Struggling with what to say

Photo by Vitaly Gariev on Unsplash

I’ve struggled mightily with this first blog post. I’m never sure how good my writing is, so I tend to obsess. And recently I’ve not been happy with my writing at all. It seems trite. Somehow translating the broad, abstract ideas I have about teaching, speaking and learning into words seems to gut some of the concepts. Ironic, because all of them shape how I teach and speak and my students seem to have no trouble picking them up. But writing them down…. ugh.

I understand why Jesus and the ancients who taught in other faith traditions often spoke in parable and metaphor. And why there is such a current emphasis on story in much of the popular literature and online courses. [1] Every choice we make with human language while perhaps truly capturing one aspect of the wider truth we are trying to convey, also tends to omit or obscure a different aspect of that same idea. And so that bright, vibrant concept is dulled. And while, admittedly, in most cases it doesn’t matter, it matters to me a lot. Because I want people to understand the potential I see in improv.

The bottom line is getting your idea across. That’s the purpose of the study – to find new ways to empower people to be heard. To give them the agency to share what they think and make a difference. To acknowledge their value and the importance of their voice. Because your voice is important and deserves to be heard.

[1] See for e.g. Dicks, M. (2018). Storyworthy: Engage, teach, persuade, and change your life through the power of storytelling. New World Library; Kurnoff, J., & Lazarus, L. (2021). Everyday business storytelling: Create, simplify, and adapt a visual narrative for any audience (First Edition). Wiley.