Hello improvisers!

Okay... so you know that thing where you feel some kind of impulse or idea or response arrive, and your mouth starts to open or your body starts to move to do that thing, and then some internal quality-control engineer kicks in and shows up and by the time you've run it through the "is this good enough, is this funny, does this make sense" filter and decided "sure, let's do it", the moment is gone. Your scene partner already moved on, or you said something safer, or you just stood there.

If you're like me this is ESPECIALLY prevalent in group scenes. And maybe in any kind of group conversation outside of the scene, too.
​

I've been thinking about what's actually happening in that sorta moment, because every improv teacher (myself included) says "commit to your impulses" and "get out of your head," and that's fine advice, for sure, yep, but it's also really unhelpful if you don't understand why that brain thing exists in the first place.
​

During improvisation, the brain regions responsible for self-monitoring and evaluation tend to not get used as much as the regions associated with self-expression and free association. There's a specific part of your brain (the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, if you want to sound impressive at a party... says the person who never goes to them) that evaluates your output before you act, so it's checking what you're about to say against social expectations and personal standards and stuff like that. It's slower, and it takes cognitive energy... it can be pretty exhausting if you do a lot of it.

​
So not doing that kind of processing back and forth is what "flow" can feel like from the inside... that experience of being "in it" where ideas come easily and you're responding without overthinking, without processing it like that.
​

So hesitation (that processing back and forth activity) can actually change the cognitive mode you're operating in. The brain shifts from "create" to "evaluate," and getting back to "create" is harder than if you'd just acted on the first impulse. So this is why a committed "mediocre" (by your own standards) choice almost always works better in a scene than a hesitant "better" choice. The commitment can keep you in the creative mode where you build on that idea, while the hesitation pulls you into evaluation mode where you end up monitoring every subsequent move throughout the rest of the scene.
​

The cool part is that you can train this. When you learn improv and get reps, a part of what you learn is this ability to remove that self-editor while you are in a scene. For example, every time you commit to your first impulse in a low-stakes practice or jam and, hey, it works out fine (or even when it doesn't, nothing terrible happened), you collect that evidence your brain can be trusted. Those impulses are good, or at least aren't dangerous or some threat. Over enough reps, you get to trust your brain and get to flow (or, "out of your head").

​
For the neurodivergent folx reading this, especially if you socially mask, this part of your brain has some well-worn pathways most likely. Because you are used to analyzing social conversations and exchanges and adjusting accordingly (unfortunately - I know how exhausting this is). You might even be used to doing this thing more often in improv. So that's where reps can come in, and also just the knowledge that in improv your scene partner is in agreement with you. That's part of the overall core concept, so there isn't a "wrong" in the way you engage as long as you are in agreement with them. And any disconnect is worked out simultaneously and with each other.

Or perhaps you already act on impulse already (ADHD-style), and perhaps your challenge in this is keeping that commitment to your choice throughout the scene.

So keep this in mind, and challenge yourself to notice where you're at in your practice. Being self-aware of your practice can help with that growth.

See ya,

Jen.

And if you want to check out some downloads...

This one is available to check out! There's also a free work sheet (use to process your practices) in the footer.

$10.00 Processing Notes: A guide and workbook for improv students In the guide: Understand how notes work, why they're hard, and what your brain is actually doing when you receive them.... Read more Get it now!

​