Coronavirus Challenges Us All to be Improvisers
Photo by Steve Johnson on Unsplash
For the first time in my life, I’m being asked to put the health and well-being of our society ahead of our individual needs and wants.
Being American, this idea feels foreign, itchy, unnatural. I first encountered this concept of community over individuals in the late 90s when I studied and worked in China. And again, ten years ago when I began training as an improv performer.
After many years of doing improv theater and translating improv techniques into creative leadership experiences for professionals, one question keeps coming up:
“How do you know what to do and say, if you don’t know what’s going to happen?”
Sound familiar? Does this sound like your day-to-day or minute-to-minute in self/family quarantine current situation?
The truth is improvisers don’t “know” what to do or say either, but we have learned to be comfortable in the not knowing, and we have practiced a common set of guidelines around how to think and behave. Our training has allowed us to trust ourselves to do whatever the situation (scene) calls for. In the age of coronavirus, we’re all improvisers.
To stay sane each day, I tap into these improv lessons and tips that I hope can support you too:
The world is chaos and that’s ok. Your day does not have to feel chaotic.
New information is available to us every minute. Only take what is useful to you and move on.
Go with the flow.
A few tips on how to go with the flow:
Suspend judgement (of yourself and others).
Be compassionate (towards yourself and others).
Be present and listen, listen, listen (to yourself and others).
Find the fun in little things.
Look for opportunities in the challenges. (I designed and co-faciliated a virtual Improv workshop in only 3 days. Before quarantine, I procrastinated for more than a year to do this.)
Connect with a group of humans.
Embrace your daily weird and awkward settings:
A bedroom can be an office.
A bathroom can be an office.
An office can be wherever you are.
A meeting can be you, headphones, and walk around the park.
Shake out some of your anxiety by dancing.
Get comfortable with interruptions by “Yes, and”-ing interruptions:
Baby walks into your video call screaming for a peanut butter cookie?
Baby is now a part of your reality (your call). Pick ‘em up and plop ‘em on your lap.
Give baby one of your cookies (because we all need cookies nearby these days, right?!)
Wifi freezes? Pause, take a breath. Silence is ok.
Let go of your agenda:
Had vacation plans? Ha!
Jack up the heat in house.
Blow up an inner tube and fill up your bathtub because it’s now a pool.
Support your friends, coworkers, and family:
Check in with them often.
Laugh with them often.
Remind them you have their backs (6 feet away or virtually).
Like any good improv show we have no clue how this will end. This is ok too.
Improvisers believe that the whole is greater than the individual and in my experience, I’ve only seen good come from this mindset. What if we, as coworkers, always worked this way? What if we, as Americans, always lived this way? What would our reality be like then?
Please email me: lisa@followthefear.co if you need a facilitated playful workshop for your team or community. I’ve got your back on Zoom.