Day: 280: Living with Ambiguity

My talent in life seems to be the ability to help people learn how to improvise.  This means that I lead them and assist them in trying new things and hanging in while making discoveries.  All too many of us flee at the first sign of insecurity.  "That feels scary.  I won't go there."  Improv training is all about be coached and supported as we jump into uncharted and unfamiliar waters while in the presence of others who are strangers.  This in itself is remarkable.  No one likes doing something in front of others that is not well prepared.  But the study of improvisation is just this.  "Try-See" is the motto.  We go with our first thoughts and impulses and then maneuver to make these work, make sense.
A blogger I admire said it well:  "Learning to live with ambiguity is an important skill, but doing something despite overwhelming uncertainty and conflicting information is the leadership skill of the 21st century.  Some of the most effective people I've met lately have one thing in common--a stint doing improv.  Using some basic techniques you can learn how to parry anything that comes your way and build on it."  Ann Oliveri. 

This watercolor is of the harvested artichoke crops from a hillside above Half Moon Bay done a month ago.