How Improv Training Helps to cope with Massive Change
The world is changing. New paradigms are emerging at an increasingly quicker pace: financial, sexual, political, educational, technological, national & global, climatological, and more... It's enough to make anyone exhausted, confused, angry, or overwhelmed.
This is why - I think - so many of us have arrived at this moment of dis-ease. It's not because any of these rapid-fire changes are bad or beyond our capabilities. They’re not. Rather, our present dis-ease comes, I think, because:
This much change requires more education and understanding
That, in turn, requires more effort and patience
That, in turn, requires a larger investment of time
With limited time, it seems impossible to keep up. But that doesn't stop me from trying... I stay up late, reading and learning, to catch up with everyone I know. The results...?
I wake up exhausted and try to start the entire cycle all over again: eat, work, exercise, family time, and hope that coffee will help me. Only, it never does. That's because I've been believing a bunch of powerful lies:
--> I believed that I had to keep up with the world.
--> I believed that others had "better" lives than me.
--> I believed that I had to exhaust myself to make progress.
--> I believed sleep wasn't essential.
I now understand that these are all destructive lies that I've been telling myself. And believing! Then, from that incorrect belief system, I've made choices that do not serve me and, therefore, my family and, therefore, the world.
The truth is more simple than the complex solution I've imposed upon myself. Here's what I now believe: I do NOT need to keep up with the world. I simply need to do the best that I can today for myself.
That will enable me to find joy in finishing smaller but still important tasks.
That, in turn, will bring satisfaction.
That, in turn, will make me happier.
That, in turn, will help my family and, therefore, the world
I have a fantastic and deeply imperfect life. I suffer huge wins and face massive obstacles. And so does everyone else. I'm just one of the few people that I know that's willing to share my challenges publically. I now know that working more hours doesn't somehow result in more learning or accomplishment. I now understand that I'd rather work fewer hours but work more deeply on the task at hand.
Sleep is paramount. So are mental health and physical health and vacation time. Most important of all: engaging in joyous activities to keep your heart light and your mind engaged. I choose improvisation as a life skill and art form. I offer improv classes and corporate improv training because I know how deeply this kind of work changes INTERNAL paradigms.
And that, in turn, changes the world, one person at a time.
All humans need proper care, so remember: take care of yourselves. Doing so will allow you, in turn, to help those around you. And whenever the mountain of paperwork gets too high or you feel that you've fallen too far behind the world, just remember: there’s only one boat, and we’re all in it! If all you can spare is $1 or 5 minutes, then know that’s OK and be satisfied.
An entire pool can be filled one drip at a time.
Improv Classes & Corporate Improv Training creates the joy that can change the world.