10 Powerful Life Lessons I learned From Improv Class

(*Improv is a form of live theatre in which the plot, characters and dialogue of a game, scene or story are made up in the moment. Often improvisers will take a suggestion from the audience, or draw on some other source of inspiration to get started.)

Imagine walking into a room full of strangers. Some seated, some standing. Conversations have already started, and you are on the outside. Rather than standing there by yourself, you decide to walk over to a group and join in on their conversation. Now what? What do you say? How do you introduce yourself? How do you add value to the conversation? Should I talk about that thing I watched on the news today? … And about a few minutes in, you realize, you’ve been silent the entire time, nodding rhythmically, but not hearing one word said. And everyone goes on their merry way.

Sound familiar? For all those who’ve attended a networking event, this is how it sometimes plays out.

Now, for those that know me, I don’t seem to ever have this problem. (I know some of you think I like to hear my voice too often) But this wasn’t always the case. I had to work ridiculously hard to make this seem natural. It took years and years of being awkward, at time sounding like an idiot or Prime USDA-hole.

To continue with my “training” I decided to try something fresh and new. I decided to take an introductory Improv Class, hosted by Silly People’s Improv Theater (SPIT) Manila. For 3 hours, I learned that improv doesn’t improve just your networking, or comedy skills, it is an effective tool in helping you become a better business leader, and overall a more awesome human being.

Lesson #1: Be More Accepting (“Yes, and…”)

One of the first lessons we learned was called “Yes, and…”. Essentially, it’s a scene where one person is telling a story, and the other person adds to the storyline by saying “yes, and…”. By saying “yes”, you encourage the other person to talk about their ideas, no matter how ridiculous or brilliant it is. The word allows the scene to continue, where as saying a word like “no” will kill it. The word “and” allows you to build off the story, to expected or unexpected directions.

Overall, this allows TRUST and RESPECT to be built between people. This is a great skill to learn in brainstorming sessions.

Lesson #2: Be Present (“Zip, Zap, Zoom”)

Some studies show that our attention spans are getting worse and worse. Thanks 140-character feeds. One of the other games we learned was a simple game of “Zip, Zap, Zop”. Simply, we stood in a circle, where we make a hand gesture towards another person saying the word “Zip”, then that person does the same hand gesture toward another person saying “Zap”, then it continues over and over. Easy peezy, right?

Actually…no. The one rule is that the person sending the “Zip” has to be making eye contact with the person receiving it. Basically, throughout the game, I had to be present, paying attention to which word we were on, who would be looking at me to send the “Zap”, and I would have to be instantly ready to give the “Zop” to someone across the circle.

The game required to be fully engaged. Otherwise, you will end up lost and confused.

Lesson #3: Be Flexible (“One Word Story”)

There is really no planning minutes ahead in all of the games or scenes we played. It required you to think only about the next few seconds, and nothing more. In “One Word Story” the rule was simply to say one word on top of another word said by your partner. The goal was to build fiction or non-fiction story, based on a theme announced at the beginning.

The direction was constantly changing, and since you were always with another partner or partners, no one was really controlling the story. For the story to make any sense, you simply had to change the direction of your story based on the other person’s word.

In our lives, we plan years or months ahead. Most of the time, there are factors beyond our control for our plans to follow the expected path. Something will always happen in between. But like the “One Word Story”, you just have to adjust.

Lesson #4: It’s Not About You

You may think that the best improv scenes are when you come up with the best lines or words, but it’s actually when you prioritize your partner’s needs, setting the stage for them to come up with their best lines or words. When partners look at supporting each other, rather than trying to “one-up” each other, magic happens.

In our lives today, we see things as a zero-sum game, where if one has something the other has nothing. But if we realize that we can create a larger pie by working together, and putting the needs of others first, then everyone benefits.

Lesson #5: Celebrate Uniqueness

The first time I entered the room, I realized no one else was from my industry or circle of friends. In fact, everyone who attended the class was very different from each other. Each of us had a unique story about why we decided to take the class and what we wanted to achieve from it. Each of us had a unique personality, and it showed in every scene or game we played. This difference led to some of the most interesting and funniest scenes. It became clear that our goal was not to blend in, but to emphasize our inner child and “crazy”, without judging each other.

Ultimately, in any team environment, the more unique perspectives there are, the better the results. Having a group with the same background and thinking, results in linear thinking and may produce ordinary outcomes.

Lesson #6: Learning By Failing

“Oh, I should’ve said that word instead”… are thoughts that come into my head a few seconds after the game or scene ended. When scenes are less than one minute long, and moving quite quickly, there is no time to think, and ultimately, you just say what’s on your mind. Sometimes my reaction is flawless and sometimes it was awful. But, messing up is part of the process. There’s always a next scene, and I’ll just try my best again.

In our lives we want to be perfect at each step of the way, but this is an impossible task for us to ask from ourselves. Sometimes, we just have to act quickly and make decisions on the fly. If the results are great, then congratulations. If not, then we just learned something and move on to apply it to the next situation.

Lesson #7: Don’t Think Too Hard

The more I tried to be clever, the longer it took for me to provide an answer or take action. When scenes or games are moving so fast, the best thing to do is listen to your gut. When I just trusted my instincts, things got easier and I became more comfortable at the situation.

In business, we have a tendency to overthink a situation or a possible new venture. Once “paralysis analysis” sets in, the moment has passed, and our thinking has become outdated and irrelevant. Today, industries are getting disrupted by smaller and faster competitors, not by the biggest company. Speed is king.

Lesson #7: Simplicity > Complexity

Some of the funniest scenes we did were quite simple everyday stories that everyone could relate to. The stories that became a little too far-fetched, became too difficult to recall and was just not funny. Since I was new to improv, I tried to be too clever, trying to impress my fellow classmates.

Ultimately, simple is superior. In some companies I’ve consulted, there was confusion over the products being sold since quantity and being big became the mantra. Rather than focusing on a single or few products, the client spread its energy on too many initiatives, leading to slower growth and lower employee morale.

Lesson #9: Open Up to New Possibilities and Opportunities

I’ve always wanted to take an improv class since I graduated from college. That was years ago and it took this long to understand why so many people have suggested this to me. The experience of even a single improv class is amazing, meeting so many great people with a common bond of trying something new.

As we get older, we tend to stay in our comfort zones, or in our way of thinking. We shy away from new experiences, potentially depriving ourselves of other opportunities. Sure, you may hit the ball once after 20 swings at bat, missing 19 times. But never swinging will guarantee missing the ball all the time.

Lesson #10: It Takes A Team

There was not one game or scene that required only yourself. Improv is team-based. We were a group of strangers, building off of each other’s ideas or words, fearlessly trying to complete a sentence or think of transforming this make-believe dog into a violin, or simply just listening to each other and be present. The best games or scenes for me, were the ones that involved the entire group.

Ultimately, approaching tasks or problems with a group can be much more effective than approaching it by yourself. Having different people sharing their thoughts or experiences, can result in creative approaches to a situation, turning into innovative solutions.

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If you haven’t had the chance to take an improv class yet, I suggest you go find the nearest one and try it. In one class, improv has taught me to embrace failure, be a better listener, live in the present, go with the flow and more. Good luck and keep an open mind!

#funny #leadership #creative