Can We Co-Create Change?
Yes, And … It’s Actually More Lasting That Way
Change is hard. Anyone trying to break a habit or start a new one can testify to that. But talk about organizational change and watch entire teams lock arms and block any attempts to disrupt the status quo. The resistance is compounded tenfold, even when the group recognizes and knows that they need to change. Why is that?
It could be that we aren’t in the habit of considering alternate views and perspectives in our daily life. We tend to see and favor what we know. That carries over into business and is exacerbated when you add company history, groupthink, and “the way we’ve always done it.” We rationalize that we barely have time for ourselves. We might believe that we have an open mind and say all of the right things. But when push comes to shove, “us and ours” is what really matters. We defend it. The minds and ears shut. Any semblance of agility or willingness to change is jettisoned to protect our position. That’s to everyone’s detriment.
Stopping At What We Know Leaves Us Short of a Change Solution
We stop at what we know to be true because it has worked for us in the past — why go farther? We find one way and run with it.
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Creative fields, and improv specifically, know that there is always more than one solution to any problem. When other views are seen, explored, and added to the solution, the results are always more diverse and inclusive. That makes them inherently stronger as well. What’s required is a quick way to help people search for and visualize alternative solutions and viewpoints.
See Things Differently Through Improv
Improv exercises are designed and created specifically to improve team mental and decision agility, increase trust and support, and enhance open communications. That’s what makes improv theater work on stage and what makes students of the art able to apply it effectively to everyday life, and especially business. You want examples you say? Here are just two specific exercises that come to mind and relate especially well to agility and change.
- Take that Back. Participants improvise a scene based on a suggestion. On a specified cue, bell, clap, command, the speaker must rewind and replace their last statement with something different and continue the scene from that new point. This forces the players to stay in the moment, get out of their head, and really listen for the next set up.
- Emo Op. Working in pairs, participants start a normal conversation. Once underway, the facilitator will suggest different emotions such as angry, sad, irritated, exuberant. The conversations continue, but now reflecting their new emotions. This teaches how perception impacts our communication, and how to deal with change.
While these might seem like small steps that could never bring change to a large organization, that’s where you would be wrong. Small steps, repeated over and over is exactly how big changes are made. That’s what gets the ball rolling. Institutional change requires communication, collaboration, and the ability to see other possibilities. That’s precisely what improv training provides.
Originally published at http://highbarmarketing.com/2017/12/05/can-co-create-change/ on December 5, 2017.
