Simply Improvise - Your Partner in Creative Learning

19/12/2022

It is said that 90% of us think we are self-aware… but only 10-15% of us actually are!

As a young adult I used to think that I was substantially self-aware. 😀

However, a naturally curious person that I am, I always tried to explore the deeper meaning behind my actions.

I filled my mind with questions and questions and questions...

Why am I the way I am?
Why this thought?
At this time?
Mostly I’ll hen this happens?

What, why, when, where, who.... huh!

I believed asking questions meant that I was self-aware.

What do you say?🤔

I also wondered that would it be a better world if everyone around you including yourself is more self-aware,

Would the world will be a kinder,
more compassionate place?

As they say that leadership presence shines out when it is worn with a purpose,

Practiced with empathy and love...

So, how about working up your self-awareness game first?

Which is your fav activity from this list ?

Lots of questions for today, hmm!! 🤪

Have fun 🤩

06/12/2022

Ever wondered how someone less knowledgeable than you landed at a better position in the corporate ladder?

Hey, wait there ....

When you see people with a better job than you, and they have less knowledge, guess what?

They most probably have worked up their
SOFT SKILLS !

Communication to Reading to Journaling to EQ !

Agree ? 😊

04/11/2022

Ever wondered what’s your equation of trust?

Trusting others, and
Building your trustworthiness...

Research suggests that many leaders and managers tend to emphasize their competence and power while downplaying benevolence — an approach that can often undermine trust more than enhance it.

Questions that can help create better awareness are:

🖊 In what dimensions of trust are we weakest?
🖊 Which areas of trust have been most affected to determine effective solutions?

Honesty and benevolence have a very high correlation because they transmit a sense of “warmth.”

And,

𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙛 𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙢𝙩𝙝 𝙞𝙨 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙬𝙚 𝙟𝙪𝙙𝙜𝙚 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙩𝙧𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙝𝙮.

Agree?

𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝘀𝘂𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻 𝟭𝟬𝟬 𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱𝘀!

And, these judgements impact all our work relationships.

Trust is critical in developing strong relationships and consistent behaviors over time.

Part of the trust disconnect is that organizations and workers have differing priorities.

𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗲𝘀, 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. 𝗢𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗱, 𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗲𝗲𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗸 𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀, 𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲.

All interpersonal relationships thrive with reliability, consistency, honesty, empathy, and kindness.
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What personal qualities or traits do you look for in order to trust another?
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03/11/2022

Buddha said, “You become your thoughts.”

Yes, you mostly speak what you think.
Magic is in your hands.

Abracadabra 🪄😍
Let the magic begin... Amen 🙏🏻

What magic do you want to create today?
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02/11/2022

“Boo, you know why I love to play and study with you all the time?”, said my little niece (9 years old) with a winking smile. 😉

(She calls me Boo, short for Bua/aunty)

“... because I have my “voice & choice” when I’m with you.”

Oh my dear Lord!
She left me speechless in awe.
And triggered a marathon of thoughts.

I started to wonder,
as leaders,

Do we give our people their ‘voice and choice’ to share their most difficult moments?

For leaders - actors off the professional stage, listening is more than just an auditory function.

❤️ It’s more about connecting. YES

❤️ It’s more about helping your co-actors feel empowered with awareness and excitement to play their roles more profoundly. YES

❤️ It’s more about creating a culture of whole-body listening giving a voice to your co-actors, starting with your ‘self’. YES

❤️ It’s more about restricting yourself from instantly interrupting and adding insights with phrases like “what worked for me can work for you” or “here’s an idea.” YES

❤️ It’s more about giving them the choice understanding that it’s about them and not you. YES

❤️ It’s more about occasionally asking questions and using conscious gestures and phrases like “I hear you”, “Please say more about...”, creating moments of mutual discovery than just nodding attentively. YES

❤️ It’s more about creating a safe and nonjudgmental environment so your people also say they have a “voice & choice.” HELL YES

So, how do you LISTEN & SHOW-UP to "keep your co-actor opening up"... to "build their voice & choice so there’s earthquake-proof trust and joy"?

I encourage you to schedule a time everyday to practice this critical leadership competency.

We practice everyday, the skill of whole-body

So can you... 😊

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What else would you add here to make this conversation insightful with additional takeaways?

01/11/2022

Have you ever shouted at someone in anger and regretted it later ?

It’s okay if you have.
You are only human.
Right?

Hey, wait.
Really?
Is it really okay?!

My friend kinda vented out an experience from last evening... She shouted (literally shouted out loud and that too for quite long) at one of her teammates for delays and unapproved changes in a critical task. The project is so critical that people’s jobs are at a stake here.

Fair enough?!
.. what didn’t sound fair enough was that she was regretting her actions as,

it spoilt the evening for all.
it made her feel drained out.
it did increase her BP.

and, it certainly made a dent in her leadership presence and more so in her relationship with this teammate.

Sounds familiar?

Keeping your cool under extreme pressure isn't an easy task for anyone, but for leaders, it’s an imperative.

Agree?

For the ‘actor in me’ it’s an exercise in self control and self regulation - a much more sensible alternative to being reactive.

We have acting techniques that helps me practice this.

I’m sure you have your own ways too.

Would love to know...

How did you handle a recent crisis?

31/10/2022

How would you feel if, at workplace, you were looked at as a “whole” person and not just another employee?

Well it works both ways.

Your teammates would also love to feel the same way.

Isn’t it...

One of my coaching clients in his today’s session expressed this profound thought.

We both loved the idea.

This regional head chose to take a conscious pause and wear his Spiritual leadership hat.

Profound. Truly.

He answered his ‘why’ and,

1. Listed down and chose his top 3 spiritual values that he decided to live by - his 3 commandments.

2. Penned down 3 practical ways each for all the 3 commandments that he’s starting practicing from today itself.

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For some people, their job is just a means to earn an income. For others, it is a source of feeling a sense of purpose and fulfillment in life.

What’s your choice?😊

14/10/2022

Want to know an actor’s technique to make conscious choices?

Lets do a simple exercises: What did you have for breakfast?

Your mind quickly pulled up an image of your breakfast.

Right?

Maybe even a remanence of taste or smell and perhaps even a small flash of emotion.

You/your mind just ‘targeted.’

Very simply, and in a non-active way,
And it’s the same principle.

To add to this, for example, my mixer had some technical issue this morning, so when I remember breakfast I also remember a strange grinding sound and I relive the frustration and disappointment of my morning smoothie.

The long and the short of it is this: “You think about what you are speaking about.”

We’re doing this all the time!

We relive experiences and emotions and act/react accordingly.
Agree?

Now the question is: “Do we just live or make a conscious choice?”

We actors make conscious choices before it becomes a second nature to us.

“Imagination” is the key ingredient.

Training your ‘imagination muscle’ is a crucial.

Ever wondered what word engages the imagination the most? 🤔

“IF”

Two letters make a big impact. Huh! 😉

What if…?
Would it be different if…?
If I were you I would…

What this comes down to really is being able to put yourself in the new/evolved characters position.

The techniques called

🎭 ‘Target’ and,

🎭 ‘The magic if’

are the actor’s keys to making conscious choices.

Asking yourself how you would
act/feel/behave/react,

if you were in the situation of the character,

that’s the first step of fully embodying a character and their surroundings.

The result?

Now you have a choice to make a choice.
Makes sense ? 😊

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If you’re looking for newer ways of experiential learning for yourself or your teams, let’s talk!

My inbox is a friendly happy place 😇

25/01/2022

They say *”perspectives give rise to perceptions, and perceptions are game-changers for leaders.“

Ever wondered how’s your *Leadership Presence* being OR not being a game changer for your team?

https://simplyimprovise.com/how-do-conscious-leaders-show-they-care/

Happy Improvising! 😊

Would love to read your thoughts on our blogpost.

Conscious leaders use the magic of their presence to show they care. Authenticity is the key to unlocking the true potential of their teams.

26/08/2021

My dear

I wonder if you have ever lost sleep because you thought your work presentation was a flop?

Or perhaps you’ve spent hours worrying about whether you unintentionally offended a co-worker?

Then you, like all of us, know what overthinking feels like...

And, you also know it’s a space you don’t want to be in ... right ...

puts you in a spiral of negative self-talk, clouded judgment, and weak decision-making...

and can even harm our overall health and well-being.

I’m sure you don’t want that !!
You have a

Simple, let’s do this instead:

📌 Acknowledge your feelings.

📌 Write and pour it out.

📌 Take a pause & mindfully calm yourself with slow and deep breathing.

📌 Ask yourself, “Is this helping me to solve my problem or to come up with an action plan?”

📌 Accept that you are imperfect.

Remember, to accept that you are imperfect is a sign of emotional wisdom - it does not mean you are incapable!

It means you are strong!

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www.simplyimprovise.com

12/06/2021

Ever wondered how your team’s performance will be if the culture moved from ‘fear’ to ‘feat’ ?

The hottest leadership trend is Lead with Love...

Where are you?

Happy Improvising! 😊

If your leadership is truly grounded in love, you will always land in the category of great leaders. Conscious leadership is when you know how to lead with love...

09/06/2021

It is said that leaders influence the team’s mood. Team’s mood drives performance.

So, what’s your conclusion?

Would love to read your comments on the blog.

Happy Improvising! 😊

https://simplyimprovise.com/acting-techniques-to-be-emotionally-intelligent/

Theatre teaches you to understand and express emotions more effectively. Learn how theatre techniques can make you emotionally intelligent ...