Lab managers can look to a variety of sources for tips to improve lab leadership. Improv comedy offers a key insight that can be very helpful. Improvisation is a form of comedy that is created live, often in cooperation with the audience. In the book Bossypants, Tina Fey says that the first rule of improv comedy is to agree. Always agree and say yes. Just like improv, lab management doesn’t have a prepared script. It is done live, often with the input of staff, stakeholders, and line management. Here are three tips to use improv style agreement to improve your leadership style:
#1 – Yes, and
Adam Christing, humor expert and author of The Laughter Factor, says: “‘Yes, and...’ isn’t just for improv comedy—it’s a powerful tool for leaders. Start with agreement before you change things up. Unless you’re being audited by the IRS, of course. The key is connecting before communicating your ideas.” Especially for new lab leaders or those new to the team, listening and understanding are critical to gathering sufficient information to make informed decisions. An example might be, “Yes, and what do you think we should do to make this better?”
#2 – Yes, but
Another way to learn from improv comedy is when faced with a new decision from line management. In this case, the response is yes, but. The yes indicates an understanding of the new expectation, and the but allows for a question to generate greater clarity or to share some valuable information. An example of yes, but might look like this. After being informed of a decision to delay the purchase of a new instrument, the lab manager might respond, “Yes, but can you please help me with some options to mitigate the risks around not being able to meet a key stakeholder's expectations around that testing?”
#3 – Finding ways to yes
One of the great messages of improv comedy is about finding ways to yes, even when they seem improbable or even impossible. On the stage, improv comedians quickly adapt to unpredictable situations. There can be great power in applying these lessons in the lab. Sometimes, the right answer is no, such as when an experiment would require breaking the laws of thermodynamics. However, many decisions facing lab managers can be solved with some flexibility and creativity. The lab may need to reconsider its assumptions and expectations to find a new approach to achieving a yes. Generative leadership is often about questioning the status quo and finding new solutions to the challenges the lab faces.
The positive approach of improv comedy asks us to trust our colleagues and processes, and to look for ways to agree and get to yes. Sometimes it is by offering encouragement and asking questions, other times it is by clarifying risks and asking for help. Especially when we know we need to overcome a challenge but cannot yet see the way, finding new paths to yes can lead to the required solutions.
