Improvisation:

creative thinking for

complex problems

Creativity, connectivity &

collaboration

“Creativity is more important thank

knowledge.”

Albert Einstein

Improvisation is one of the most direct and

accessible ways to develop new

ways of thinkingWith communication happening at the

speed of light and change as

unpredictable as it is unprecedented, we

need to think and connect in new ways..

Christin

e M

oorm

an a

nd A

nne S

. Min

er,

“Org

aniza

tional Im

pro

visatio

n a

nd

Org

aniza

tional M

em

ory” A

cadem

y of

Managem

ent R

evie

w, Vo

l. 23, N

o. 4, (1

998):

699.

Technological

change affects

the chances an

organization

may execute

an act while

designing it

(emphasis added)

because

traditional

buffers

between

choice and

action have

been reduced

drastically.”

Work on

improvisation is

made substantially

more urgent by

the impact of

technological

change, not only

on the tendency to

improvise but on

an organization's

ability to

deliberately

manage the nature

of and access to

organizational

memory.”

Mary

Cro

ssan e

t al,

“The Im

pro

visi

ng

Org

aniz

ati

on: W

here

Pla

nnin

g M

eets

Opport

unit

y” O

rganiz

ati

onal

Dyn

am

ics

(Spri

ng, 1996):

21.

Lessons can be learned from improvisation, both in

theater and music, for

application to business. In addition,

training exercises from

the performing arts can be used to convey

the principles of improvisation in corporate settings.”

Unce

rtain

ty is

the “

new

norm

al”

of

the

netw

ork

ed w

orl

d.

Improvisation trains the brain to reach for a range of

effective responses to the unexpected, unfamiliar, and

unpredictable. ble.

Improvisation/storytelling workshops combine music,

theater games and creativity-generating exercises.

Each group experience is a

dynamic, unique, unrepeatable real-time creative collaboration.

Tech

nolo

gy

has

dis

solv

ed

the o

ld b

arr

iers

of

tim

e

and s

pace

There is no “box’’ to think

out of – only interconnected systems

and networks Learn to think like a jazz musician:

We are all supporting players, even

when it is our turn to solo;

Don’t perform - listen and respond to

shifts and changes made by the other

players;Let go of control over outcomes;

When things are flowing, follow the

energy;When things are not flowing, choose

not-knowing;

“If

it’s

a q

uest

ion o

f w

heth

er

to d

o w

hat’

s

fun o

r w

hat

is s

uppose

d t

o b

e g

ood f

or

you, and n

obody

is h

urt

by

whic

heve

r yo

u

do, alw

ays

do w

hat’

s fu

n.”

H

arp

o M

ark

s, H

arp

o S

peaks

A properly-designed improvisation

technique can: convey new information

generate a cognitive shift

turn group tensions into creative

opportunities reveal and promote connections

between the playersall in the same

creative experience.

Improvisation is both good for you

and fun. Serious fun.

There is no

right or wrong

connection

between

these 2

random

words, only a

way of

thinking

about them.

Learn to think relationally and make connections between ideas,

Mind-Reader

Game – one

person thinks of

a word. Second

person

“guesses” what

the word might

be.

Third person

must find some

kind of

connection

between the 2

words.

Learn

about m

akin

g sp

ecifi

c,

small ch

oice

s that ca

n cre

ate

larg

e d

iffere

nce

s; “Portrait G

ame”

Create a “portrait”

by posing

members of the

group as if they

are characters in a

snapshot.

Change one thing,

e.g. – an angle, a

facial expression,

one person

removed or

relating to another

person in a

different way.

Observe

and discuss

how that

one change

influences

the

meaning of

the whole.

Sim

ple

exp

eri

ence

s

can e

xplo

re c

om

ple

x quest

ions.

What story is the portrait telling? What do different group

members see?How do the differences

in perception influence

the group?

Impro

visa

tion is

the a

ct o

f findin

g

opport

unit

ies

for

creati

vity

am

idst

 

limit

ati

ons.

"  G

retc

hen W

egner,

Pra

ctic

al M

att

ers

CREATIVITY: the production of

something original and useful.

There are questions to

explore and problems to solve,

but in a creative paradigm

there is never one right answer.To be creative requires divergent

thinking (generating many unique

ideas)

and then convergent thinking (combining

those ideas into the best result).

.

The integration of creativity, connectivity and group collaboration enhances social bonds within the group as well as individuals’ neural patterns for creative thinking

“Neurons that fire together wire together”Dr. Dan Siegelwww.Mindsight.com

List

enin

g “

synch

s up”

our

bra

in t

o

a s

tory

telle

r w

ho e

ngages

our

imagin

ati

on a

nd

connect

s w

ith u

s

Exp

eri

ence

make

s le

arn

ing s

tick

“Creative experiences – putting a concept into action, improvisatory role-playing, music, theater games – enhances the integration of new

information by producing new neuronal connections in the brain and expanding the relationship between those connections.”

Kenneth Wesson, “What Everyone Should Know About the Latest Brain Research,” para. 16. 28 Feb 2008

www.sciencemaster.com/columns/wesson/wesson_2000.php)

Improvisation is a negotiation

“The real power and

innovation of jazz is that

a group of people can

come together and create art—improvised

art—and can negotiate

their agendas with each

other. And that negotiation is the art.”

Wynton Marsalis

“A jazz musician improvises a

new riff, building off of his

existing knowledge of music,

his prior experience playing

the trumpet, and the notes

and tempos created in the

moment by fellow musicians.” “ The Role of Improvisation and Imagination

in Accessing Body-Based Ways of Knowing”

Gretchen Wegner, Practical Matters January 2009, Vol. 1, No. 1,

What’

s tr

ue in jazz

is

tru

e in lif

e

People negotiate their agendas

by making agreements and

engaging in a creative process. Applied improvisation is a

way to develop the skill set,

mental agility and emotional openness for

engaging with real-time

problems and complex

emotional challenges.

Impro

visa

tion g

am

es

deve

lop in

tuit

ive t

hin

king

skill

s &

tru

st b

etw

een

part

ners

“Approach a problem with

no preconception

as to how you will solve it;Permit everything in the environment

to work for you in solving it.”

Viola Spolin, Improvisation for the theater: A

handbook of teaching and directing

techniques.

(Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press,

1963)

This

is y

our

bra

in

on im

pro

v

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“Creativity is more important than knowledge.” Albert Einstein