Improv-based training: it's not just fun and games. (Fundamentals).

This is the first of a two-part series about using improv-based training.

Corporate life is either a comedy or a tragedy, depending on your experience. Look at your daily newspaper's comic pages and Dilbert will show you that we're all actors in a farce. While you may not know whether to laugh or cry, this much is certain: Business isn't neatly scripted. It's an unpredictable and unwieldy act of improvisation.

These days, the most successful businesspeople can forge strong relationships among employees and clients, react quickly to changing circumstances, and solve problems fast. As a result, a growing number of companies are realizing that they need to know how to improvise better.

Enter improv-based training, an experiential learning methodology grounded in the creative and connective powers of play. More and more companies are embracing improv as a way to achieve …