My colleagues at the office think I am a standup comedian.
I laughed when a student visiting the office said that to me a few weeks ago. I offered to take our young 16-year-old protegee through a day in my life in my ‘real job’, and the first thing she said to me was: “So, Rod (Head of the Division) tells me you’re a stand-up comedienne.”
Which is quite flattering in all honesty.
I chuckled and tossed my hair dramatically a fair bit but was quick to correct her and confirm that no, in fact I do improvisational theatre, not stand-up. Although comedy is something I will pursue in future (you heard it here first, folks!), I am by no means a stand-up comedienne. Yet. I’m an improvisor by nature and hobby and will happily re-explain the differences between improv and stand-up to my colleagues as many times as needed. Until they just come and see one of my shows!
I work a very left-brained job and lead quite a right-brained life, and this always strikes me when my worlds collide, when improv pop ups in the business world.
In conversation with my manager today about a very fancy (and apparently worthwhile) leadership course that he attended in London recently, he mentioned that on the third day of the course, the group did a day’s training in Improvisational Theatre. Last year, another VP in my department mentioned he’d also had a brush with improv in a Harvard leadership course he’d attended- I chuckled imagining his very introverted, professional self, forced to be on stage improvising and pretending to be something in Crazy-Town (affectionate term for the wildest imaginings in an improvised imaginary world), like perhaps “An evil Christmas elf hell-bent on ruining Christmas!”
I didn’t have to travel to London or visit Harvard to learn some life lessons from improv though. I’ve been oscillating in the Amsterdam improv scene for the past three years now (or is it four?) and the lessons my manager recalled he’d learned in London from this improv (for business) course reminded me of some of the evergreen lessons I’ve learned from my own journey with improv. Below is a short-hand list of my faves:
Lesson One: Yes, And…
In my millennial opinion, the art of conversation is fast disappearing. It saddens me. Truly! So many people, who just go on and on about themselves, forgetting to inquire about the other, forgetting that a conversation is an exchange. A delicious, (sometimes) spicy exchange! That it can be two (or more) people building on an idea, a concept, a discussion, an understanding. . .Saying “Yes, And…” and delving further into the exploration of thought.
If you know me, you will know that I am a Curious Cathy, a Questioning Quinn, an Inquisitive Ingeborg if you will (just to give it a little Dutch flavour). I love to ask questions and understand and “yes, and…” is such a great core principle of good conversation. Let’s build and get curious about each other in real life, in the same way we might in an improv scene: agree, acknowledge and then…what else could be true?!
Lesson Two: Let it go, and flow
You start the scene as improviser #1 with a clear idea in your head. You’re joined by a scene partner with their own idea of the scene in their head. But… who’s idea will win?!
Hopefully, it’s a bit of both! A bit of give and take, a bit of letting go and flow. Well, a lot of flow. Sticky improv is when both improvisers don’t let go of their own ideas and neither one yields, or is willing to say “yes, and…” and build on an idea for a scene together.
In life, as in improv, sometimes we can have such stubbornly held notions of how things should play out, or how someone should behave. We tend to forget that we see things through a very set, and often controlled paradigm.
Another layer to this lesson is that of being in the present moment. I am a woo-woo girlie so I will very proudly own the spiritual element of that phrase here. Being in the moment with improv is often the best thing you can do: let yourself flow and react intuitively because if you try too hard to remember all the theory you wrote down, you can just get in your own way. And ideally, that’s the way I’d like to approach life too; letting things go and staying present. Unfortunately, my mind loves a bit of control and tries keep me safe, so this one remains a practice for me!
Lesson Three: Listen to understand, not to respond
My manager was so excited to tell me that on the course they did the “One word at a time” exercise. You know, the one where the group stands in a line and tells the story by each person saying only one word, trying to progress the story along. He was laughing as he told me how you might think the story was going to end with the janitor leaving the zoo… but then the story takes a turn, and you need to really have been listening and paying attention to be able to continue the story.
It's a bit like in life, isn’t it? We passively listen to others with expectation, expecting we know the answer, the story or the outcome. Often, we don’t listen to understand what is being said, but instead we only listen to be able to respond. Listening means being adaptable and sensitive to what is being said so that one is able to react accordingly.
It strikes me that these are my lessons. Gleaned through my own lens and personal experience in improv. My own sage wisdom on how you, dear reader, can improv(e) your life! I’m so curious to hear more – any others you might think to share?
Shaakira Vania is a regular in the Amsterdam improv scene. If you want to read more, check out her blog: Roe the Blog:
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