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Sharpen Attendee Listening Skills with Improv Icebreakers

Posted in communication skills, conferences, games, Play, team building

Apr

Are your attendees missing a lot of the value of your conference or meeting because they lack good listening skills? The ability to listen well maybe the most underrated, underused and undertaught skill that humans possess. Oh sure, anyone can listen. But do we listen well or even adequately?

As I listen to what others are saying I’m often engaged in another activity – multitasking. Or I’m thinking about what I have to do next. Or maybe the person speaking is doing something that I find annoying and I can’t stop thinking about it. Even if I’m paying attention to what’s being said, how often am I merely waiting for my turn to talk?

If I’m honest, I have to acknowledge that most of the time I’m not 100% engaged when others are talking. So I’m missing LOTS of things. These things that I’m missing could be lost opportunities for connection, friendship, or business. If nothing else, the person I’m listening to may feel the lack of connection and may not respond as favorably to me as I would like.

Listening well in a conversation, requires that we:

1- Establish a strong communication connection with the person who is speaking.
2 – Process and ensure that we understand what is being said.
3 – Respond in a way that acknowledges that the message was accurately received.

Improv games teach and reinforce all of these skills. After all, you can’t build a good improv scene if you aren’t listening to your fellow players. Improv performances depend on an improv team’s ability to receive and build on information. This hinges on the improvisers’ ability to:

*stay present oriented
*make eye contact
*notice body language
*read subtext
*remember what has already occurred

In other words, great improv performances depend on the performers’ ability to listen WELL.

To keep their listening skills honed, improvisers regularly play games that reinforce them in a fun way. Not surprisingly, these games serve as wonderful icebreakers in social situations.

Here are a couple of fun improv games that serve to reinforce listening skills and also help a group get to know each other and bond.

Circle Name Game

Players stand in a circle. Each player in turn says their own name around the circle. Do this twice so that everyone gets a chance to remember the other players’ names.

Next: First player makes eye contact with another player and says the other player’s name. The other player makes eye contact with the first player and says “Thank you.” After both have spoken, the two players trade places. Second player makes eye contact with a third player and says the third player’s name. The third player makes eye contact with the second player and says “Thank you,” then after both have spoken the two trade places and so on. Play continues and gets quicker but . . Remember: players may NOT trade places unless “Thank you” has been said.

Zip, Zap, Zop

Players stand in a circle. One player, Player A, claps his hands, ending in a pointing position toward the direction of another player. Simultaneously Player A will say the nonsense word “Zip!” Player B repeats this action, clapping and pointing at another player, Player C, while saying “Zap!” Player C repeats this action, pointing at yet again another player while saying the word “Zop!” Players do not need to follow any order but they should follow the patter of “zip, zap, zop.” Remember: Greet mistakes with warmth & laughter and just start over.

(Photo by mrMark)