Improv is the Answer to Everything (No, Really, Everything)
- Jun 16
- 4 min read
I'm only half joking when I say that improv is the answer to everything.
Not because it magically solves your problems. But, because so many of our problems start with the same thing: we're distracted, defensive, disconnected, or stuck in our own heads.
Improv teaches the opposite.
It teaches us to listen before we respond. To stay present when we don't know what's coming next. To adapt when the plan changes. To trust other people enough to build something together.
The longer I've done improv, the more I've noticed those same principles showing up everywhere humans seem to thrive.
In leadership.
In healthy relationships.
In strong teams.
In honest conversations.
And, somewhat unexpectedly, in yoga and restorative justice circles.
I didn't fully realize how far those fingerprints reached until a couple of those long, winding phone calls that start as a quick catch-up and end two hours later with me walking the same block over and over because I can't quite bring myself to go inside yet.
My colleague and good friend, Meagan Novara, runs restorative circles for a school district. My other good friend and colleague, Kristina Lanuza, teaches yoga. I do improv.
On paper, we sound like the setup to a joke.
But somewhere in those conversations, we realized we had all been teaching the same thing along. Just in different shoes. Or, in Kristina's case, no shoes.
All three practices are really about one thing: showing up and being present.
Okay, maybe two things.
Improv trains you to get out of your head and into the room. It helps you notice what's actually happening instead of rehearsing what might happen. It's essentially a workout for your NOW muscle. And most of us have let that muscle atrophy, especially in a world of back-to-back meetings where half the room is mentally composing Slack messages while someone else is still talking.
Yoga approaches the same challenge from a different direction. As Kristina will tell you, the mat is simply a place to practice being exactly where you are. Not where you were. Not where you're hoping to be after you finally respond to that email. Right here. Right now.
For teams that spend most of their lives planning for the future, even an hour on the mat together can create a noticeable shift in how people show up.
And Meagan's restorative circles ask participants to speak from personal truth in real time and to actually listen before responding. Not formulate their rebuttal while someone else is talking, which is what many of us are doing most of the time.
Presence isn't the cherry on top in restorative justice. It's the whole sundae. The whole operating system.
Imagine bringing that quality of listening into your next team meeting.
Which is why this combination works so well as a retreat day.
You begin with yoga, creating space to slow down, settle in, and arrive fully.
From there, restorative circles invite honest conversation and deep listening, offering a structured environment where every voice has room to be heard—including the quieter voices that can get lost in more traditional group settings.
The day closes with purposeful play through improv, giving people a chance to practice adaptability, connection, and trust in a way that feels light, human, and often unexpectedly joyful.
By the end of the day, your team hasn't simply participated in a series of activities. They've practiced being present with themselves and one another. They've strengthened their ability to listen, adapt, communicate honestly, and navigate uncertainty together.
Those are the qualities that help teams move beyond simply working alongside one another and toward genuinely collaborating.
All three practices are also about accountability—not in a finger-wagging way, but in a "what if we actually tried to be honest, present, and kind?" kind of way.
Meditation fits right in here too, as the quiet cousin of all three. Open a retreat day with ten minutes of stillness and you'll be surprised by how differently people show up for everything that follows.
Ultimately, all of these practices point toward the same human need: to feel seen, heard, and connected—and to offer that experience to others in return.
That's what Meagan creates in her circles.
That's what Kristina cultivates through yoga.
And it's what purposeful play helps people practice: listening closely,
responding authentically, and building something together in real time.
Maybe that's why I keep saying improv is the answer to everything.
Not because it's magic.
Because the skills it develops—presence, curiosity, adaptability, listening, trust, and connection—turn out to be useful almost everywhere. In leadership. In teamwork. In relationships. In difficult conversations. In navigating change.
In being human.
What people walk away with isn't a binder full of notes or a collection of buzzwords. They leave having experienced deeper listening, more honest communication, increased trust, greater presence, and a renewed sense of connection to themselves and one another.
Every team is different, which is why the conversation always comes first. If these ideas resonate with you, we'd be happy to explore what a retreat day could look like for your organization.
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