The Human Risk Podcast3 Mar 2024

Heather Urquhart on Improvisation Part One

What can business learn from improvisation? On the face of it, a form of entertainment that involves making things up as you go along, seems to be filled with human risk and not at all helpful in the business world.

But actually, the skills that improvisers use to entertain us, are incredibky useful in businesses to drive better decision-making, The techniques that allow them to respond to unexpecte situations or come up with creative ideas, are incredibly helpful in a business context.

Having previously explored some of the dynamics of improv with Comedy Store director, author and perfomer Neil Mullarkey, I wanted to dive a little deeper into the subject.

Meet Heather Urqhuhart
My guest on this episode Heather Urquhart is a professional improviser who not only performs improv but also works to help busineses to manage uncertainty and drive creativity via her firm 'And Also Improv'.

In our discussion, we look how the dynamics inherent in improv can help to improce the quality of decision-making and ideas within businesses.

Amongst other things, we look at how active listening, a non-judgmental approach to creative ideas can transform all aspects of an organization, not just the traditionally 'creative' ones.

True to the theme, Heather and I set out on our conversation with an open agenda. Not only did that take us to some intesting and unexpected places, but it also meant that we just kept going. So much so, that there’s too much for just one episode.

So, this is Part one of a two part discussion. Part Two is coming soon.

Links
My previous discussion with Neil Mullarkey: https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/neil-mullarkey-on-being-in-the-moment/

Heather’s website: https://www.heatherurquhart.co.uk/

Her company ‘And Also’ Improv: https://andalsoimprov.com/

The MayDays, the Improv troop that heather is part of: https://www.themaydays.co.uk/speaker/heather-urquhart/

'Showstoppers The Musical': https://showstopperthemusical.com/

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(368)

Christian Hunt on Human Risk: what is it & how can we mitigate it?

What is Human Risk? What does 'Bringing Behavioural Science to Ethics & Compliance' mean in practice? On this episode, I'm cross-casting an episode of the Ethical Experts podcast that explores Human R...

2 Okt 202047min

Rob Chesnut on how companies can help their employees to work with Integrity

How can organizations ensure they are ethical? We all understand the principle, but what does it mean in practice? As Ethics becomes a more significant factor in how employees, customers and regulat...

29 Sep 20201h

Christian Hunt on what COVID has taught us about Human Behaviour

What, if anything, have we learned about human behaviour from COVID? That's what I'm exploring in this episode. Six months ago, my friend Mark Heywood invited me onto the first episode of Behind The S...

26 Sep 202034min

Jérôme Tagger on Preventable Surprises - effecting change through influence

Why are there so many entirely preventable financial disasters? And why don't the people behind the companies that suffer them, prevent them from happening?That's what my guest Jérôme Tagger and I exp...

24 Sep 202057min

Dr Johannes Lohse on Active vs Passive Risk: how doing nothing can also cause risk.

When we think of risk, it is usually in the context of 'risk-taking'; in other words, an active decision to do something. But it is equally possible to take risk by doing nothing; passive risk. What...

17 Sep 202057min

Dr Andrew Ishak on Communication in High-Pressure Situations

As academic establishments continue to adjust from face to face teaching to being primarily online experiences, how are academics adjusting? That's the start point for my discussion in this episode w...

9 Sep 20201h

Travis Waugh on delivering more effective training

What do you think of when you read the phrase 'Compliance Training'? Something dull that you're either forced to give (if you're in Compliance) or endure (if you're not)? If so, you're not alone. Bu...

4 Sep 20201h 3min

Professor Olivier Sibony on Why we all make Mistakes and how to avoid them.

Why do even the smartest and most savvy business people make mistakes? It's not because they're stupid. Instead, it's because of the way our brains work. That's what Professor Olivier Sibony, my guest...

1 Sep 20201h