Make your partner look good
28 January 2012This is one my favourite improv principles. It’s just so obvious – focus on making others look good. It’s about shifting the focus from yourself to others, and being concerned more about the overall outcome – whether that’s a performance, a workshop, a show, a presentation, or a conference. Speaking of conferences, it’s the last…
Asking for help
25 January 2012I quite enjoy helping others. I’m not so good at asking for help. From an improv perspective it’s like making offers – asking for help is making an offer to the world. And boy, does it pay back big time. Those of you reading this blog recently will know I’m in foreign parts designing a…
It’s all about movement
7 January 2012“People learn a new language more easily when words are accompanied by movement.” New Scientist, Issue 2844/2845 Dec 2011. I’ve written before about the importance of physical movement, and how this is integral to how I facilitate. I love this card because it reminds me to move my body, and to provide opportunities for people…
We live in an ‘either’ – ‘or’ world. Time to embrace ‘yes, and…’
7 January 2012The conversation went something like this. Me: I’m thinking of getting an e-reader, probably a kindle. It means I can carry lots of books with me and always have something to read. And it looks kinda cool. Friend 1: Oh, no, I could never use an e-reader. I like books. Paper books. Friend 2: Me…
What’s at the heart of applied improv?
5 December 2011This morning I tweeted an article that was shared on Facebook (no, this isn’t a post about social media). This one: Improvisation May Be the Key to Successfully Managing Change, says MIT It seemed to generate a lot of interest. Applied improv gets me excited like nothing else. I think it’s important to take notice of…
The tyranny of the explicit
30 November 2011We probably all know someone who constantly plays the excuse card. There’s an intention, followed by an excuse… You can pick an intention – commitment gap by the language: “I meant to go to the gym, but…”, “I wanted to support your proposal, but…” When we’re working with businesses in workshops, one of our commonest…
How to be more playful
29 November 2011I’m always banging on about bringing playfulness – which can be an attitude, a point-of-view, an approach – to work, to problem solving, to meetings, to life. “But how?” I hear you asking. Here’s a few ideas: Have a play space – a space at work or in a conference for people to play: shooting…
There is no point. It’s just fun!
15 November 2011I’ve long been a fan of Improv Everywhere, so it’s no surprise that I watched Charlie Todd’s TEDxBloomington talk on The Shared Experience of Absurdity. If you’ve never heard of Improv Everywhere it will give you a great introduction, and if you have, it will give you some laughs. Charlie describes Improv Everywhere as “causing…
Thinking with your body
14 October 2011Do you know that game where you’re given two equally unappealing options: to kiss Tony Abbott or George Bush (for example)? Here’s another one: to sit through a deadly boring powerpoint presentation or to play silly games. Yeah – I actually understand that some people would prefer to sit through a boring presentation than to…
Viral improv
11 October 2011There’s a great little activity I saw at Gathering11. Say you have half a dozen messages you want to spread amongst the audience. Secretly give one message to six people and ask them to whisper the message to someone in the audience with a request to pass it on. Pretty soon, everyone is sharing these…