{"id":10081,"date":"2015-05-08T15:26:38","date_gmt":"2015-05-08T20:26:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/"},"modified":"2015-05-08T15:26:38","modified_gmt":"2015-05-08T20:26:38","slug":"its-a-funny-thing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/","title":{"rendered":"It\u2019s a Funny Thing"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span>It\u2019s probably occurred to you that the comedian\u2019s art and the trainer\u2019s art have a lot in common. Over the years, I\u2019ve worked with Disney Institute and Disney University and their trainers a number of times. And on these trips, I take advantage of the opportunity to learn from them, as well.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>One program, on the art of improvisation, was led by four talented comics from the Comedy Warehouse at Disney\u2019s Pleasure Island. During the combination performance and class, the comics shared with us their rules for improv. As they revealed each rule, they led us through a piece of improv that continuously included audience members.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>I was struck by how well their rules apply to training\u2014especially training that involves coleading with one or more other trainers. Here are some of the comedians\u2019 rules:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span><strong>Trust. <\/strong>You must assume that you can depend upon the people with whom you work\u2014to do their part, to support you, and not to lead you down a blind path and leave you there.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span><span><strong>Give and take.<\/strong> No one is the star. We share the stage and work to ensure that everyone gets \u201cair time.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span><span><span><strong>Say, &#8220;Yes and &#8230;&#8221; <\/strong>Never contradict your partner or anyone else. Acknowledge what they say. If you wish to take it in another direction, say, \u201cYes, and&#8230;\u201d rather than \u201cNo, but&#8230;\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span><span><span><span><strong>Accept &#8220;gifts.&#8221;<\/strong> Your partner or the audience may offer thoughts that seem to come from nowhere. Accept these as gifts\u2014a happy opportunity to do something new and different, to go somewhere you hadn\u2019t planned.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span><span><span><span><span><strong>Be &#8220;in the moment.&#8221;<\/strong> Don\u2019t be so wrapped up in the plan or in how you\u2019ve handled things in the past that you can\u2019t take new things unfolding on the spot and work with them for a better result than you\u2019ve ever achieved before.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span><span><span><span><span><span><strong>Use the &#8220;top of your Intelligence.&#8221; <\/strong>It\u2019s easy in improv to go for the cheap or tawdry laugh, to be off-color or risqu\u00e9. Don\u2019t. Take the high road. Help people enjoy themselves and laugh on a higher plane. It may take some digging and thinking on your feet. The results are worth it. This is equally true for the trainer. We\u2019ve all seen the trainer who is willing to get a laugh at someone\u2019s expense. And I have found myself guilty of making a comment, not to advance learning, but to simply get a laugh.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span>Just think of the freshness we can bring to our own presentations if we are willing to take things as they come, rather than reciting a scripted performance. What it means is that you and I must teach from prepared lives, as well as prepared lessons. When we have mastered our content, it means we can focus simply on the best processes for delivering that content.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>My goal whenever I design a program is to have not just one way to deliver each \u201cchunk\u201d of content, but two and then later three so that I always keep the program fresh for myself and for my participants. It also provides me with the flexibility to \u201cin the moment\u201d deliver something in a different way based on the response and needs of my audience. That\u2019s something we all can do\u2014if we have mastered the content.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>I\u2019m on my way to a session right now\u2014and I look forward to today\u2019s opportunity to improvise!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Until next time\u2014continue to add value and make a difference!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span>Bob Pike, CSP, CPLP FELLOW, CPAE-Speakers Hall of Fame, is known as the \u201ctrainer\u2019s trainer.\u201d He is the author of more than 30 books, including \u201cCreative Training Techniques Handbook. You can follow him on Twitter and Facebook using bobpikectt.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Many rules for comedians\u2019 improvisation also can be applied to training.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[26],"class_list":{"0":"post-10081","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-magazine","7":"tag-trainer-talk","8":"magazine_issues-may-2015"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v25.2 (Yoast SEO v25.2) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>It\u2019s a Funny Thing<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"It\u2019s a Funny Thing\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Many rules for comedians\u2019 improvisation also can be applied to training.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Training\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TrainingMagazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-05-08T20:26:38+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Bob Pike\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@TrainingMagUs\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@TrainingMagUs\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Bob Pike\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Bob Pike\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#\/schema\/person\/455ea69854a214e192ec0eaba426b22b\"},\"headline\":\"It\u2019s a Funny Thing\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-05-08T20:26:38+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/\"},\"wordCount\":629,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"Trainer Talk\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Magazine Articles\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/\",\"name\":\"It\u2019s a Funny Thing\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2015-05-08T20:26:38+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"It\u2019s a Funny Thing\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/\",\"name\":\"Training\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Training Magazine\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/training-logo-544.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/training-logo-544.png\",\"width\":554,\"height\":150,\"caption\":\"Training Magazine\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TrainingMagazine\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/TrainingMagUs\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/training_magazine\/\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/lakewood-media-group-llc\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCBRVPGzg9czIhhjPcViYh-w\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#\/schema\/person\/455ea69854a214e192ec0eaba426b22b\",\"name\":\"Bob Pike\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/178eee1c356329a002b684d84040a7b25bfa90dc31f0a7cf3e9e7c68195eee37?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/178eee1c356329a002b684d84040a7b25bfa90dc31f0a7cf3e9e7c68195eee37?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Bob Pike\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/author\/bob-pike\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"It\u2019s a Funny Thing","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"It\u2019s a Funny Thing","og_description":"Many rules for comedians\u2019 improvisation also can be applied to training.","og_url":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/","og_site_name":"Training","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TrainingMagazine","article_published_time":"2015-05-08T20:26:38+00:00","author":"Bob Pike","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@TrainingMagUs","twitter_site":"@TrainingMagUs","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Bob Pike","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/"},"author":{"name":"Bob Pike","@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#\/schema\/person\/455ea69854a214e192ec0eaba426b22b"},"headline":"It\u2019s a Funny Thing","datePublished":"2015-05-08T20:26:38+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/"},"wordCount":629,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#organization"},"keywords":["Trainer Talk"],"articleSection":["Magazine Articles"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/","url":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/","name":"It\u2019s a Funny Thing","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#website"},"datePublished":"2015-05-08T20:26:38+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/its-a-funny-thing\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"It\u2019s a Funny Thing"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/","name":"Training","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#organization","name":"Training Magazine","url":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/training-logo-544.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/training-logo-544.png","width":554,"height":150,"caption":"Training Magazine"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TrainingMagazine","https:\/\/x.com\/TrainingMagUs","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/training_magazine\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/lakewood-media-group-llc","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCBRVPGzg9czIhhjPcViYh-w"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#\/schema\/person\/455ea69854a214e192ec0eaba426b22b","name":"Bob Pike","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/178eee1c356329a002b684d84040a7b25bfa90dc31f0a7cf3e9e7c68195eee37?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/178eee1c356329a002b684d84040a7b25bfa90dc31f0a7cf3e9e7c68195eee37?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Bob Pike"},"url":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/author\/bob-pike\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10081","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10081"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10081\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10081"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10081"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trainingmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10081"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}