Hey, welcome to One Word Suggestion.
I'm your host, Eran Thomson,
and this week's word is fear!
For inspiration,
can I please get a One Word Suggestion?
One Word Suggestion?
One Word Suggestion.
One Word Suggestion.
Welcome to the podcast.
For those of you who don't already know,
every week I take one word suggested by you,
and use it as a leaping-off point
to explore the benefits of improv
as they relate to life on and off the stage.
This week's word, fear, was suggested by Matesh.
Have you ever seen the movie Atomic Blonde?
If you haven't, it's a Cold War era spy movie,
set in Germany while the wall is still up.
It stars Charlize Theron, and there's a scene in a nightclub
where you can see a neon sign
which says, "Everything you want is on the other side."
Now, I thought this was an allusion to the Berlin Wall,
and the perfect life people imagined
might exist for them on the other side of it.
But later in the movie, there's a wider shot,
and the whole sign is revealed, where we can actually see
it says, "Everything you want is on the other side of fear."
Now by this time, Charlize is kicking some serious ass,
but all I can think about is
where can I get one of these signs made?
Because I love the expression,
and I think it's absolutely true.
If something scares you, go towards it.
That's where the learning lives.
Fear often manifests itself when there's something
we know we wanna do, but we're hesitant to try
because we're we might fail, get rejected,
be disappointed, or whatever.
So if something keeps popping up in your brain
and causing your stomach to drop,
whether it's applying for a new job,
moving to a new city, asking someone out on a date,
or even taking an improv class,
it's usually a sign that you should be going for it.
So how does all this relate to improv?
Well for starters,
improv is a great place to get comfortable facing fears.
Maybe it's public speaking, presenting,
getting comfortable in your own skin,
showing your authentic self to strangers.
Whatever it is, long-form improv and the ensemble philosophy
create an environment where you will feel fully safe
and supported to make bold choices, experiment, and explore.
Improv dissolves fear, and that's magical,
powerful, and life-altering.
In a corporate context, fear can be debilitating.
Innovation suffers, change takes forever,
or doesn't happen at all.
People don't share their ideas,
communication collapses, and culture can wither.
But by incorporating some of the fundamentals of improv
into a corporate context,
you can help your team be less fearful of mistakes,
and more likely to succeed.
At Laugh-Masters Academy, we always say,
follow the funny.
But I think a good corollary to that just might be,
follow the fear.
If there's something you are afraid of right now,
and it's not life threatening,
then it just might be your soul
trying to tell you something.
My advice is to listen to it.
Take a deep breath and jump right in.
So, that's my take on fear.
Thanks for the great suggestion, Matesh.
If you wanna suggest a word for next week
or add your perspective,
drop me a note in the comments.
I'm making one of these every week for a year
so please do subscribe, like, share, and all that stuff.
And in the mean time,
if you're interested in improv for
personal growth, professional achievement,
or just for fun, my suggestion is
to get yourself into an improv class
or book a corporate training workshop for your team.
You can learn all about LMA's programs at
www.lma.training.
Thanks for listening.
One Word Suggestion is
brought to you by LMA Professional Development.
Please visit us at www.lma.training for more info.
