The Show Must Go On
I’ve always recommended fellow instructors take an improvisation class at least once in their life. Besides being fun it’s a great way to experience how to make things up when something doesn’t go the way you plan.
As an instructor its guaranteed things won’t go as planned.
I have experienced over the years to be ready to make something from nothing.
I have had to teach software without the software.
I have had to teach with the students using the software while the developer was on the phone correcting it as they were using it.
I have had to teach workshops where the materials never showed up.
I have had to teach where half the class was missing because everyone had different directions on where the class was being held.
I have gone to teach a topic only to find out I was supposed to teach a completely different topic.
I had to continue teaching after someone in the front row passed out and had to be taken to the emergency room.
But, as they say, the show must go on.
Not to tempt fate, but I don’t think anything could happen which I couldn’t handle.
I recently taught a management course. It was one of those rare classes where I actually use the DVD supplied in class. The topic was delegation.
When I inserted the DVD it didn’t work.
Ok, I should have checked it out before class started that day.
I was perplexed as to why it didn’t work when it had in the past when I remembered before we had used a VHS tape, not a DVD.
I needed IT’s help.
Everyone, take a 10 minute break!
Turns out this “DVD” only played on the computer, not the DVD player (not sure why).
So we started watching the program.
Part of the way into the movie it started to stall. Got stuck, then moved on.
After it did this twice I thought it was unproductive to watch anymore so I shut it off.
Well now what do we do?
Turns out there was an exercise in the manual which I hadn’t done in the past. I thought it was overkill and too detailed. But since there was time I had everyone do the exercise.
It was a powerful and effective exercise which emphasized how to put delegation into action far greater then any discussion or movie could have done.
I never would have known this if we hadn’t had technical problems with the DVD.
When I remember something good could happen from a glitch, problem or annoyance:
• I don’t freak out over the problem
• I can see alternatives
• I look for opportunity
This exercise will now be a permanent part of this future workshop. That is, until something else happens which is unexpected and shows me yet another way.