Improvisational skills are key to any successful business, whether it be at a Fortune 500 corporation or being able to think on one’s feet to pull any manner of last-minute meeting and event calamities out of the fire.
Having worked the stage as an improv group for more than two decades, including entertaining countless meeting audiences, Fort Worth, Texas-based Four Day Weekend has published Happy Accidents, The Transformative Power of “Yes, And” at Work and in Life.
Using examples from their long careers on the stage—both in Fort Worth when they produced a weekly comedy show and subsequently at venues and meetings around the world—troupe members David Wilk, David Ahearn and Frank Ford write on how bedrock improvisational principles translate into improving communication skills, foster creative problem solving and spark new ideas.
“Yes, And” is a staple improv exercise that fosters communication and working with others cooperatively, requiring participants to agree with a statement from a fellow player—no matter how nutty, in some cases—and then add to it.
“The philosophy of ‘yes, and’ worked so well for us on stage,” Ford said. “We asked, well, what if that was our business model as well? It not only opened up our ability to communicate within the group, but opened us up to so many different business opportunities.”
Happy Accidents is available on Amazon.com in hardcover and Kindle editions.
[Bonus Content: Read more about the power of improvisation in the December Friday With Joan newsletter].
