week 3 MUTers #improv

MORE @madeuptheatre fun (on web, facebook, yelp, foursquare, youtube) as we wrapped up our third week of short form improv.

(actually, i did not attend class, so generalissimo bobby sent over a list of the games. thanks!)

past weeks' games ... week 1 over here  (4 games) - acronym-mania, hostage negotiations, chain murder, one eighty five. and week 2 over here (6 games) - blind lines, dime store novel, naive replay, no you didn't, what'd you get, last action hero/joke.

i miss the MUTers! ... i missed week 3's class, therefore, i don't have whatever the "tips" were given during class by fearless leader bobby. in fact, i'll also be missing (week 4) class tonight.  (being on an airplane kinda cramps what improv style i possess, but i'll catch 'em next week.) MEANWHILE, for my improv fix, last night, i did check out the late show of ComedySportz Indianapolis (on web, twitter, facebook, yelp, foursquare). turns out that they are not more than 50 yards from where i'm staying in indianapolis. (nope, i didn't plan that one.) FUN, AMAZING games and AWESOME gibberish/mime talent. loved it! okay, now i'm understanding this short form stuff when played as part of comedysportz. (gotcha!)

5 more games and 3 refreshers ... last sunday was week 3, and thanks in advance to big kahuna bobby, he'll let me know what games will be played this evening for week 4. (NUDGE) and once again, i will live vicariously ... 

RHYME IT - scene game, verbal wit ... a scene is being done. At anytime, the host can blow a whistle and say "rhyme it", and the person who just said something has to say something different - that rhymes with what the player just said, and thus taking the scene in a new direction.  

IRISH DRINKING SONG - singing fun ... given an audience suggestion, players fake irish accents with each singing a line in an ABCB rhyming format; 4 lines make a verse; after so many verses, that's the end of the singing fun.  

LOVE SONG - singing fun ... given a woman's name, her occupation, and a favorite hobby - a clever chorus is created. bobby plays the guitar. and each player sings a line in an ABCB rhyming format; after a verse (4 lines) or verses, the chorus is sang.  

ONE EIGHTY FIVE - fast game/verbal wit ... players line/semi-circle up and one steps up with - "185 *BLANKS* walk into a bar, bartender says "We don't serve *BLANKS,* so the 185 *BLANKS* say something witty/PUNCHLINE. and each player steps up when offering a 185.  

NO YOU DIDN'T - verbal wit ... a suggestion is given, and a player starts off by saying "i kissed a *BLANK (from suggestion)* last night." and other players yell, "no you didn't" . . . then the player replies with something witty/PUNCHLINE.  

LAST ACTION HERO/JOKE - verbal wit ... player mimes that s/he kills someone with the suggestion and says a cheesy "action hero" line associated with that suggestion.  

WORLD'S WORST - verbal wit ... given an audience suggestion, players line/semi-circle up and one steps up with a witty/PUNCHLINE of worst possible way of doing/being what the audience suggested. other suggestions also are asked again of the audience through the playing.  

PICK-UP LINES - verbal wit ... players line/semi-circle up and . . . i forget how this one goes.

just have fun

and

make bold choices!

inspiring #gcsl

THANKS @greenleafcenter for #servantleadership day 1 of your annual international conference by the greenleaf center for servant leadership (in cooperation with ALP). oddly one of the bestest vacation choices i have made - being inspired, meeting wonderful people, learning more about servant leadership, and as one does ... intense self-reflection and self-awareness.

so many thoughts ... are swirling in my head. it's the morning after day 1, and last night i spent amped up, energized, and pensive - deeply reflecting on many learnings, mini "wow" and "ah ha" moments, and more importantly (for me) continued clarity about anthrocubeology. i thought i would post something last night, however, i spent time reading and reflecting (and actually - mostly reflecting and meditating).

tidbits of day 1 ...  there were many chunky things during the first day of the conference, so just a few highlights that i hope to later follow-up with in some fashion and write about later -

• world cafe in the morning ... we had one with hundreds of people and it was nifty. two questions posed with the framework of quotes from robert greenleaf. and arla (who i sat next to) shared when we judge others, we don't judeg who they are, we judge who we are.
• storytelling ... personal servant leadership journey stories from a panel of three speakers - barbara hollace, steve thiry (fond du lac police dept), and tre sanders (@tre_sanders). a few take aways for me included ladder of inference, kiwani's key club (and caring, empathy, sense of humor, realness), and "3 e's" as i'll term them - example, empathy, empowerment. 
• intercultural competency and recruiting diversification ... while other workshops were offered on personal development, organizational implementation, and faith, i chose a workshop that was part of ALP's offerings, i met erin and tessa of catalystlead with (thanks to tessa and eric for a kick in the arse about anthrocubeology - YES! getting info out there - writing, sharing, writing, etc. - so people can respond. it will help shape and clarify what is brewing. and yes, my friend, tracy s., ALSO has lovingly nudged me.) interesting exercise on feeling and behaving. 
• afternoon speaker (with storytelling intensity) ... kevin trapani (@kevintrapani) from redwoods group spoke well as he shared about his perspective of servant leadership and on being a servant leader, as well as about his organization. 
• affinity group meeting ... with 8 to choose from, i attended the greenleaf center academy group meeting. (other group meeting included topics related to health care, business, servant leadership and race, government and public sector, NPOs, virtual servant leadership learning community, and ALP folks.) my instructors - isabel  (for foundations coures) and jeff (for key practices course) - were there, along with other center's faculty members  and other academy students. in this group, i met a member of the USAF and learned something i was not aware of - the intense leadership and professional development opportunities afforded by the air force to their people.
• reception and book signing ... while i did not attending the book signing (though i will leave with more books), chowed a little cheese, crackers, bread and washed down with a cabernet sauv that i nursed through dinner
• dinner ... i had the honor and pleasure of sitting with two women (quite impressive) in the usaf and learning about them, their perspectives, their experiences, and their challenges. let me say that i am humbled that i had this opportunity and am glad the gentleman from the affinity group invited me to sit with them. (a very big "thank you!" - what i learned over dinner will shape (is shaping) my pursuing anthrocubeology.)
• evening speaker ... judy o'bannon - was the first lady of indiana from 1997-2003. very much inspired by her stories and thankful that i had the opportunity to be present to hear her share.

OOPSIE ... i'm running late to get to today's conference!!! gotta cab over from my airbnb mass ave district home away from home. (LOVE IT!) to keep with yesterday's "theme" of pictures - here's my beer offering from lunch - upland IPA (and mini corndogs ... i know. what was i thinking? was tasty, still.) - from loughmiller's pub.

upland IPA, mini corndogs - from loughmiller's pub

for the servant leader's mind: 

if not me, who?

pre-conf in indy

@greenleafcenter thanks ... for a fabulous pre-conference (workshops) day at this year's annual conference - getting results through servant leadership. and as i have said before, thank you for the wonderful greenleaf academy experience.


about the pre-conference ... quickie about the topics relating (and relaying) servant leadership included implementing in healthcare industry (cases), non-profit capacity building (introduction, in the boardroom, philanthropy, cases), and personal development (both half-day and full day offerings).

my amber pint at ram restaurant 

my pre-conference day ... i attended the morning non-profit capacity building with presenters phil anderson and dr. kent keith. i lunched at the ram restaurant with dr. jeff miller in the afternoon where i sampled (o.k. - i pint-ed) the amber ale. in the afternoon, i attended dr. keith's intro to servant leadership. yes, i realize after my taking the foundations and key practices courses, maybe it may make sense not to attend the intro class, however, i was curious about others who are in the learning and discovery mode, so makes sense to be part of that workshop.

a few notes ... i will follow-up on several references by the presenters and by those attending. some tidbits -

• expand the "why" (not just how and what)
• you are theirs as a leader
• persuasion (not coercion)
• compassionate emptiness
• personal development plan (which reminds me of 31 day reset)
• appreciative inquiry

and as a misheard set of words

(giggle, giggle)

survey monkey

not

serving monkeys

(and serving monkeys is funnier 

within the context of a conversation 

about anyone's cubeopolis - had to be there, i guess.)

f|break: boston terrier

you horny dog! ... for max, who hangs out with shiny penny andy, just a video for you to keep in mind as your hormones may rage.

enjoy a doggy fiber break with a horny boston terrier (over here)
for ~ 1:06 min of pokeman humiliation love

(woof)

REALLY weather in indy?!

REALLY?! ... i'm taking a l'il vacation-ish from the s.f. bay area, and indy is serving me up ~45% - 60% humidity with random sun and not so sunny weather. why you gotta challenge me as i pack for my trip and do laundry? FINE. i'll pack a little more.

vacation-ish ... i'm taking some time away from cubeopolis. and i'll be meeting up with folks from the greenleaf center's annual conference. i'll be hanging out in the mass avenue district (of which i only know about that area from what i'm reading on-line), thanks to a nifty airbnb connection. i don't quite have much planned (yet) other than attending the conference . . . and . . . staying in a neat neighborhood . . . and . . . and playing tourist here and there . . . and having brunch on mass ave at hoaglin . . . and

sweating.

p.s. ... oh, this evening's recent check on weather just a few updates. 

(still sweating)

persuasion boot camp me ...

finally @bjfogg (on web) i filled out the little boot camp application. (that wasn't too painful.)

and thanks ... to my 2011(?) secret valentine 2011 for her simple reply message that she sent me this afternoon about her improv debut at the end of this month. i let her know that i was hoping to sign up for a "class" - and if i got in, i might not be back in time to make her improv show IF it started at 8pm or 8:30pm. turns out, her show starts at 9pm.

chance for the class ... for whatever reason, the possibility of getting into the class AND seeing my friend's show all on the same day was FINALLY enough to compel me to fill out the application to the class. (totally unrelated!) well, the possibility would not exist without filling out the form. (right?) OTHERWISE, i may have once again (as i've done in previous months - wtf?) post-poned filling out the little application expressing my interest in bj fogg's persuasion boot camp. (he had me at tiny habits(!) and i've been hooked.)

from grey matter to fingertips ... still in the formulation stage - i filled out my application referencing the a|cubeology label that includes these posts - 

• totally pondering an idea of share + esteem (or sharesteem) "... an approach about how two people connect and support each other in a kind of equilibrium, influenced by several basics of improv ... and servant leadership ..."
• still pondering: share what?! ... as i shared my post-morning meditation of my being "... interested in the ONE-on-ONE interactions that spurs those small cultural shifts ..." and a rather wordy idea of moving toward - HOW to BEHAVE in ONE-on-ONE interactions to be the CATALYSTS of POSSIBILITY through SERVANT LEADERSHIP and IMPROV (yeah, i'll work on this a bit more)
• sharing bigger tidbit that included tidbits of my proposal for a presentation at the upcoming applied improvisation network conference in san francisco.

- and my no-longer-procrastinating, stream-of-consciousness, application-filling-out resulted in my response to why i want to join boot camp - 

"to learn/understand more about behavior (one-on-one, one with many, many with many) within the context of workplace (and workspace) interactions. (i am very interested in one-on-one as the initial framework.) i believe that values, choice, and behaviors are core to positive/productive interactions. meanwhile, i also see/feel a need to understand and address the gap (perceived or real) between the concepts of what defines an organization's culture and whether/how strategic objectives are communicated, reflected, engaged, and influenced by culture."

and as for my ideal outcome a year from now as a result of the training - (abridged / edited) 

"in short, by understanding behavior(s), i can further my anthrocubeology thought process ... without going back to school. i would help individuals be involved in work/vocation that is fulfilling, that serves many, and that addresses/minimizes pettiness in the workplace. anthrocubeology will be recognized as an approach/study that an individual can take (and become) to defining/creating a workplace/workspace that aligns organizational cultural elements with an organization's strategic objectives. i would be able to differentiate this from "corporate anthropology" and other traditional organizational management approaches that focus too much on "management".  my role would be as the founder of anthrocubeology, along with others who share similar perspectives to help individuals (and organizations). outreach would include writing, consulting, speaking, and performance. ... "

yup, that's what flew off my fingertips. go figure. will later learn whether i'll make it into bootcamp. meanwhile, as part of this, also pursuing nexus with improv and servant leadership.

tweet-tastic

@collaredsheep

THANKS @collaredsheep (on web) ... hmmm, maybe i should be thanking cubeopolis, also. (a little tweet of mine was a weekly fave.)

anyway, if you're not familiar with the collared sheep, simply described where sheep tweet ...

"The Collared Sheep is the voice of the cubicle community. We post articles related to the office, corporation, and cubicle lifestyle."

and on their site's about description, they describe why they do what they do ...

"The Collared Sheep’s purpose is to offer you with enough entertainment to get you through those long grueling days of phone calls and Microsoft Office. We hope to provide you with a place to laugh, vent, and maybe even learn something."

everyone can use a little laugh, vent, and tidbits.

weekly favorites ... as one of the many features, each week fun tweets are gathered among the flock and shared with others on their site. check them out over here. all you gotta do is include the hashtag #nftc or  #newsfromthecube. and last week i shared a tweet - on my day off, even. granted i overheard it last wednesday, so it's never too laste to share. 

on the collared sheep over here

(heehee)