The Power of “Yes And”: Productive Team Collaboration

Take Flight – Business Growth Strategies with Business Coach Dan Holstein

Have you ever noticed how the actors in sketch comedy (think SCTV, Who’s Line is it Anyway, Saturday Night Live, etc) have the ability to build on one another’s antics to create some hilarious content?

They are able to do this by not only being talented and funny, but by following one very important rule of Improvisational Comedy. That rule is “Yes, And”. Without respecting this rule, scenes will fall flat.

The idea behind “Yes, And” is that the actors in a sketch work with what the other actors say or do (saying Yes), and then build on what they have given you (thinking And).

This opens up creativity, allows the scene to flow and creates new possible outcomes. If an actor blocks what they have been given by changing the subject or deflecting a question, the scene falters and nothing funny happens.

This is true for comedy troupes, as well as teams in business. When we are open to building on ideas, we have a better chance of success than if we shut ideas down.

As a business leader, if we try to do it all on our own (like a stand up comic) we might succeed, but we have to carry the entire load.

That’s a lot of pressure. Engaging your team – saying Yes, And gets everyone involved in the problem solving process, innovation and growth.In business, you never know what is going to be thrown at you – so check out this week’s video, and learn how to get the most out of ‘Yes, And’ for your business and your team.

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