There is a fundamental element to improvisational comedy that any idea is an idea worth exploring. A common exercise to train that muscle is the “Yes, And…” game where participants start their statements that follow the previous with “Yes, and…”
Participant A: I am sitting on the top floor of a parking garage singing Radiohead’s Creep at the top of my lungs.
Participant B: Yes and there is a woman with a crying child walking towards me.
A: Yes and he is holding a He-Man action figure.
B: Yes and the woman is wearing bell bottoms and a flowered chiffon top.
A: Yes and it is the middle of winter and the snow is thick.
B: Yes and she stops at my window and spins her hand in a clockwise circle indicating I should roll it down.
A: Yes and when I take the window down, she asks for some Grey Poupon.
While not a great sketch in and of itself, the ability to accept the previous statement for what it is and build upon it is crucial to being in the moment on stage with your fellow improvisers and being open to and able to flush out the heart of a scene when the stakes are higher and the dialogue is more complex.
Here is why this is important these days. There are no new ideas. While there is certainly new information and a lot of it, there are virtually no new ideas. So, the mark of a critical thinker is determined by assessing the quality of the ideas (source agnostic) to which a person is applying the “Yes, And” game. In other words, is your colleague, boss, employee, client, customer, etc sifting through the unbelievable breadth of information available to us, discerning which information is important and building upon that information with a slight spin of their own?
This recently came up in a conversation I was having with my wife about her dynamics at work. Laura is a thought leader and revered by her subordinates. Given the size of her organization it would be useful for everyone on her team to be able to move the conversation forward. This does not mean that anyone let alone everyone needs to come up with totally original ideas, it simply means that one applies the game to one of her ideas and takes it a step further.
There are times when the environment of your industry or your company or your personal life calls for some critical thinking. In those moments, trust the people around you and listen to them and build upon each other’s ideas to uncover the present truth as best you can. While I have not participated in improv, I know from talking to those that have that there are few feelings better than being fully immersed in the present moment of a scene that is working well. I can tell you that I have been most satisfied in my life when I have engaged in “Yes And” conversations with colleagues, friends, or family!
