5 Ways to Improv(e) Your Career

How to act like an improviser to own the room…

For most people, the idea of getting on-stage in front of an audience with the aim of making them laugh fills them with dread. Throw in the stipulation that they must have no script, and many people would run a mile. This, however, is exactly what improv comedians do every night of the week.

At Hoopla Business we work with companies and individuals, teaching them about the ways they can use our improvisation skills off-stage to improve their professional lives, making them more confident, more creative, and better able to own any room.

To give you a taste of how we work, here are five improv tips to help you take up more space at work, so that rather than just showing up at meetings, you shine at them too.

  1. Give Up on Perfect

One of the reasons we may not come across as confident in meetings is that we are second-guessing ourselves. This is because we think we have to be perfect. But our job is not to be perfect; it is to communicate, and they are not the same thing. In fact, our imperfections are often what make us likeable to others. They show our humanity and it is this that other people connect to. The trick is how you respond to your mistakes. If you own them, if you can laugh at them, there is nothing more charismatic.

  1. Bring a Brick

We are often intimidated in meetings because we think it is on us to be the smartest person in the room. We think we have to bring the whole solution and we worry our contribution is stupid, obvious, or insignificant. There is a saying from improv that helps here. In improv we say that it isn’t our job to bring the whole cathedral, we only need to bring a single brick. If everyone in the group shows up with one brick at a time, then we’ll build a cathedral together in no time. But it’s a team effort. Your small contribution is worthwhile! Without it, we can’t build anything. So, speak up.

  1. Focus on Your ‘Scene Partner’ 

Veteran improv coach Jill Bernard says, ‘If you want to get out of your head, then get into something else.’ This is an important thing to bear in mind if you get socially anxious. Nerves soon dissipate when you realise that it’s not about you. Stop thinking about what you are going to say, and start focusing on listening to your colleagues. When improvisers begin their careers, they are super-nervous. When they realise their main job is not to be clever or funny, but to make their scene partner look good, they discover their confidence. And you can too!

  1. Watch Your Body Language

Our status in life is not just about where we are in a hierarchy, it is about the status we play in a room. If you want to play higher status, then you need to take up more space, quite literally. What does confident body language look like in practice? It is chest out, shoulders back, and your head level (as if held up by a bit of string.) A quick hack to get into this position is to tuck your bum in under your spine: you’ll notice your posture changes automatically. Note: these body language pointers also apply when sitting down.

  1. Make and Hold Eye Contact

Another aspect of raising your status is changing how you make eye contact. High status people establish eye contact and hold it. Obviously, you don’t want to stare at people like a psychopath! But there is a happy medium between that and avoiding eye contact entirely. If you’re not comfortable with this, try and increase the amount of eye contact you make slowly over a month or so. You’ll be amazed at how quickly this will become an easy part of how you communicate. Or, if you really struggle with direct eye contact, try looking at the person’s eyebrows instead – it will give the illusion you’re making eye contact.

Key Takeaways

Improv techniques are not just for the stage, they can be powerful tools for enhancing your professional career. By embracing the principles of improvisation, you can boost your confidence, improve your communication, and shine in any room.

  • Perfection is not the goal: focus on clear communication and embrace your imperfections.
  • Contribute your ‘brick’: you are not responsible for finding the whole solution, just bring a small idea to build something great as part of a collective effort.
  • Focus your attention on others: listening attentively to your colleagues, and focusing on making their ideas look good, can reduce anxiety and build confidence.
  • Use confident body language: taking up more physical space can elevate your perceived status in a room.
  • Practice making and holding eye contact to establish a strong, confident presence in any interaction.

Want more tips like these? Check out Company Director and Co-Founder of Hoopla Business, Max Dickins’, book, ‘Improvise! Use the Secrets of Improv to Achieve Extraordinary Results at Work’.  

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