Resilience Reflections

Agility is quite useful when responding to a change and may be physical, mental, or both. Athletes often have great physical agility, those who quickly change direction, gain speed, and stop. Jazz musicians are great at improvising notes and scales to blend with the groove of a band. People who are more mentally agile are open to new experiences, comfortable with ambiguity and uncertainty, able to pivot their strategies when the situation changes, less afraid to challenge the status quo, able to remain calm in the face of difficulty, and better able to reflect on experiences. Improvisation is closely linked to agility, requiring flexibility, adaptability, and creativity in the moment.

In the series, Whose Line is it Anyway?, actors seamlessly use the “Yes, and…” approach taking whatever prompt or scenario is given by a member  of the audience or the host to create a scene. The improvisational “Yes, and…” approach encourages participants to accept what others present and either build on it or pivot away from it,  without getting stuck in resistance or overthinking. This attitude allows people to stay engaged and open, which is key to staying resilient in any personal or work setting.

The “Yes, and…” mentality encourages a positive, growth-oriented perspective that can make unexpected change and feel like an exciting challenge rather than a difficult obstacle. This technique works on both building on an idea as well as pivoting away from it while acknowledging someone else. If you want to build on ”I am really excited to hear about your trip!,” you can add, “Yes!...and let’s schedule a time to have coffee so I can tell you all about it.”  If you want to pivot away from a statement like, “I can’t stand that politician!”, you might say, “Yes, and it’s a good thing that we don’t have to listen to the news. Let's pick something else to watch.”

Adopting a mindset where you're looking to build on what's given, rather than rejecting or fighting change, can significantly boost your agility. Improv teaches you to not only react but also to actively contribute to solutions, adapt to what’s happening, and move the conversation forward. Try a little improv, such as "Yes...and...", the next time you want to build upon or pivot away from from a conversation. When you practice improv, you're not only expanding your mental agility, you're also honing your ability to remain calm, think on your feet, and collaborate with others.