Improv comedy’s key is the “Yes, and…” rule of thumb.
While an improvisational skit may start with a particular prompt or situation, it could go anywhere. The first speaker chooses a path, for example, "we're in a yellow submarine".
Saying "No, we're in my childhood bedroom", or even "Yes, but the sub is purple" kills the playfulness, the possibilities, the paths in which the skit can go.
So, you accept whatever your fellow improv comedian says—and then you're free to add your own something into the mix, like "and it's Christmas in July."
Another way to think about this is "acceptance plus*" (That is, we accept the situation we are in. And then ask ourselves: “what can I do with it?”
Have you ever felt boxed in by expectations? What if you said 'yes' to who you are—and added your own twist?
Yes, I came to accept I'd never be a grade A student. I got plenty of As—and this was before our grade inflation year, but inconsistently. And then I realized I could still learn—likely more than the A students. They were working for the grades— and what those might get them: approval of teachers and parents, acceptance to higher-ranked college, the status that brings… Whereas my motivation was internal. While the 4.0 GPA crowd learned at the speed of the syllabus, I jumped around. I skimmed over what bored me, dove in deep elsewhere. More often than not, the parts of books NOT on the syllabus interested me most. I wondered, is this my subtle intellectual rebellion? Did I see that as the proverbial forbidden fruit? Or maybe my teachers had bad, boring tastes. In any case, I saw that my path was not simply learning intellectually, but socially, emotionally, psychologically—and most importantly: learning about myself.
Yes, I accepted eventually I'd never be a great employee. My bosses’ approval didn’t motivate me much. I'd never climb those corporate (or other organizational) hierarchies. And, over time, I realized I didn't need to. I could find my own path, build my own organizations (if I chose to). And I have. And I realized I'm happier from it. I'm healthier from it. My contributions have both accumulated and lasted.
I worried I’d be stuck in lower levels. Or not even survive in the org.
This happened first. it's most drastically happened. when I was devoted ten months into a my first full time post collegiate job I was the mood in with the pay cut. Let's pay, but also let's work. So I use that time to explore. Then I took an idea to my bosses. After, I finally got a clear answer from them—a ‘No’—I quit and started my own business. Within 3 years, I sold that business. I earned much more than if I had stayed AND IF (a gig if) I was able to stay employed.
I became aware and accepted that I'm not so conscientious (conscientiousness is the Big Five psychological trait—often known by the acronym OCEAN or CANOE—most associated with success).
And then I realized for me to work diligently and to focus, I really had to be engaged by the task or project. Projects needed to: appeal to my values, use my talents and my ways of being: how I processed information, dealt with people, saw the world… And in that engagement I found flow. The flow brought me fulfillment—and more focus: I learned to say no to things I doubted could maintain periodic flow cycles. My work has long been overwhelming autotelic: pursued for its own sake Rinse, repeat. A virtuous circle.