Episode 25
Prioritize Yourself for Better Improv Performances
Are you sacrificing your well-being for your improv team? This episode of Your Improv Brain challenges the myth that good improvisers must be comedy doormats. Always saying yes outside the scene doesn't help your scene partner in the end.
Discover why putting yourself last leads to burnout and how "doing comedy for you first" actually creates more exciting, sustainable, and authentic performances for everyone. Learn practical ways to prioritize your needs and your energy without abandoning your team.
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This podcast was created, written, and is hosted by Jen deHaan. You can find her bio here.
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What does neuroinclusive mean? It means that you create a supportive environment inclusive and accommodating of all cognitive types and abilities to learn, write together, or perform. This, just like the word "neurodiversity", includes both neurodivergent and neurotypical individuals. Which is… you, since that covers everyone!
This podcast was made in British Columbia, Canada by StereoForest Podcasts.
Note
This podcast has been renamed a couple times to best fit what it needed to become, and better reflect what it eventually became! It's not gone, I am figuring out what is sustainable and most needed by myself and the community.
I mention surveys and written versions in earlier episodes. I am moving this content to ImprovUpdate.com on a new being-developed website. You can always send me any comments, thoughts, feedback, or contributions using the contact form on this page.
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Transcript
WEBVTT
::[MUSIC PLAYING]
::Is being a good improviser somehow
::synonymous with being like a comedy doormat?
::You know, always available, always agreeable,
::always putting the group's needs and wants miles ahead
::of your own needs and wants.
::I've seen a lot in improv and in other communities,
::and I've done it myself.
::And honestly, I think it might be a bit of a recipe
::for not great performances and honestly, the big one, burnout.
::So today, I'm going to dismantle this, I guess,
::myth that self-sacrificing yourself means really good art
::or good teamwork.
::And you'll learn why I'm asking you to like tend
::to your own garden first and how this will actually
::lead to better, more exciting, and more surprising improv
::for everyone around you.
::And most importantly, how to do it without feeling
::like you're screwing over your own team.
::[MUSIC PLAYING]
::Hi, I'm Jenda Hahn, and this show
::is called Your Improv Brain.
::I create improv and I create comedy podcasts
::with StereoForrest, including some audio dramas
::that blend scripted and improvised elements together.
::And I do a lot of solo improv there, too.
::And I've taught and I've coached at several improv schools
::as well.
::And every Monday now, I'm releasing a new episode
::of this show.
::So subscribe wherever you're listening to this
::if you haven't already.
::Plus, I have an interesting idea or an observation,
::I guess, that I want to share with you
::at the very end of this thing about who I believe
::is the unsung hero of any really thriving, great, perfect,
::the perfect improv scene.
::And I don't want you to miss that bit, so stick around.
::So you might have been told to sacrifice for your art,
::to suffer for comedy, to always say yes to every gig,
::every note, every team demand that is placed upon you.
::And it's pretty pervasive in improv,
::especially in the really kind of people-pleasing team-focused
::world of improv.
::But here's something true or something
::I believe that I don't think we talk about enough in improv.
::When you consistently put yourself last,
::you don't just get tired.
::You show up completely burnt out.
::And I mean, honestly, you might even
::get a little bit resentful.
::It's like this quiet resentment that
::might just be simmering a little bit beneath the surface.
::You might find yourself going through the motions on stage.
::And when you do that, when you're fully depleted,
::everything feels hollow.
::Your characters might seem kind of flat,
::because your energy just isn't there.
::Your brain isn't there on the stage.
::And it's really hard to create comedy coming from that place.
::And you might not be the kind of teammate
::that you really want to be.
::At least I doubt that that would be true.
::The real energy-filled comedy, the thing that really pulls you
::in and engages you, that comedy that just--
::it makes the audience laugh for real.
::Or your coach do a real laugh and not just one of those,
::you know, "I'm an improv teacher" laughs.
::The kind that just feels alive and just really connects
::human to human, improv brain to improv brain,
::that comes from joy.
::It comes from authenticity.
::It demands just from being there that you are fully present.
::You are fully engaged, whether you like it or not.
::You might even be vulnerable.
::And let's be honest.
::You simply can't be all those things
::if you're pouring your comedy from an empty cup.
::You're burnt out, or at least it'll just be a lot harder
::to get there.
::And you might not enjoy it anyways, even if you do
::manage to get there somehow.
::So let's think about it.
::Let's think about the comedians and the improvisers
::that you really admire, the ones who seem to just
::shine, who bring that really infectious energy to the stage.
::My guess, at least from what I'm learning about myself,
::is that they are people who have, consciously or maybe
::unconsciously, found their unique voice.
::But most importantly, they've learned to protect themselves.
::They've figured out what drives that voice of theirs.
::And just importantly, they figured out what drains that.
::And they manage to balance and manage that energy very
::carefully.
::So here's this radical idea that we're talking about today.
::You should do comedy for you first.
::Now, I'm going to explain in my explainer fashion.
::I like to explain.
::I like to explain things because I don't want you to think
::that I'm coming from some narc prima donna place.
::This isn't about becoming a diva or abandoning your team
::or steamrolling scenes or refusing
::to support your scene partners and refusing to make them look great.
::We are going to make our scene partners look great.
::This is about showing up as your best self, your energized,
::your inspired, and you're genuinely happy to be there
::on the stage or in the green room or wherever you are in the improv
::community because that's what your team, your audience,
::and your art form, whatever type of improv or comedy you're doing,
::that's what they deserve.
::So what does this selfishness or what I like to call it,
::self prioritization look like in practice for someone doing
::improv like you?
::So it might mean saying no to like some gathering or a show
::or event or a practice that will mess with your brain
::for whatever reason that is.
::It could mean suggesting a different approach,
::one that works with your brain, with your wiring,
::along with the rest of the teams.
::Or you might find a place, a way that you can meet in the middle
::if it's really skewed in one direction that doesn't work for you.
::It might mean a shorter rehearsal.
::It might mean changing the warmups that you're doing.
::Or if necessary, you might make the tough call
::to find or form a group yourself that's just a better energetic
::or mental fit for you.
::It absolutely means investing in your personal development
::in ways that excite you.
::Maybe that's taking a clowning workshop.
::I don't know.
::I keep hearing about the clowning thing
::to like just unlock a different side of your physicality.
::That's what I've heard.
::It might mean taking a storytelling course
::to work on your narrative skills.
::Or it just might mean scheduling a dedicated creative playdate
::for yourself, where you just mess around with characters
::or ideas without any pressure to perform.
::The old model, the one that many of us have heard of or even
::follow, wants people to climb some ladder
::to impress certain people, certain improvisers,
::or to get on some like esteemed house team,
::that house team that everyone wants to be on, or whatever.
::But let's be honest here, especially in improv.
::These ladders are often imaginary constructs
::made by very few people.
::And the people you think you need to impress
::are just other human beings doing makeup ups.
::They're often as stressed and as uncertain as you are, as I am.
::Your unique voice, your individual perspective,
::your sustainable well-being, that's what's real in improv.
::That's valuable.
::It's good for comedy.
::That's the actual core of your comedic offering to the world,
::or just to your improv community, the people that see you
::and interact with you.
::When you prioritize your own creative fulfillment
::and your mental health, you bring more sustainable energy,
::more authentic choices to the table.
::And you're more genuine.
::You bring that genuine, believable joy
::to every single rehearsal, every show, every collaboration
::that you do.
::And it doesn't just benefit you.
::It has this ripple effect that lifts everyone around you up.
::Like if you're happy and you're fulfilled as an improviser,
::that's inspiring.
::Or when you're like this, you're more
::likely to take those risks, the exciting things,
::to make those big, unexpected choices.
::And you're more likely to really connect
::with your scene partner and the audience on a deeper level.
::And you're just going to get a lot more reps in too,
::which is good, because you have a lot less friction
::with yourself.
::So let's consider the pre-show stuff that teams do now.
::You might be doing group warm-ups,
::or you might be discussing the form at this time.
::You might be doing those things to get
::into a collective headspace, those number games or whatever.
::But it's all really important.
::But what if some section of that time was just for you?
::What if you did five minutes of meditation or breathwork,
::or meditation for me is listening to a specific song,
::usually on loop, that gets me into the right headspace
::or the right energy?
::You might just write out, scribble out the anxieties.
::Just put them in a to-do list or even in your phone.
::Get them out of your head and onto paper.
::That might be helpful.
::This isn't about ignoring the group
::or separating yourself out or whatever.
::It's making sure that you arrive at the pre-show time.
::You're ready.
::You're going to do the show.
::And you're able then to just really commit fully and positively
::to the warm-up and to the show.
::So we're improvisers.
::What about the yes and?
::Doesn't all this self-focus in me first really contradict yes
::and?
::No, it doesn't.
::Yes and is about accepting and building upon the offers
::within a scene in the moment that you're creating it
::with someone else.
::It doesn't mean saying yes to every team thing
::or every community demand on who you are as a person,
::your time, your energy, your improv brain,
::until all of that just melts down or blows up.
::By taking care of yourself and by making sure
::your creativity, your well, how much creative you can have
::is full, you can make sure that you have the resources you
::need, the bandwidth that you need,
::and the energy that you need to really commit and yes and
::when you are on the stage.
::You're showing up for your scene partners
::from a better place.
::So you don't need to apologize for having needs.
::You don't need to wait for somebody's permission
::to create art that really excites you
::or to structure your comedy life in a way that
::sustains you for the long haul.
::So you keep doing comedy and don't quit it.
::Even if that means going and doing your own show
::or your own practice group or creating your own theater,
::I guess your mental and your emotional health
::isn't some luxury item or something for later on
::or some optional add-on nice to have in your comedy.
::It's really important for sustaining yourself
::in this community.
::It can be tough and it's going to make you just make better
::comedy with people for the audience.
::Now, that observation I was going to make about the unsung
::hero in a thriving great scene, it's coming up.
::But first, make sure you check out improv update
::if you want to get my free newsletter that summarizes
::ideas like this and links to new episodes of this show.
::It comes out on every Monday, just like this show.
::You can find a link for the newsletter in the show notes
::or in the description below.
::And you can also find a link to the improv update discord
::community where you can chat about this topic and improv
::and acting and voice acting and performance and podcasting
::and just, I don't know, talk about all those things
::with other improv brains.
::So now for that final thought that I
::promised, the unsung hero of a truly thriving, creative,
::and supportive improv scene isn't who you might consider
::the star performer or the most experienced
::director, often is just the person who maybe even quietly,
::subtly, models self-care like this and healthy boundary
::setting.
::We notice it even if we don't really notice it.
::You know what I mean?
::We can feel that.
::That person, and maybe it's you, teaches everyone else
::around them that it's not just OK,
::but it's important and beneficial to protect passion,
::to protect creativity, to protect your energy.
::That person helps build a culture within a theater
::or comedy space where everyone around them
::can find their space and be included.
::Is that person you or could it be?
::I'll be back next Monday with more thoughts and ideas
::for your improv brain.
::Take good care and I'll talk to you later.
::You have been listening to Your Improv Brain, a StereoForrest
::production.
::The show is created and is written, edited, and produced
::by jenthonofsterioforest.com.
::You can find show information, show notes, transcripts,
::and contact information at the show's page
::at stereoforest.com/improvbrain.
::Thanks for listening.