How improv can help your return to work
It’s June 2021, and we at Riff are feeling optimistic, perhaps cautiously, for a chance to reconnect with friends and coworkers “in person” in the near future, whether we like it or not. Like many, we’ve been cramped in our homes for a year, zooming with our friends and loved ones, only interacting non-virtually with a small circle of people. We’ve built new friendships virtually, and lost connections with others who are far away. It’s been 15 months of challenges, solitude, crises, growth and change.
With vaccination and reopening efforts in full swing in many parts of the US, it’s easy to feel equal parts excited and anxious about heading back to the office or meeting up with a friend. Building and maintaining relationships looks different virtually, and when it comes to engaging with friends or coworkers in person - we. are. RUSTY.
So, we’ve reached into our improv tool kit to see what can be applied. Here are a few lessons from the world of improv that you can try as you step back in to the office, the coffee shop, or just wherever it is you step back in to. re.
Listen actively. Make eye contact. On video platforms, we often default to staring at our own image when engaging live with others. It can feel awkward at first to make real eye contact with someone you’ve grown accustomed to working with on camera, but the discomfort will be short-lived. And the payoff will be some of that real connection you’ve been yearning for! When we’re nervous and excited, we can be eager to interrupt with our own ideas or thoughts. Listen, process, then respond. Silence feels different in person, and it’s nice.
Get to know each other again through play. We all want to catch up, but repeat conversations about sourdough, nintendo switches, and sickness can be exhausting. Give your brain a break and do an activity together that allows for organic conversation. Whether it’s playing a game of cornhole, working on a craft/cooking project together, or even doing a team improv workshop (UH OH! RIFF IMPROV PLUG ALERT), doing something together takes some of the pressure off of coming up with the ‘right thing to say’.
Meet people where they are at. We’ve all experienced varying shades and degrees of trauma this year, and we all have different levels of comfort returning to whatever “normal” is. “Yes, and!” your friends and coworkers by acknowledging and accepting whatever they are bringing to the table right now. Listen to understand them. Be there to support them. And build with them how you can, without judgement. You will both be better for it.