The Improvisation Edge: Secrets to Building Trust and Radical Collaboration at Work

Well, that's the premise behind "The Improvisation Edge." This short, punchy book teaches us how to adopt the improviser's mindset and attitude, so we can build trust and solid collaboration within our teams. It's designed for use in the workplace, so it's about learning to think quickly and act collaboratively - it's not about learning to be a clown.

So, who's this book for? The author uses the techniques in the book in a range of business settings, including with business leaders. It particularly suits managers who are looking for new ways of building trust within their team and are prepared to try a different approach. It's certainly engaging, practical and, most importantly, full of highly useful tips.

That said, the techniques in the book are not going to work for everyone or in every environment. You'll get a better sense of whether or not it's a book for you as this podcast progresses.

The author, Karen Hough, spent many years as an improv actor. She then transitioned to become a sales and marketing executive for a network engineering company. When she began using her improv skills in the corporate world, she experienced tremendous success. This led her to found ImprovEdge, and she now works with Fortune 500 companies teaching leaders and management teams how to use improv skills with their teams.

"The Improvisation Edge" details four key principles that are based on the secrets of improv acting. These principles help you build trust and collaboration within your team and they form the foundation of the book. The author gives us several real life case studies that prove just how well these techniques can work. And, there are plenty of fun and insightful exercises to help you start adopting the improviser's mindset with your team.

Although improvisation might sound incongruous in a work setting, chances are you're already doing it at work, at least on a basic level.

Think about this. How many times has your boss called you into her office and asked you to work on a project you know nothing about? It sounds scary and hard, and you're not even sure you can do it. And yet you square your shoulders, put on a smile and say, "Sure, I can work on that for you. No problem."

Or what about the last time you were presenting a new product to a client? He asks a question you've never even considered. You slowly start explaining, feeling your way through the question for the right answer, and then your colleague jumps in with an additional explanation. Working together on the fly, you both address his fears and seal the deal.

This, at its most basic form, is improv.

"The Improvisation Edge" has no set chapter numbers. As you've just heard, this short little book is based on the four secrets of improvisation, and each of these principles is detailed in its own section.

Now, it's important to keep in mind as you're listening that these tips may not work for your team, or in your particular organization. Apply your own judgment and only use these techniques if you're sure they'll be appropriate.

So, keep listening to find out how to get the quieter members of your team to speak up in meetings, why using the word "and" is so powerful, and how ideas can be used like bricks.

The first secret improv principle is called Yes! Space. And, it's a technique designed to bring positivity and creativity into the workplace. The next secret is Building Blocks. This technique enables us to take something small and, working together, build it up into something great. The third secret is Team Equity, which shows us how to leverage the power of the entire team. The last secret is called Oops to Eureka! This principle helps us understand how our mistakes often turn into our greatest discoveries.

If you're leading a team and feel like everyone is stuck in a rut, you may want to start out with the Yes! Space technique. This technique teaches you how to build a supportive network, so the people on your team feel comfortable and safe enough to be truly creative.

The Yes! Space technique is divided into three components: "say yes," "put the critic on hold," and "make it public."

First, think about the word yes. It's a feel-good word. When someone says yes to you, you can almost feel a positive energy shift in yourself, right?

The author says that in the improvisational mindset, any contribution, no matter how ridiculous, is greeted with immediate agreement.

In a team setting, saying yes doesn't mean yes we will. Rather, it means yes we could. It opens everyone on the team up to the possibility. Not only that, but saying yes to someone's idea validates not only the idea, but the person as well. So, everyone feels more confident about contributing.

One way you can incorporate the Yes! Space technique into your own team is to say the word "yes" every time someone contributes an idea in a meeting. Even if the idea is critical or crazy, you should start your response with the word yes. It should be the first word to leave your mouth after someone speaks.

After a while, the group will learn that it's safe to share, and everyone will be more likely to speak up.

While it this technique has the potential to create a positive and nurturing environment, it could be fraught with problems. What if someone on your team comes out with a really bad idea? You know without a doubt this idea simply isn't going to work. Should you shelve your integrity and just say yes to the idea?

The author does address that concern in this section. She stresses that just because you start off saying yes, it doesn't mean you're going to pursue the idea. You could simply say Yes, that's an interesting concept. Tell me more.

Or, you could say yes, and then ask a question. She stresses that sometimes, we do have to say no in business. But by saying yes first, we give our team the sense of acceptance and security to explore their idea further, even if it's for a minute or less.

The next two steps in the Yes! Space technique are "put the critic on hold" and "make it public." Both contain some really insightful suggestions for fostering a sense of safety in your team. If you work in an organization where you think this approach would work, you won't want to miss these.

Skeptical readers will be interested to read the personal stories of how people have reacted to the Yes! Space in the author's group seminars. You can't help but notice how powerful creating a Yes! Space can be, especially when it comes to energizing the group and getting ideas flowing.

Another secret to improvisation is called Building Blocks. And like the previous secret, Building Blocks is based around one word. That word is and. In improv the word "and" always follows the word "yes." The author says that using the word and just might be the biggest secret in improv.

The Building Blocks technique breaks down into three steps. These are "jump in and play," "shelve your ego," and "bring a block." The author gives us a good example that helps illustrate how this works.

When you think about traditional brainstorming sessions, everyone usually tosses out unrelated ideas. The author says these ideas are like bricks being thrown out in great quantity, scattered about without creating any structure. By the end of the meeting all we have is a field full of these bricks lying around. Most of the time, at least 75 percent of ideas are discarded.

However, when we use the Building Blocks technique, where every idea is a brick, you can end up building a castle. The author says this happens when every idea supports the original idea in some way.

Now, at first this might sound limiting. Aren't you cutting off creativity by forcing your group to stick to one topic? And what if the initial idea is a lousy one?

Don't worry; these questions are answered in this section, along with many more you're likely to have.

So let's look closer at each component of the Building Blocks technique.

You start out with "jump in and play." This component revolves around what we just covered, using the words yes and and.

When you say yes, remember, you're validating the other person. And using the word "and" immediately afterward forces you to play too, as the author puts it.

Stop and think about this for a moment. Imagine you're in a brainstorming meeting and you have complete trust in those sitting around you. You know without a doubt that if you put forward an idea or suggestion, your team is going to be there to jump in with a positive response every time, building on whatever you just said. Knowing they've got your back in this way gives you that much more courage to step up and speak.

So, you stand up and say, "Based on my research, I believe we need to move forward on this new product immediately."

Suddenly, your colleague stands up too. He says, "Yes, and I know waiting is going to cause us to lose market share."

When you're there to support your group by using the word and, you're committing to sharing the work and risk. Essentially, you're stepping up to "play with them." That word "and" forced you to contribute too.

Is the workplace an appropriate place for play? Some people think so, particularly in brainstorming sessions, where a sense of fun can release creativity. But again, make sure you don't try any of these techniques in situations where serious professionalism is called for.

The next step in this principle is to shelve your ego. The author says that this is key to the success of Building Blocks.

The reason is that when you say "yes, and," you're agreeing to follow your team member's idea instead of your own. You're shelving your ego and believing that the group collaboration will be better than anything you could do on your own.

As you might imagine, this can be difficult. But it can also be liberating, because you don't have to think everything through by yourself. Your team helps you do that when they start adding their own blocks.

The last step in the Building Blocks principle is to "bring a block." And, this is when you step in and contribute something to the group. Once you do that, you're now officially part of the performance. This means you'd better be engaged in what happens afterwards, because you're partly responsible for how it turns out. Staying on the sidelines is not an option.

The author cautions that the three steps in Building Blocks can be uncomfortable and scary at first. But the more you make yourself get involved with the three steps, the easier it will be.

So how can you use Building Blocks with your team?

Start with "yes, and." When someone presents an idea, say "yes, and," then add your own piece or ask a question.

When it comes time to shelve your ego, go along with the idea. The author says we should avoid using the phrase "yes, but," which kills ideas. Of course, sometimes an idea deserves to be killed, so take this tip with a grain of salt.

To bring a block, ask what you can to do help in a situation you've never been involved with before. For instance, imagine one of your colleagues is overworked. You don't know anything about her project, but you could "bring a block" by offering to help copy some documents or finish a spreadsheet for her.

The last two secrets to improv, Team Equity and Oops to Eureka! are just as insightful and useful as the first two, for organizations where this type of approach fits well.

In Team Equity you learn how to leverage the strengths of your entire team to work towards a goal. And, Oops to Eureka! shows you how to turn mistakes into incredible opportunities and discoveries. Like in the first half of the book, the author includes plenty of practical tips and exercises to help you start using these techniques with your team.

So, what's our last word on "The Improvisation Edge?"

Well, there's no doubt that the author did a wonderful job packing a ton of ideas and exercises into just 150 pages. Many of these ideas and exercises are nontraditional and take you out of the box, which is part of why they're so appealing. Most of us would never have thought to use improv techniques with our own teams, and in some cases, it can really work well.

Again, we should point out that these techniques won't work for everyone or in every situation. You'll know by now whether your team would benefit from this approach - or whether this is a book you wouldn't actually use. Improvisation is all very well, but in some situations, nothing beats straightforward professionalism.

"The Improvisation Edge," by Karen Hough, is published by Berrett-Koehler Publishers.

That's the end of this episode of Book Insights. Click here to buy the book from Amazon. Thanks for listening.