While serving in the military he discovered the power of humor. One day one of his fellow soldiers told him that, "you had to give yourself away," because he considered himself a gift in himself. Something resonated inside Sergio when he heard that and when he started working those words came back to him. So he began to think about what he could do to make every email or conversation a gift to the person on the other end. He discovered that the way to reach him was through his best tool: humor. 

Sergio de La Calle, a writer by vocation, sociologist by profession and currently director of programs at Universitas Telefónica, shared his professional experience in the field of Human Resources with the students of Master's Degree of Personnel Management Service in Organizations.

Many articles talk about leadership, but few talk about leading with humor. However, academic studies on the importance of using humor in the work context are becoming increasingly widespread. Thus, during the session, de La Calle revealed how humor is the secret ingredient in his success in leading teams and people. He commented that "humor can relieve tension, clarify an idea, elevate a message, capture attention, respond to an attack or grease a negotiation". Humor makes the hierarchical gap dissipate and humanizes managers.

The professional affirmed that there are many KPI's to measure whether a team is working, but none like that of laughter. This is the secret ingredient of the best companies. Humor is what manages to take leadership to another level, motivate people and raise work as a team. "It's not the same to say that a person works well as to say that a person works well and you have a good time with them," he said. 

Companies are better when there is laughter and a good atmosphere, and it is important to emphasize that humor is not incompatible with the formal context, you just have to find the balance. It was a talk in which he encouraged future professionals to find in each their own style of humor, and the skill to use it.

One of the techniques in which he uses humor is at the beginning of brainstorming meetings, he said that whenever he starts a brainstorming session meeting he always plays a funny video and that this financial aid helps everyone's ideas to flow much faster and better. To the future professionals at Personnel Management Service he left a committee that brings the whole session together: "If you are not able to laugh with the team, the team will laugh at you, you choose why you want to be remembered".