Even perfectionists need to give themselves some leniency the first time they try something new. First time you ever sit down at a piano, the expectation can’t be that you instantly play a perfect concerto. Second time, yes, obviously you should be concert-ready, but first time?! There’s gotta be some “First Time Forgiveness.”
Now, keep FTF in mind when I say, every single conversation you have in life, you’re having for the first time. Even conversations you feel like you’re having for the 100th time, it’s never happened in this exact context, with these exact words. Some part of it is always new.
Everything we do has some degree of newness. Some percentage of it is happening for the first time. And the percentage that’s happening for the first time needs to come with FTF.
Let’s say you go to your first improv class. Congrats, btw. And you and the class play the improv game where each person takes a turn adding one word to the story. Afterwards, you think, “That was hilarious, improv is amazing, and the story was fun, but wasn’t… perfect.” But hey, it’s your first time ever, so you can’t be too hard on yourself.
Then you play the same game again, but this time going in reverse order of the class. Second time, so you gotta think you’ll be better than the first time, but technically it is your first time going in this order.
Then you play it again, but this time in teams of two. Third time overall, but first time in pairs.
It could be your 100th time playing it, and something will always be different, new, the first time.
So when it doesn’t go perfectly (because things don’t, and that wouldn’t be as fun anyway) and you want to judge yourself, you have to factor in FTF. Instead of beating yourself up thinking, “I should be 100% great at this by now,” think, “I should be 80% great at this by now. But I should also go 20% easy on myself because it’s the first time playing it with these people, in this order, with this instructor, in these shoes… (or whatever is new this time).”
If there’s anything you’re being hard on yourself about right now, take a moment to think about what percentage was new/different this time. “I’ve done this presentation a thousand times… but never at this venue.” “I’ve met new people before… but never this person.” “I’ve done backflips plenty of times… but not usually with the whole office watching… anyway, here goes!”
Even if it’s only 1% different. Give yourself that 1% forgiveness for not being perfect. After all, you can’t be expected to be perfect, you’re living this exact moment for literally the first time.
How to Measure “Soft Skills” in Improv Training: Active Listening
Minimizing miscommunications with Improv
Let’s say you book your team for a listening skills workshop, how will you know if it worked? Are they saying, “Wait, what’s happening, I’m lost?!” less frequently? Fewer chairs being thrown? Less crying? When it comes to behaviour change, how do you measure success?
Well, first, let’s define what we’re talking about. Listening is holding focus on one thing.
Do they currently do that? And if not, how do we make them do that? Listen, nobody wants to be a “bad” listener. So there must be a reason people check their phones, tune out to think about what else needs to be said or done, or stare out the window wistfully during status meetings. And like most of the time, the thing preventing positive growth is… fear.
Here’s the Play with Fire Improv patented Listening Scale™ to show how fear affects listening:
Here’s the scale in relation to what the person will prioritize when it comes to listening:
Here’s the scale in terms of how someone might reply to what was said:
These are sliding scales, so someone might respond differently in different situations, but it gives you a sense of where someone is now in terms of their listening skill level. Now let’s talk about how improv training can help move them up the scale.
How improv helps if you’re always lost in thought.
Anxiety is tough on listening. Or having a busy mind, in general. Essentially, if you’re in your own head, your focus isn’t really on anything outside of your head. You can hear sounds, people talking, but nothing is really registering. It’s like driving somewhere and not remembering the journey.
Improv helped me be aware of other humans. Because improv is a group thing, you’re forced to pay at least some attention to what’s going on, or you’ll be completely lost. And the fear of embarrassment about being lost is usually enough to shift focus outward at least for a second or two. You might not be holding the focus just yet, but knowing that it’s even possible to shift outside your head is a good start.
How improv helps if you’re easily distracted.
There are always going to be other things that need to get done. And the feeling that they all need your attention right now. And the phones to constantly check on those things. So how do you prioritize holding focus? To quote Hale Dwoskin, of The Sedona Method fame, “Do what you’re doing when you’re doing it. Don’t do what you’re not doing when you’re not doing it.”
Improv teaches you that what’s happening right now is the most important, and only thing. When you’re building a world out of imagination, it’s like walking through the pitch black with a flashlight, the world appears as you go. What’s coming up? We’ll see when we get there. Right now, this is all there is.
How improv helps if you’re always planning your response.
I wrote a whole post on this, so I’ll link that here. But to quickly recap: most people believe that if they can sneakily plan a response in their heads while you’re still talking, their response will not only be immediate, but also better. (“Better” in this instance is not blanking or saying something stupid and feeling embarrassed.)
Improv teaches you that shifting into your head to plan your response makes it MORE likely you blank or say something stupid, because what you say has a higher risk of not being related to what the person said while you were tuned out.
How improv helps you stay fully present.
The only reason we’re not all great listeners is fear. Fear sells you on the idea that interactions are better if you go into your head to plan smart responses. Fear tells you that giving someone your full attention will look too intense. Fear says you’re missing out on something more important. Improv shows you that this moment right now is the only time that exists! That sounds pretty important.
To recap, here’s how you measure success when training the “soft skill” of listening:
1. Get a sense of where people are now on the Listening Scale™.
2. Do an Improv For Listening™ workshop (or a few).
3. Observe where they are after.
Improv helps you shift focus out of your head, so you can stay present with the other person the whole time they’re talking. In other words, improv makes you a great listener!
26 Ways Improv Can Help Your Business In 2026
What are you going to do this year to help your team? You could book a team building workshop, an active listening workshop, a presentation skills workshop—or just cover all the skills in one go, with improv!
Improv helps with Listening & Communication Skills
1) Improves listening skills through the practice of staying present and focused
2) Hones non-verbal communication, reading body language, energy and tone
3) Develops openness to different ways of thinking
4) Enables thinking on your feet
Improv helps with Collaboration & Team-building
5) Promotes building ideas together through “Yes, and”
6) Encourages the support of the ideas of others
7) Bonds the team over stories and laughter
8) Builds trust among team members and other departments
Improv helps with Creativity & Innovation
9) Breaks rigid thought patterns with outside the box thinking
10) Lessens fear of making mistakes to open up to creative problem solving
11) Opens the mind to many different perspectives and points of view
12) Shifts the mindset to see ideas in terms of potential vs pitfalls
Improv helps with Confidence
13) Forms the ability to handle change and uncertainty without panic
14) Keeps the fear of failure and the judgement of others from holding them back
15) Builds trust in themselves and the team
16) Increases the willingness to take calculated risks
Improv helps with Leadership & Management
17) Harnesses the ability to stay calm under pressure, respond vs react
18) Cultivates the ability to make decisions on the spot
19) Promotes inclusive leadership, focusing on delegation and empowerment
20) Focuses on emotional intelligence with authenticity and empathy
Improv helps with Culture
21) Creates a safe, supportive environment with “Yes and”
22) Fosters a sense of shared ownership of outcomes (we’re in it together)
23) Reduces miscommunications, misunderstandings through clear communication
24) Aids in conflict resolution, objection handling and negotiation flexibility
Improv helps you find Joy in what you do
25) Improv is fun, which improves morale and engagement
26) Improv helps you play!
If any of that sounds good, reach out to book an improv workshop!
26 Ways Improv Can Help You In 2026
Improv helps with everything!
Did you write a list of New Year’s Resolutions with the plan to do a bunch of different tasks to achieve those goals? Simplify, man! Just do improv!
Improv helps you…
1) Laugh more.
2) Play characters that don’t have your problems.
3) Get out of your head.
4) Be silly and be okay being silly.
5) Practice failing and recovering.
6) Use your imagination to create wonderful things.
7) Tell fascinating stories.
8) Move your body in interesting ways.
9) Think differently and be okay with others thinking differently.
10) Adapt to the unexpected.
11) Let go of expectations.
12) Surprise yourself! (Improv gets you doing things you had no idea you could do.)
13) Be open to the ideas of others.
14) Love and support the ideas of others.
15) Connect with people on a deeper level.
16) Judge less. Yourself and others.
17) Accept things as they are. It’s not settling, just not denying.
18) Take yourself and any “failings” as little less seriously.
19) Trust yourself more. You can do this.
20) Feel more confident.
21) Make bold choices. (Or make any decision, then boldly follow through.)
22) Make new friends.
23) Know that you are enough.
24) Release stress from your body and mind.
25) Focus on all the little moments of joy.
26) Play!
If you like the sounds of that, reach out to book an improv workshop today!
Top 5 New Year’s Resolutions for 2026 (and how improv can help)
#1 Stress less
A popular resolution these days. Because, let’s be honest, the world is messed up. And I mean messed up. Like, don’t even get me started on… wait, what were we talking about? Oh, improv.
While improv might not be able to “fix” the world, it can help reduce stress with movement, creativity, and laughter, and build stress resilience by practicing different ways to respond to things. Also, it’s fun. And it’s nice to have fun.
#2 Be less anxious
This one’s quite personal to me, it was my #1 resolution for over a decade straight. Anxiety kept me from enjoying life. Hell, it kept me from participating in life. I don’t need to go into how much anxiety sucks, you get it. Let’s move to the helpful part.
Improv can lessen anxiety by building a safe space to play and feel joy. And can increase confidence knowing you can handle the unexpected.
#3 Get better at public speaking
Being able to present yourself in front of others is a big part of today’s work world. And friend world. And dating world. It’s just a good all ‘round skill.
With improv, it’s not about learning how to speak “perfectly,” but learning to mess up royally, recover with ease, and continue with confidence.
#4 Be more confident
Wanna be one of those super confident people strutting around knowing that whatever the world throws their way, things will turn out okay? I mean, the strutting part is optional, but with improv, you get to practice making bold choices, playing confident “characters,” and learning to think on your feet with such aplomb that you’ll never seem thrown off.
#5 Be more creative
Remember when, as kids, we could just slap paint on a piece of paper with our hands and call it art? Then remember when we learned to judge ourselves and others and find flaws in everything? Now’s your chance to unlearn all of that judgement, and give over to the wonderful world of “Yes, and!”
Bonus #6 Spend less time on social media
There isn’t really a specific improv workshop for this, but improv takes place not on a phone with other humans who are also not on their phones. Sounds scary, I know, but you’ll be having too much fun to notice.
How Improv Helps Your Business
Next time you’re looking for some “mandatory fun” to give your employees, think about doing an improv workshop. Not just because everyone will be laughing hysterically and having a great old time, but because it’s actually beneficial. I mean, sure skydiving paintball is fun, but what are you really getting out of it? Skydiving paintball does sound really fun, though.
