Comfort Zone

Yesterday I did something that was out of the ordinary for me.  

I signed up for an 8 week improv class with the Bad Dog Theatre Company.

The idea for attending such a class was suggested to me when I attended DisruptHRToronto (a networking event) where I heard a speaker named Lori Pearlstein on December 1, 2016.

Ms. Pearlstein owns a company called Playworks.  Ms. Pearlstein’s company provides improv classes to corporate clients and helps people to improve their public speaking, team building and brainstorming skills.

I thought to myself that improv is something that I would like to try.

As is usual with me, I filed the suggestion away in my head perhaps to re-visit in the future.

I was talking to a friend of mine and we were talking about food preferences. He noted that I could be more adventurous when it came to food. Point well-taken.   

I wrote a LinkedIn post called “Ham.” In this post I talk about my early foray in the world of musical theatre when I played one of the royal children in two productions of the King and I, in Toronto.

Why did I find those theatrical experiences so exciting?

I suppose that being vulnerable, in the moment, on stage was exciting to me. 

I thought back to Ms. Pearlstein’s presentation. 

I could take an improv class where I’d have to be in the moment and think on my feet.

But what if I get tongue-tied and can’t think of what to say in a scene?

I thought of what my friend said about being more adventurous.

OK, taking an improv class would be an adventure for me.

And so I did it.    

I enrolled.  

And I start in the New Year, January 2017.

Everywhere we turn, we can learn.

I attended a networking event and learned about improv classes, something that I had not contemplated before.

I learned from a conversation with a friend, that we can be more adventurous.

I learned something about myself by reflecting on what made it so exciting to me to participate in two productions of the King and I.  

I think back to a post I wrote called “Nudge.”

Sometimes you just need a nudge to get started.

Are you thinking of embarking on a new adventure in 2017?

If so, good luck with your new adventure and please feel free to share.    

"Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive." - Howard Thurman

Thank you to Kushaan Shah who shared the above quote with his readers. Please check out Kushaan's post "17 Quotes To Help You Think Differently in 2017" for some of his other favourite quotes.

 Originally Published on LinkedIn:  December 29, 2016

 Image Credit:  Florida Public Relations Association (Tampa Bay Chapter) - www.fpratampabay.org