A lot of founders and companies will say that their big focus is on being taken seriously — especially at the earlier stages. But Ben Huh, the CEO of the super popular Cheezburger Network of websites, says that people should also focus on being taken not-so-seriously. Humor can help provide an important edge in the business world, he says, and it’s a tool that’s not used nearly often enough.

We sat down with Huh this past week at the South By Southwest festival in Austin, Texas to hear a bit more about what it means to be funny at work. Watch the video embedded above to see Ben talk about his personal definition of what humor is, why businesses should make fun of themselves more often, how people who aren’t necessarily blessed with comedic talents can still bring humor into their businesses, and what it was like for Cheezburger to have some laughs on a nationwide scale with its Bravo reality show LOLwork.

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• BEN HUH

Person: Ben Huh

Companies: Cheezburger, Circa

Ben Huh has always been a start up guy. His latest company, the Cheezburger Network, has been credited with bringing Internet memes to the mainstream and popularizing Internet culture. Ben founded the Cheezburger Network in 2007 and grew it into one of the largest humor networks in the world in less than two years — while making a profit during one of the deepest recessions. Ben credits the success of his company to the users and fans who create the...

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