Business and the Art of Improvisation

* A high-powered CEO tells the story of his humble beginnings working in a garage, and the passion that seeded his global company. His workers are inspired. * A group of physicians role play interactions with patients, practising interpersonal communication skills. * Managers at a high-tech company explore how their physical behaviour can enhance their influencing skills. Three improvisers stand in front of a group of fifty middle managers. "What is something you heard someone say at the office today?" Joe asks the audience."Not my job! " a young man responds to groaning agreement from his colleagues. Joe and his partners proceed to improvise a scene, which begins with a secretary refusing to get her boss coffee and culminates with a disgruntled God refusing to stop a war. The scene provokes intense discussion " The above examples illustrate the myriad of ways in which improvisational theatre (improv) techniques have been used in business settings. The business value to be gleaned from improv, however, goes further even than these mere activities. Improvisational actors - improvisers - make up scenes, songs, stories, entire plays, on the spot, with no script or planned scenarios. They work collaboratively in front of paying customers who expect to be entertained and amazed. Sometimes the results seem magical. Sometimes disastrous. Does the job of an improviser sound familiar? Increasingly, the corporate world looks like the world of improvisational theatre. The script is constantly reinvented. The opportunities to plan deeply before acting are fewer and shorter. The need for taking risks are more important every day. By adopting the foundational philosophies of improvisation, organisations are successfully developing more innovative and collaborative cultures. In this article, Kat Koppett explains a few of the principles of improv and their application to business. Principle No.1: Build Trust A teambuilding consultant I know used to ask his employees to deliver parts of his training workshops as part of their professional development. "This is your bit," he would say. "I trust you. Design it however you wish." Then, he would interrupt and contradict them in front of the participants. Needless to say, trust eroded very quickly, and the employees became less and less willing to perform. Trust is the foundation for all creative and collaborative endeavours. To establish trust: - Get to know each other. Trust stems from intimacy. Spend some time learning about the people you work with. What do they do, like, think about, when they are not at work? - Practice what you preach: Trust stems from credibility. The "Do-what-l-say-not-what-Ido" school of guidance quite simply does not work. If you have enough authority, people might comply, but they will not trust you. Lead by example. Create a safe environment: Trust is mitigated by perceived risk. When you are asking people to take chances, they must feel safe. Human beings are highly attuned to potential danger, and they judge situations by what has happened to others before them. It is the monkey who saw the previous monkey eat the poisoned berry, and therefore avoided eating it himself, which survived. Principle No.2: Spontaneity What many people label wit or cleverness in improvisation is simply a willingness to say whatever comes to mind. Whereas most of us go through life censoring our thoughts and impulses, the improviser practices embracing his. Censoring ourselves is, of course, not always a bad thing. Without the ability to control our impulses, make judgments, and choose when and if to act, we would be crippled. However, there is a price. We can spend so much time exercising our "judgement muscles" that our "creativity muscles" atrophy. Learning to identify and follow impulses is the fuel of creativity. Here are some specific tips for bypassing your censor and being more spontaneous: Be foolish. …