Suggested Reading: Happy Accidents

November 28, 2017

Tyler Davidson

Improvisational skills are key to any successful business, whether it be at a Fortune 500 corporation or being able to think on one’s feet to pull any manner of last-minute meeting and event calamities out of the fire.

Having worked the stage as an improv group for more than two decades, including entertaining countless meeting audiences, Fort Worth, Texas-based Four Day Weekend has published Happy Accidents, The Transformative Power of “Yes, And” at Work and in Life.

Using examples from their long careers on the stage—both in Fort Worth when they produced a weekly comedy show and subsequently at venues and meetings around the world—troupe members David Wilk, David Ahearn and Frank Ford write on how bedrock improvisational principles translate into improving communication skills, foster creative problem solving and spark new ideas.

“Yes, And” is a staple improv exercise that fosters communication and working with others cooperatively, requiring participants to agree with a statement from a fellow player—no matter how nutty, in some cases—and then add to it.

“The philosophy of ‘yes, and’ worked so well for us on stage,” Ford said. “We asked, well, what if that was our business model as well? It not only opened up our ability to communicate within the group, but opened us up to so many different business opportunities.”

Happy Accidents is available on Amazon.com in hardcover and Kindle editions.

http://fourdayweekend.com

[Bonus Content: Read more about the power of improvisation in the December Friday With Joan newsletter].

About the author

Tyler Davidson is the vice president and chief content director for Meetings Today, which publishes the meetings industry trade magazine Meetings Today as well as MeetingsToday.com, various newsletters, webinars, the in-person Meetings Today LIVE! Hosted-buyer events and other meetings and events industry B2B channels.

Tyler has covered the travel trade for nearly 35 years. In his role with Meetings Today, which recently won the prestigious FOLIO: Eddies Award for best magazine issue, Tyler leads the editorial team on its mission to provide the most in-depth meetings content in the industry. Previously, he worked as the Asia, Canada, Pacific Northwest and Western U.S. editor at Travel Weekly magazine and TravelAge West. Before joining the dual editorial staff producing destination sections for Travel Weekly and TravelAge West, Tyler was the Africa, Israel, Middle East, Switzerland and Pacific Northwest editor at TravelAge West. He also undertook general news and feature assignments while working at the magazines.

Besides reporting on the travel trade, Tyler has covered the real estate industry, held various editorial positions at the San Francisco-based national satire magazine The Nose, wrote freelance technology industry pieces and covered the San Francisco 49ers and Oakland Raiders for a bilingual newspaper in San Francisco. He has a B.A. in Journalism from San Francisco State University, where he worked in various editorial capacities on its award-winning student magazine, Prism.

Contact: tyler.davidson@meetingstoday.com