Fail More to Learn More (Plus Seven Hacks to Help!)

WEBVTT

:: 00:00

[MUSIC PLAYING]

:: 00:03

So what if I told you that the secret to becoming

:: 00:16

a great improviser, the secret of improv,

:: 00:20

isn't to rack up 10,000 hours of practice?

:: 00:23

What if the real secret is to rack up 10,000 failures?

:: 00:29

That might sound terrifying, because that moment in the

scene

:: 00:32

when you fail, when your mind goes blank,

:: 00:36

when you forget a name, when you block an offer,

:: 00:39

it feels awful.

:: 00:42

And we want to avoid that sort of thing at all costs.

:: 00:45

So today, we're going to try to reframe how you think about

:: 00:48

failure in improv.

:: 00:50

And I'm not going to tell you to just do some positive

thinking

:: 00:54

at any point in this video.

:: 00:56

We are going to treat failure as a solvable technical

problem

:: 01:01

that's actually useful because of science.

:: 01:04

And I'm going to give you seven specific actionable things

:: 01:08

that you can try in the exact moment that you

:: 01:10

feel like you're failing in a scene or the scene itself

:: 01:14

is failing.

:: 01:14

And that is so you can turn these moments

:: 01:17

into either a strength in the scene

:: 01:20

or a really useful learning experience, if not,

:: 01:23

or maybe both of those things.

:: 01:25

So by the end of this episode, you

:: 01:27

will have a toolkit of seven different techniques

:: 01:31

to recover from perceived failure in the scene.

:: 01:36

And you'll learn how to use these experiences

:: 01:38

to make your improv practice even better.

:: 01:42

And you'll also be able to understand

:: 01:44

why failing will make you better at improv.

:: 01:49

Hi, I'm Jen deHaan, and this is Your Improv Brain.

:: 01:52

I've taught and coached improv at a few different schools,

:: 01:55

and I perform in long-form improvised audio drama podcasts

:: 01:59

at my production studio, StereoForest.

:: 02:02

And I love to bring nerdy improv monologues to you

:: 02:06

in this show.

:: 02:07

So let's get to it.

:: 02:10

First, I want to say it is pretty inevitable

:: 02:14

that you will fail in an improv scene.

:: 02:17

It's going to happen.

:: 02:18

You're going to have moments where you just

:: 02:20

didn't understand an initiation, or you forgot the name

:: 02:24

of your scene partner's cat, or you accidentally block an

offer,

:: 02:28

or mess up a plot, or your mind suddenly goes blank.

:: 02:34

I talked about what to do if your mind goes blank

:: 02:37

in a recent episode.

:: 02:38

So I'll link to that in the description and the show notes,

:: 02:41

and I'll try to put it up somewhere up here for those of you

:: 02:44

watching the video.

:: 02:46

But our goal today is to stop seeing all of these kind

:: 02:50

of moments as shortcomings.

:: 02:54

They are really valuable data points.

:: 02:57

And there's ways out of all of them.

:: 03:01

Fundamentally, reframing how we think about failure

:: 03:05

is a core improv skill that should really honestly

:: 03:09

have a space in classes everywhere all the time.

:: 03:12

Accepting failure helps remove the burden of fear, of

doubt,

:: 03:18

of judgment from improv.

:: 03:20

And it's one of the best ways to get us out of our heads

:: 03:23

in scenes.

:: 03:25

Failing is an important part of learning,

:: 03:28

and maybe the most important part of learning.

:: 03:32

So let's talk about failure in a bigger sense

:: 03:35

outside of just improv.

:: 03:37

The writer, Naval Ravikant, has this idea

:: 03:40

that to master a skill what you really need

:: 03:44

is 10,000 failures and error corrections,

:: 03:47

not just 10,000 hours like Malcolm Gladwell famously

:: 03:51

suggested.

:: 03:52

Now, why is this?

:: 03:54

Because failures are what help you iterate.

:: 03:58

You learn, and you refine from them.

:: 04:01

And then you repeat what really works for you,

:: 04:03

and you figure out how to recover from what doesn't

:: 04:07

in your improv brain, what works for you.

:: 04:10

And all of this is backed up by research.

:: 04:13

The psychologist Anders Erickson coined the term

:: 04:16

deliberate practice.

:: 04:18

And this was noted by Gladwell, although Erickson then

:: 04:21

challenged the idea that the hours of practice in a domain

:: 04:24

made someone an expert.

:: 04:26

He challenged that and said that in certain domains,

:: 04:30

it could actually happen in way less than 10,000 hours.

:: 04:34

And that was because Erickson found

:: 04:36

that real expertise comes from a systematic approach

:: 04:40

to practice.

:: 04:40

And this includes real challenges, immediate feedback.

:: 04:44

And most importantly, perhaps, is that error correction.

:: 04:48

Practicing those reps deliberately

:: 04:51

means doing meaningful reps that include mistakes.

:: 04:57

And his work suggests that the endpoint, which

:: 05:00

is the real expertise, doesn't really

:: 05:03

depend on things like our personality or our wiring.

:: 05:06

It's the process of change, not duration.

:: 05:11

Another thinker, a favorite of mine, Simon Sinek,

:: 05:14

has an idea that it's better to fail while aiming

:: 05:18

for a larger, harder goal than it is to lower your goals just

:: 05:23

to not fail and feel successful.

:: 05:26

So all of this points to one thing.

:: 05:29

Failure is the engine of learning,

:: 05:32

because failure helps you change and iterate.

:: 05:36

So we got to do it to learn.

:: 05:38

And here's the really cool part for us as improvisers.

:: 05:42

We can actually have fun at this thing.

:: 05:45

When we embrace failure as a part of the process,

:: 05:49

we can play with our mistakes in a scene.

:: 05:52

And learning to do that in a low stakes environment,

:: 05:55

like a class or a rehearsal or even a show with a real

audience,

:: 06:01

might just help us feel better about failure outside

:: 06:05

of the scene, where the stakes can honestly

:: 06:08

be a lot higher than in the make-em-ups.

:: 06:12

So we know that we learn and we change from our own errors.

:: 06:16

We know that we need the reps to have those opportunities

:: 06:19

to fail, because our brain is wired

:: 06:21

to learn effectively doing the thing

:: 06:24

and then correcting the thing.

:: 06:26

So let's talk now about those reps.

:: 06:30

What happens when we make a failure on stage in the scene?

:: 06:34

How can we play with it in the moment

:: 06:37

so we can learn from it and become more adaptable

improvisers?

:: 06:42

So I'm going to call them scene hacks.

:: 06:45

Here are seven hacks that you can use to correct errors

:: 06:51

or what you perceive as errors.

:: 06:53

And so hack number one, play with the failure and make it

loud.

:: 07:00

So you messed up.

:: 07:02

You called your scene partner by the wrong name,

:: 07:06

let's say as an example, which you might not care.

:: 07:08

We can just roll with it.

:: 07:09

But say you do.

:: 07:10

Instead of trying to fix it or pretend that it didn't happen,

:: 07:14

another option is to lean into it.

:: 07:17

Commit really hard to it.

:: 07:20

Address it in character.

:: 07:22

I'm so sorry, Sammy.

:: 07:23

I mean, Susan, I always get you and your sister confused.

:: 07:30

Or a very trusted scene partner might respond to you and say,

:: 07:35

I'm sorry, what?

:: 07:36

Susan, you must be thinking of my ex-wife again.

:: 07:41

Explore it for as long as it makes sense for the scene.

:: 07:45

And then just move on.

:: 07:46

The audience might love this moment.

:: 07:50

They often do.

:: 07:51

They see the human mistake and they

:: 07:53

love watching you turn it into a gift or maybe even

:: 07:57

sweat a little if you commit to it hard and make it big.

:: 08:00

This helps you avoid hesitating.

:: 08:02

It helps you avoid overcomplicating the scene

:: 08:06

by trying to furiously fix your mistake.

:: 08:09

But it's really a very important part

:: 08:12

of this error-based learning concept or deliberate

practice.

:: 08:19

So hack number two.

:: 08:21

If you freeze, do something, anything.

:: 08:25

This is related to my earlier episode

:: 08:28

on your mind going blank, which you can check out.

:: 08:30

Find out the link in the description or the show notes.

:: 08:33

But the short version or one part of this episode

:: 08:36

is if you freeze, just do a physical action of some sort.

:: 08:41

You might pick up a phone like that, not like that, right?

:: 08:44

You might start sweeping the floor,

:: 08:47

straightening a picture on the wall.

:: 08:49

Or you might just emote something with your body

:: 08:52

and really feel it and then make something up about whatever

:: 08:56

you're doing or feeling in the moment.

:: 08:58

Like you have to call your mom or something.

:: 09:00

And then just move on.

:: 09:01

And this action can sometimes just unstick your brain

:: 09:06

and then you can learn from whatever

:: 09:09

you find when that happens and just keep practicing that way

:: 09:14

out of your mind going blank.

:: 09:17

All right.

:: 09:18

Hack number three.

:: 09:20

If you're trying too hard to be funny, try to be boring.

:: 09:26

So this sounds really wild, but it can work.

:: 09:29

So if you find yourself just really straining to be funny

:: 09:33

or you're trying to invent or write the scene,

:: 09:37

that's probably a little bit more common for you.

:: 09:39

Maybe just flip it.

:: 09:43

Try to be really mundane and just normal, generic.

:: 09:49

Or just be you.

:: 09:50

I'm not saying you're boring or mundane or generic,

:: 09:53

but just be as you as you can be.

:: 09:58

Be your authentic self in that situation.

:: 10:02

I've been in scenes where I've had no idea what's happening

:: 10:05

and I just started reacting as honestly as I can.

:: 10:11

And it works.

:: 10:13

The authentic grounded response can or often will be

funnier

:: 10:19

than trying to do a joke that you try to just force

:: 10:23

into the scene.

:: 10:24

You'll eventually be funny.

:: 10:26

So just be you.

:: 10:27

Hack number four.

:: 10:29

If a scene is failing, you can just breathe life into it.

:: 10:35

So let's say for the sake of argument,

:: 10:40

your scene is dead in the water.

:: 10:42

It's stagnant.

:: 10:44

And you and your scene partner are maybe treading

:: 10:47

and no one on the back line is ending the scene.

:: 10:49

But you have a lot of options here.

:: 10:53

This is like a lot of hacks in one.

:: 10:56

Make a confession.

:: 10:57

God, I have to tell you something.

:: 11:01

I no longer like our Radio Shack Thursdays.

:: 11:05

Or again, emote something really strong.

:: 11:08

Be suddenly terrified of that hamster cage of the corner.

:: 11:12

Did Sean just look at me wearing?

:: 11:18

I don't know.

:: 11:20

Bring something back from earlier in the scene

:: 11:22

and raise the stakes on it.

:: 11:24

Like you mentioned your gambling problem earlier, right?

:: 11:29

I just-- I bet our Camry on the big game.

:: 11:33

But don't worry about failing with the offer

:: 11:36

or what those details are.

:: 11:37

They can be a lot simpler or hopefully better

:: 11:40

than those examples.

:: 11:41

But make a choice.

:: 11:43

Commit to it.

:: 11:44

Maybe add some emotion if you can.

:: 11:47

But care.

:: 11:48

And just see what happens.

:: 11:50

And if you're the scene partner receiving whatever

:: 11:53

this is, your job is to just yes and the heck out of it.

:: 11:58

And maybe that new idea fails too.

:: 12:01

But that's OK because you'll learn from it.

:: 12:04

Hack number five.

:: 12:05

You're stuck in your head.

:: 12:07

So focus on your partner.

:: 12:10

This is like a lot of people say to do this, right?

:: 12:14

It's classic.

:: 12:16

You're lost.

:: 12:17

You're worried about the seed and you just

:: 12:19

don't know what to do.

:: 12:20

Just stop thinking about yourself.

:: 12:22

Put all of your attention, everything,

:: 12:25

on your scene partner.

:: 12:27

Be really curious about them.

:: 12:29

Watch everything they do.

:: 12:30

Scrutinize them.

:: 12:32

Listen to what they say and just respond the hell out of it.

:: 12:38

It moves your focus from inside your head

:: 12:40

to outside your head, which is where the improv lives.

:: 12:43

So you want to be there.

:: 12:45

All right.

:: 12:45

Hack number six.

:: 12:47

Find an out.

:: 12:49

Sometimes the scene just needs to come to an end.

:: 12:52

If no one else is ending up for you, just find a way out.

:: 12:55

Make a choice that logically ends the scene

:: 12:59

or makes a huge signal to your backline to help you out.

:: 13:04

And if you are on the backline, just edit that scene.

:: 13:08

Don't be afraid to edit a scene that has run its course.

:: 13:12

Edit more.

:: 13:13

Edit quicker.

:: 13:14

And don't worry about failing by ending the scene too early.

:: 13:19

A good short scene or even a bad short scene

:: 13:23

is better than a long bad scene.

:: 13:26

All right.

:: 13:27

The last hack.

:: 13:29

Hack number seven.

:: 13:31

If your failure is a constant fear of failure,

:: 13:37

make mistakes on purpose.

:: 13:41

So this one might be the most powerful hack of all.

:: 13:48

Or maybe is just my favorite one because I love it.

:: 13:52

In scientific literature, this is related to something

:: 13:55

that is called the daring effect, D-E-R-R-I-N-G,

:: 14:00

if you're listening.

:: 14:01

If you are afraid of failing, you

:: 14:03

need to start doing it on purpose in low stakes environments

:: 14:08

to just normalize it.

:: 14:10

In a class or a practice session, that means you just jump.

:: 14:15

Make a bold, physical, or verbal move before you have time

:: 14:20

to think about it.

:: 14:22

And then just figure out how to justify it afterwards.

:: 14:26

And this is a fantastic way to learn.

:: 14:29

I can't emphasize this enough.

:: 14:30

This is so useful.

:: 14:32

Jump before you look.

:: 14:34

You're not messing up a show and you're

:: 14:36

in a safe environment anyway.

:: 14:38

So just act and then figure it out.

:: 14:40

See how it goes.

:: 14:41

Even if your scene partner doesn't have your back for some

reason,

:: 14:46

science has your back on this one.

:: 14:48

But honestly, jumping before you look can be so frickin'

fun.

:: 14:53

And it will absolutely, definitely, for sure,

:: 14:57

make you a better improviser.

:: 15:00

All right.

:: 15:01

So how do we reframe all of this in our minds?

:: 15:06

You can think that you failed and you can have fun with it.

:: 15:11

So in a scene I did, I thought I completely botched my

response

:: 15:14

to an initiation.

:: 15:15

So I just did the scene and rolled with it.

:: 15:18

And I had fun.

:: 15:19

But thinking I'd failed at the end,

:: 15:22

I was about to learn more about that scene

:: 15:24

than I ever thought I would.

:: 15:26

I learned, first of all, that I could just do that.

:: 15:29

I could just roll with it.

:: 15:30

And second, I thought that the scene was awful.

:: 15:34

That was my perception.

:: 15:35

But the coach said I should do more scenes like with that kind

:: 15:39

of weird logic.

:: 15:40

So I learned to throw away my own judgment

:: 15:43

that it was probably useless and that I'm not good at

judging.

:: 15:47

And that was a big learning moment for me.

:: 15:49

And without that immediate direct feedback,

:: 15:52

internally and externally, and doing that bad scene,

:: 15:57

I wouldn't have learned all of that stuff.

:: 15:59

It was a huge learning experience for me.

:: 16:02

So I'm so thankful I failed that scene

:: 16:05

and got immediate internal and external feedback.

:: 16:10

So remember that failing is the best way to learn.

:: 16:13

And what you notice as a failure might not be one at all.

:: 16:18

And even if it is, it's probably amplified 100 times

:: 16:22

in your own brain.

:: 16:24

The audience or your coach likely might not even notice.

:: 16:29

And even if they did, they probably

:: 16:31

don't care nearly as much as you do.

:: 16:35

So let's go back to our big question for today.

:: 16:38

How can we actually use all of this to make our improv better?

:: 16:45

But first, if you like this episode,

:: 16:47

I would love it if you would click that Like button on it

:: 16:50

if you're watching.

:: 16:51

And if you're listening, I would love it

:: 16:53

if you would join myself and other improvisers

:: 16:56

in the improv update discord.

:: 16:59

And please share this episode with anyone who you think

:: 17:03

might find it useful.

:: 17:05

So the answer to using failure, as we've seen today,

:: 17:09

is to reframe it as data and the best way to learn and get

:: 17:14

good.

:: 17:15

So reframe these moments in your scene.

:: 17:18

When you think you failed, reframe it

:: 17:20

to a discovery about your improv brain.

:: 17:23

If you think you made a mistake, call it weird.

:: 17:26

Call it an unexpected offer.

:: 17:29

Your I'm Not Good at improv is a little bit more

:: 17:32

like I'm Get My Reps In.

:: 17:35

So every time you fail and then you

:: 17:37

recover using these hacks, or even if you don't,

:: 17:41

you get stronger.

:: 17:42

You get smarter.

:: 17:45

You're more well-rounded.

:: 17:46

You're more adaptable in improv.

:: 17:49

Then you can get out of your head and use much more of it.

:: 17:54

And that makes improv so much more fun.

:: 17:58

And it makes it more fun for everyone around you, too.

:: 18:01

And that is the whole point.

:: 18:04

So thanks for tuning in.

:: 18:05

And I'll be back next Monday for the next episode.

:: 18:09

Bye for now.

:: 18:10

[MUSIC PLAYING]

:: 18:15

You have been listening to Your Improv Brain, a

StereoForrest

:: 18:18

production.

:: 18:19

This show is created and is written, edited, and produced

:: 18:23

by jendhawnofsterioforest.com.

:: 18:26

You can find show information, show notes, transcripts,

:: 18:30

and contact information at the show's page

:: 18:33

at stereoforest.com/improvbrain.

:: 18:37

Thanks for listening.

:: 18:40

[MUSIC PLAYING]

:: 18:43

[MUSIC PLAYING]

:: 18:45

[BLANK_AUDIO]