, young people, especially a group called millennials, didn’t get the greatest chance to live their best lives as promised by the generations before them. However, we have to say that even though we might not be able to buy a house for mere pennies as back in the day, we sure are rich in memes and internet content.
We asked J for his opinion on what ways he believes humor can help people cope with the financial challenges they face today. J shared: “Humor is often the most candid way of communication. It is captivating and can be used as a great means to learn effortlessly/seamlessly. When unfiltered it can also expose numerous topics, irrespective of their sensitivities, and has been throughout history a catalyst for change. Moreover, it has a therapeutic effect to dissipate tension and stress through laughter - turning bad into good.”
As the following grew, we were interested to know what kind of response Consulting Comedy has received from people. J explained: “Response to humor is tricky. Whenever topics are purely technical or work-related, the response is unanimously positive. However, when topics are more related to interaction, dynamics, or perceptions in the workplace, engagement varies a lot throughout geographies. I quickly realized that some audiences - such as the USA - can react negatively to some content that other geographies, such as Europe or Asia, will view in a different light. It really showed the beauty in differences around the world and allowed me to modify the humor to be accommodating to all.”
J also added by sharing why humor is helpful for people regarding their finances in this day and age. “The currency of life isn’t money. It’s laughter and smiles. Smiling makes our journey to build a career, wealth, and knowledge much more enjoyable. It is the sunshine that lights up our days.”
And lastly, we asked J to share if he has found that the Consulting Comedy account has had any positive impact on the followers’ financial literacy or mindset.“The account helped new followers understand what consulting is, the jargon and technical terms especially related to the job in a lighthearted manner and the lifestyle that we all share. The account helped significant others connect with their partner by understanding what they do at work through the comedic content we bring.”
