The improv session I gave at the Global Scrum Gathering New Orleans 2014.

1. COLLABORATING WITH
COMEDY
@PAULKGODDARD #sgnola

2. Whose line
is it
anyway?

4. Viola Spolin
(1906 – 1994)
Keith Johnstone
(1933 – )

5. GIFT BOX

6. (DISCUSS)

7. YES, AND…

8. YES,
• Appreciation
• Acknowledgement
• Heard
• Validation
• Encouragement
• Acceptance
AND...
• Adding
• Building
• Collaborating
• Connecting
• Inspiring
• Creating

9. CRUDE HUMOR

10. MY BOSS
IS A
DUMB-ASS

11. (DISCUSS)

12. Status & Safety
• ‘playful’ insults can help a team
work with status more easily
• we must be able accept our own
weaknesses in order to feel safe
• “Remember teamwork begins by
building trust. And the only way to
do that is to overcome our need
for invulnerability.” - Lencioni

13. BLIND
OFFERS

14. Spontaneity
• An offer is the basic unit of
currency for improv
• Accepting an offer allows action
to develop
• Low status players tend to accept
offers
• High status players tend to refuse
offers (unless they feel they can
control them)

15. DELIGHT

16. Spontaneity
• Anything which prevents action is
called a ‘block’
• Blocking is a natural response to
fear and uncertainty
• Blocking tends to be aggressive
(high status)
• Good improvisers are able to turn
a block into an offer

17. LAST
LETTER
FIRST

18. REALLY Listening
R elax, but remain present.
E ngage yourself completely into what it being
said. Nothing else will distract you from that
moment.
A llow the speaker to finish before you start.
L ose the desire to plan what you say or do next.
Be in the moment, something could change.
L ink the previous to the current. Join the story
together.
Y es, and. Confirm and accept.

19. QUESTIONS
ONLY

20. Perfectionism
• The education system rewards the
perfect answer
• This has led to a fear of
imperfection
• Humans crave quick solutions to
even the most complex problems
• “A wise man can learn more from a
foolish question than a fool can
learn from a wise answer.” – Bruce
Lee

21. THE THREE
HEADED
EXPERT

22. THANK YOU!
@PAULKGODDARD #sgnola