BSH Team Training Recap
First off, thank you ALL for being vulnerable and putting yourselves out there for something of an unorthodox learning experience. I have compiled takeaways for you here. The goal here is to provide ways to continue the learning, because this kind of learning and behavior change requires PRACTICE. We spent a lot of time discovering the power of applying improv skills to your work, so let’s not lose anything, but instead keep building on it.
Below we have provided a session recap with exercises and debriefs. Have fun using these and continuing to bring improv to the BSH org!
Session Recap
Objectives for Session:
Learning to bring diverse talents together, embracing what makes us different and accepting strengths and weaknesses,
Tackling new and potentially “scary” professional scenarios without fear.
Navigating a fast paced landscape
Active Listening
Thinking on your feet
Communication and Collaboration
Navigating Change
Improv Anchors:
Being Present, Taking care of each other-Improv teaches us how to focus and be present noticing things about each other helps build a supportive culture. When we make time and space for play and getting to know each other, we feel a sense of support that helps during times of change.
Communication and Collaboration- The art of improvisation requires us to invest in each other interpersonal communications like listening, empathy and investing in what’s important to others and not just our agenda.
Empathy, Adjusting to the needs of the room-Even when we are not using our words, we can communicate and accomplish a lot through sheer trust and not hesitating.
Listening for Values-Deep listening means we may not agree with someone but we can accept their truth-How they feel.
Session Exercises:
We had an amazing experience working with the BSH team and you can use these exercises to continue the practice and learning within your org.
Warm-Ups:
Pass the clap- In this exercise you simple form a circle and begin to pass a clap. Facing each other as you go around the circle trying to clap your hands at the same time and increasing speed as you go. You can clap twice to change the direction of the clap being passed. (You did it! You know the flow.) This is a great way to start a meeting or get everyone in a present and focused mindset.
Zoom Ball, Sound Ball-
Starts with Zoom sound and evolves into any sound they want. Host starts and throws an imaginary ball to anyone in the circle by making eye contact. “Zoom” is said when throwing and catching the ball. Be sure they do that part, it’s important to be sure the sender knows that you received their “message”. Once Zoom is going well, you stop the game and tell them that this time they get to make up their own sound. Don’t overthink it, just make a sound and it is made when throwing and catcher repeating the sound and then creating a new one to send.
Debrief:
How’d that feel?
Hard? Easy?
Why?
Did anyone second guess their sound?
Feels a bit risky doesn’t it?
What makes taking risks a possibility at work? (Knowing you are safe, no one is judging you?)
Walk Stop, Hop Name, Twist Clap
Randomly walk in space, tell participants you will be giving them commands and to listen up. Start out just having people walk and stop and then switch the direction by saying, “now when I say walk you must stop and when I say stop, you must walk” we are literally just switching the command. You will do this for 3 rounds until all commands are all switched.
Walk becomes stop, stop becomes walk
Name (shout name) and Jump (hop) (3-4 times, interspersed with walk and stop)
Name becomes jump, jump becomes name (1 min)
Clap and Twist (practice 2 times), intersperse with other commands
Clap becomes twist, twist becomes clap (1 min) - mix up all commands, end on 3 twists and circle up
Debrief:
Simply talk about how we feel when the plan changes and how we react. How can we take quick and unexpected changes in stride?
Follow the Follower
Objective: Let participants experience giving and taking control and power of co-creative flow. In creating trust amongst team members-it is valuable to give and take and lead and/or follow based on what the whole group needs. We all have diverse talents and sometimes we need to lead and sometimes we need to follow.
Summary: In pairs participants mirror each other, first 2 rounds only 1 player is leading and the 3rd round-they get to choose.
Exercise Mirror Mirror
Debrief:
After the first 2 rounds where, each person had acted as both leader and follower, stop to ask how it felt.
Which did you like best, leading or following?
Why?
What if you were the best candidate to lead a project at work, but you preferred to follow-how does that affect the outcome?
LAST ROUND-no directions, just do what you feel. You pick to lead or follow. The idea here is that they work together and move like they are one so that an observer would not be able to tell who is leading or who is following. In this round, it should be a give and take. If participants trust each other and are completely present in the moment they will go into a state of flow and control will dissolve.
Debrief:
How did that go?
How did you feel compared to last 2 rounds?
Did you know who was leading and following?
The Truth about Me
This exercise is about speaking a truth. Everyone walks about the space and at any point someone wants to speak a truth (for ex: “the truth about me is I get really nervous when presenting to stakeholders”) The person speaking a truth will stop walking and everyone else will stop to listen and if it is also true for them, they move closer to the person who spoke the truth (the closer to that person they get, the truer the statement is for them). If it is not true for a person they move as far away as they deem applicable to them. Once everyone has landed, you resume walking until another truth is spoken.
Crises Firing Line or Circle
You can do this in a circle or a firing line. The idea is that one person names a random object, next person names a crises, third person must solve said crises using the random object named. Go through this as many times as you see fit switching the order so everyone gets a chance to be in different positions.
Debrief: Simply discuss the idea of thinking on your feet, getting creative and having fun.
Word at a Time Story
In a circle, the story is started, with each person in turn adding one word. It usually starts with ‘Once – upon – a – time’. The idea is to keep your thoughts free flowing, so that you don’t try to guess what is coming or force the story in a particular direction. It is not always easy to maintain a logical flow for the story, although it is always amusing. If the group is too large, break into smaller groups or pairs.
Debrief
How did it go?
Was it hard? Why?
What did you learn?
Did you find yourself wanted to say more than one word?
Who would have come up with this story on their own
Did you ever feel like you were just the “and” or the connector?
Did you get frustrated when you couldn’t say the word you wanted?
Did you get frustrated when others used a word you didn’t like?
The Rant
Overview:
In pairs participants each get a chance to rant about something. The listener must listen for the value underneath the ranting and respond with “I hear you really care about…
Game flow:
Pair up participants, A and B
Tell them to think of something that really irritates them. Each participant then gets a chance to rant about this frustration for 2 minutes while their partner just listens. Tell them to fill the whole 2 minutes with their ranting. The listener’s task is to listen past the frustration for the underlying value that is really important to the speaker. After the 2 minutes are done the listener responds with the words “I hear you really care about…” The value that the listener
Debrief questions:
•What did feel like being listened to like this?
•What did it feel like listening like this?
•What is the value of listening like this?
I am Tree
The players stand on the stage/around the room. Player A goes to the middle, strikes a pose and says who or what they represent. For example, he lifts his arms over his head and says "I am a tree." A second player arrives, adds to the picture, and also says who or what he is. A third player enters the scene and completes the suggestions from A and B.
Now that the scene is finished, player A leaves the stage taking one of the other players with them. The other player stays on the stage and repeats their sentence (without changing their pose) As a result he offers a suggestion for a new scene.
This exercise can take place with any number of players.
Example
A: I am a tree.
B: I am the dog who's sleeping next to the tree
C: I am the man whom the dog belongs to.
A: (leaves the stage) I'm taking the man with me.
B: I am a dog.
The idea here is to portray a story that is connected. Complimenting what is there, supporting and making it easy on your mates. Start to identify places where someone can walk in and make is complete by adding the missing element. Give the story what it needs.
Debrief:
How did that feel?
What was easy/difficult?
What helped you succeed?
How could you apply this to your work?
Are there times when supporting each other “the whole is greater than its dispersed parts” is critical at work?
Practicing and Reinforcements
Take improv classes, it’s the gym for your social skills and strengthening those muscles will allow you to more easily access them in the moments that matter in your work and life.
Do more workshops with your team. The BraveSpace team would be thrilled to work with you again and dig deeper into any of the areas we worked on in our session. We are poised and ready to continue the journey working on any of the following areas and more!
SESSION THEMES INCLUDE:
Collaboration and Teamwork
Communication Skills
Empathy & Trust
Resilience
Active Listening
Inclusive Cultures
Adaptability
Navigating Change
Accepting Failure
Executive Presence
Leadership Development
Getting Comfortable with the Uncomfortable
Creativity and Innovation