A Way With Words

Say “yes” to your ideas from the stage to the page

Words have power to influence, inform, and inspire, and in today’s world the written word can have a far-reaching impact. Texts, emails, and social media posts are short-form expressions of our unique style and focus. Long-form writing has to connect rapidly and effectively to the person reading it. With unprecedented opportunities to communicate ideas and the sheer volume of written communications that are now routine in our professional lives comes the pressure that can shut down creativity at the time we need it most.

Improvisation training is increasingly recognized as an approach to strengthening the capacity to be creative, adaptive, and effective under these conditions. “Looking past the performative aspect, the skills and mindset of improvisers are highly desirable in other contexts like collaboration, idea generation, being flexible, listening, and accepting failure” wrote researchers in a 2021 study of improvisation and design thinking published in Thinking Skills and Creativity.

Sloane Miller, MFA, LMSW, an award-winning author, speaker, and consultant, uses improv exercises to help people discover and expand their capacity to write creatively for any purpose. “Whether it is an empty stage or a white page, the challenge is the same: What do I say and what do I do? Will…