How The Fundamentals of Improvisation (Improv) Can Make Us Better Designers
“I love improv. I perform at comedy clubs and theatres.
It’s an explosion of fun and a boost for creative thinking,
which fuels my role as the Head of Product Design at OLX Autos. Performance art has a lot to teach the design world. Improv ‘absolves responsibility’ and gives you the ‘opportunity to break rules’ and ‘push norms’. Design is a discipline about problem solving and collaboration, and the core lessons of improv are about just that.”Ankur, Head of Product Design at OLX Autos
What is Improv?
Improvisation, or improv, is a form of live theatre in which the plot, characters and dialogue of a game, scene or story are made up in the moment. Often improvisers will take a suggestion from the audience, or draw on some other source of inspiration to get started.
As an article on design inspiration and improv states, “There is no wrong answer in improv.” That’s why it’s a great activity to stimulate creativity. In the Improv game Three Things, for instance, a person names a subject and you have to give three things as fast as you can. The idea isn’t accuracy, but rather speed. If the topic’s your morning routine, you could say, “breakfast, brush teeth, snowstorm.”
Again, there is no wrong answer in improv. Improv Everywhere’s “MP3 Experiments”, in which a massive number of strangers volunteer to interact with a recorded set of instructions in a public space, are a great example.
“On top of being a lot of fun and encouraging interaction between strangers, ‘the experiments’ were structured in a way that opened individuals up to greater levels of complexity and creativity, both individually and collectively. Part of the “magic” of it was the sheer number of participants, but there’s value in integrating these types of improv games without the massive scale,” states Ankur.
Design & Improv are all about problem solving
“Design is a discipline about problem solving and collaboration, and the core lessons of improv are about just that”, states Ankur. The three basic challenges of Improv are:
- Yes-And
- 2. No fear of failure
- 3. Group Mind (No ego)
Each challenge is extremely applicable when it comes to everyday lives of designers. Let’s see how:
1. Yes-And
Improv is based on the principle of positivity, which is Yes-And. You probably have heard about this concept already because it is a basic principle for promoting positive and productive communication — building on others ideas by saying “yes, and…” as opposed to “no, but…” and you will have yourself a very different conversation and group dynamic.
“A design brainstorming session can gain a lot from the same.
It means essentially, that one will build on what was said previously without the thought of negating it. Yes-And is the best and the fastest way to ideate !”, states Ankur.
2. No fear of failure
Spontaneity can only be there if people are being honest and there is no fear of failure.
“Storytelling in design needs us to be just that. We need to take chances, start writing the book without the plot in your head sometimes”, states Ankur.
3. Group Mind (No ego)
Improv talks about ‘Group-mind’ and ‘Killing your ego’ which is so important in a team. Improv is all about trying to make your partner successful in a scene. “Designers have a tendency to be individual champs and that might be necessary in some cases, but as a leader I need to make sure we have a group mind”, states Ankur.
Five Things
Take the game Five Things. In this game, you go around in a circle and name three things that relate to whatever subject the person before you asks, and the goal is to answer as fast as you can.
In design, sometimes we get so stuck trying to find the perfect solution to a problem, that it’s hard to even get started. If we look at design problems through the lens that there are multiple ways to solve them, we start to let go of some of the control, and open ourselves up to alternative ideas.
We hope we gave you some inspiration. Now, it’s time for some improv.
Extra: Discover Ankur’s journey with OLX Group here:
