“I know that David Tennant's Hamlet isn't till July. And lots of people are going to be doing Dr Who in Hamlet jokes, so this is just me getting it out of the way early, to avoid the rush...”
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About this quote
Beat everyone else to the obvious punchline and you instantly control the room. It is a smart social survival tactic to acknowledge a cliché before it smothers you. When you see a predictable wave of commentary coming, standing in front of it with dry humor diffuses the noise. You do not have to be the deepest thinker in the room to win; sometimes you just need to be the fastest to point out the elephant in the corner. Do you want to be the tenth person to make the same joke, or the one who got it over with?
When to use it
- Before a team meeting where a notoriously buggy software update is being rolled out, a developer posts a meme about the glitch to get the groans out of the way first.
- Your sibling buys tickets to a concert for a famously cheesy pop star, so you send them a teasing text before they even have a chance to brag about going.
- You start your class presentation on a dry historical topic by showing an incredibly cheesy stock photo, addressing the awkwardness before your classmates can snicker.
- A friend gets a dramatic new haircut that looks exactly like a famous cartoon character, and you text them the comparison photo immediately to beat the rest of the group chat to the punch.