Carolina Improv Company

The Commitment Diet – Anyone Can Do It!

Gina Trimarco — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 00:01:40 +0000

Ah, the C word. Many people are allergic to it. In improv training we preach it as if it were the gospel. We need to commit to ourselves and partners on stage (and in life) if we want our relationships (or projects) to be successful.

Dictionary.com defines COMMITMENT as “the act of committing, pledging, or engaging oneself; a pledge or promise; obligation.”

The words “promise” and “engaging oneself” resonate the most with me. When we commit to anything we not only promise others that we will follow through on doing what we say we plan on doing, we also promise ourselves that we will succeed.

As an improv instructor and training facilitator for Carolina Improv Company, I am constantly side-coaching others to commit in the moment to the exercise that I’ve given them to do and to not worry about failure. “Just commit. Try it.” The worst thing that will happen is failure. Strike that. The BEST thing that will happen is failure because when we fail, we learn how to succeed the next time. I also find myself giving this same advice in general to friends in a variety of areas – jobs, health, relationships, you name it.

What has really made me hyperaware of “commitment” is my current commitment to my health. On January 2, I made a promise to myself to lose weight and ultimately improve my overall health. In six and a half weeks, I’ve lost 23 pounds. Of course, I’m now hearing, “What are you doing? How do I do that?” And my answer is COMMIT to yourself. What I’m doing is not an overnight gimmick, but it may not be for
everyone. What works for me logistically does not matter. Fundamentally what works for me can work for everyone – COMMITMENT. The bottom line is that whatever people choose to do to lose weight, find love or get a new job, they need to commit to the plans they set to be successful. They need to engage themselves to believe that they can do whatever they set their minds to do.

And for inquiring minds that really want to know what I’m doing … I’ve changed the way I eat (smaller portions, no dairy, no caffeine, limited alcohol, low carbs, low fat and as much organic as possible), plus working out five to six times a week (sometimes more). At first it seemed overwhelming to think about how I would stick to this, so I committed to making it one day at a time and it gets easier every day … especially knowing others are watching me to see if I’ll fail or how much I’ll succeed.

Travel Center (Gas Station) Treasures & Laughter

Gina Trimarco — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 18:21:01 +0000

Gina Trimarco Cligrow & Eileen Soisson

My best friend and business partner Eileen Soisson, president of The Meeting Institute, invited me to make a presentation with her on behalf of Carolina Improv Company called “Using Improv in Training” at the National Parks and Recreation Association Congress last week in Atlanta, GA. This was an amazing opportunity to meet people who may not be familiar with the benefits of applying improv in business. Specifically for this industry they can use it both in training of their employees of all levels and can also use it to create programs for adults and youth. It was extremely rewarding to watch the light bulbs go off in their heads as we presented improv techniques they could use. And most exciting was being asked for a proposal to go to Italy!!!

This trip also provided for other great experiences, such as the most amazing customer service at the OMNI Hotel at CNN Center. They not only met our expectations, they anticipated and exceeded our expectations. I’ve never stayed at an OMNI, but here’s a great example of how important it is to realize how one location can set the example for all locations in a chain. I can only assume that every OMNI is amazing based on my experience. WHAT IF the experience had not been good? Just something to think about in customer service and branding.

While in Atlanta we also met with an existing client to do some team building. Little did we know that this training would need to be suitable for employees in Atlanta AND Boston, via video teleconferencing. In the true spirit of improv, I had to quickly figure out how adapt my interactive improv training plan for those watching us from afar so that they could also participate. Sure enough, it worked out great and mostly because I didn’t stress about it and approached it as if I had always done this type of training. We then went to dinner with the Atlanta team to Divan Restaurant & Hookah Lounge. Another great experience! The menu was so eclectic and diverse that it was nearly impossible to choose because I wanted to choose everything. Highly recommend the goat cheese with apricot. It was also my first hookah experience. And then the improvised singing began within the group, specifically by one team member named Cecilia. Oh, how I wanted to kidnap her for our cast in Myrtle Beach!!!

So, I met great people, made new contacts, experienced an amazing hotel and learned how to smoke from a hookah, but the best part of the trip was the six-hour drive home. Keep in mind that I don’t do well sitting for that long and luckily we had several unplanned stops that turned into a new pastime … shopping at Travel Centers. Yes, Travel Centers, aka Travel Stops, aka Travel Plazas. Some may call them “gas stations” as we did until we were quickly corrected by a “regular” at Love’s Travel Stop in Thomson, Georgia.

We fell in love with Love's

We needed to stop for gas and chose Love’s because of Eileen’s son, who had apparently been there on a trip with his grandmother. When he returned from his trip he told Eileen how much he loved going to Love’s with grandma. Needless to say, we were intrigued by a five-year-old’s fascination with a gas station … I mean Travel Center. The second I walked in, I understood why. The first thing I saw were giant stuffed Teddy Bears at the back of the store. From a child’s small eyes and height, this must have been absolutely magical. Eileen walked in and seemed just as mystified. And as we perused row after row we proceeded to behave like cackling teen age girls at

Purses and Power Tools. Which to choose?

the discoveries we made from automotive products, pink leather jackets, footballs, purses, beef jerky, winter hats that looked like animals, television accessories, books on tape, CDs, DVDs, toys, toiletries, beer, wine, novelty baseball caps, multiple flavored coffees (no tea though) and on and on. It was like a Wal-Mart in 4,000 square feet. And of course we cannot forget the showers, which I was tempted to try out.

We were laughing so hard and carrying so many unneeded items that one of the employees came to ask us if we were okay.We apologized for our silliness and continued to shop. Upon making our purchases we apologized again for being so silly and then some random customer asked us if we had been drinking and informed us that they had us on video laughing. Such a valid question based on our behavior but of course we had not been drinking. He continued his interrogation asking if we had used drugs. Again, no. For a minute I thought maybe he was security or a cop but the cashier told me he was just a regular trucker. He was the one to also correct us that we were not at a gas station, but at a Travel Center and that Love’s was actually not the best Travel Center on the road. This did not sit well with who appeared to be the head cashier. The trucker said that Pilot and Flying J were actually better and gave us the exact exits for each, informing us of the great deal on fleece blankets at Flying! The head cashier was quick to tell us that Love’s was better and that Pilot employees were leaving their jobs to join Love’s. Fascinating! After Eileen’s $70 purchase and my $30 purchase (not including gas) we proceeded on the road looking for more Travel

Every trucker needs a dollie!

Centers while quickly becoming more addicted with each stop. Along the way we visited a Pilots Travel Center, Stuckey’s Travel Plaza Express and a BP Shop and found items unique to each of their locations, including fried chicken, life size dolls, fleece blankets (2 for $7.00) crystal knick knacks, John Wayne/Betty Boop/Elvis souvenirs, pecan logs, bandanas and more. And we really did start to take it a little seriously as we explored merchandising techniques, as you can see in this video about AV accessories. If you’re one of our friends or family members you might be able to figure out where this year’s Christmas presents came from! By the way, Stuckey’s has a website to order pecan logs!!! We didn’t find Flying J, but I have learned through further research that Flying J owns Pilot. Who knew?!

And of course we encountered more showers! Our favorite thing was hearing “Customer 13, your shower is not ready to use. Please proceed to shower stall 4.”

In case we forgot to shower, here was our chance!

And if you’re wondering why we were laughing so hard and were so amazed by this experience it’s because we had just been shopping in Atlanta for things we didn’t need (accessories) at a place called Charming Charlie’s and had been trying to justify spending money on jewelry. The humor hit us at Love’s – we realized that most women can find a way to shop ANYWHERE, including a GAS STATION! You never know what you’re going to find when you’re willing to “yes and” by opening your eyes in everything you do … including pumping gas!

Get Out of the Home

Gina Trimarco — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 19:54:25 +0000

I haven’t blogged in nearly seven months! I’m not exactly sure why but I have some ideas. Perhaps I feel guilty about blogging. It takes time to do and it steals time from what I perceive (or perceive that others perceive) to be a more productive and efficient use of my time. I’m trying to successfully run two businesses (Carolina Improv Company and Uptown Theater) with limited resources and assistance in the loneliness of my home. In addition I have a little thing called a wedding coming up in October that I should also be working on and feel guilty about. With so many priorities, how could I possibly find time to write a blog? And yes, I know, I find time to Facebook and Twitter, but that’s like walking to the water cooler to find someone to talk to for a few minutes while the boss isn’t looking. And if you work from home you understand what I’m talking about. It gets lonely, even with “Law & Order” reruns running in the background as white noise. The dogs are sweet and cute but not helpful … and they are demanding of my attention (like high maintenance employees) “take me out”, “feed me”, “look at that cat across the street”, “Lola won’t share her treat”.
When you own a business you are supposed to revisit your business plan every year. I’m two years behind in revisiting one and six months behind in revisiting the other. I’ve realized that I’ve been hiding behind the “urgent” things (marketing, admin, operations) instead of attending to the “important” things (strategy, vision, sales, financial). So, I started delegating to and asking for help from those in our organizations and that’s been amazingly helpful on the “urgent” side of things. Awesome, I made room for the “important” and then I hit a wall. The “important” things take deep thought, brainstorming, visioning and other activities that require creativity and innovative thinking. No problem – I’m thoughtful, creative and have vision. Piece of cake, right? Stale, hard-to-eat cake, more like, and maybe because the “important” still wasn’t happening.
And then I went to a conference in my industry. The The Applied Improv Network (AIN) Conference in June 2011 and it slowly became clear to me. All of a sudden I was surrounded by 100+ applied improv practitioners who do what I’m trying to do and the creativity and energy was both inspirational and motivational … not to mention satisfying to my need for empathy from others. We all need people to relate to – it gives us a sense of belonging and helps justify and/or support our needs and goals in our personal and professional lives. More importantly I work in an industry that centers around applying improv techniques to collaboration, teamwork, leadership, etc. Talk about an oxymoron – I spend my days alone WITHOUT a team or group dynamic to bounce off of. OH MY GOODNESS! I’ve become a fish-out-of-water and didn’t realize it. I’ve been gasping for the oxygen of others. And note that I still didn’t even realize this core emotion until now as I write this.
Prior to this epiphany, at this very moment, one of my biggest take-aways from the conference came from a panel of veteran improv practitioners who gave advice about our industry. And this man Bard (pronounced “bored”) said, “Do not start your business out of your home. Find a coffee club of other entrepreneurs. Find an ad agency with creative types that can inspire you. Just don’t work at home.” Oops – “too late” is what I inwardly cried to myself. Ah, but I’m an improviser. It’s NOT too late! “Explore and heighten” is our mantra. Just because I started working from home doesn’t mean I have to STAY working at home. I can still get out. I also need to share that I DO actually have a real office at our theater (Uptown), but there’s no one there but me and I said to myself “If I’m going to be alone, I might as well be comfortable at home, save money on gas, save money on lunch ….” and every other justification I could come up with.
The bottom-line was that working alone has stifled my creative self. I thrive on human interaction and collaboration. I NEED ideas and suggestions from others to build upon and I need this more than ever or my collaboration muscle will continue to atrophy. I need the oxygen of others. So, as soon as I returned from the conference I sought out the very short list of ad agencies in our area and I simply asked, “Can I hang out at your office if you have any spare space?” And without hesitation (or too much), someone said “yes” to me later that day. It was just that easy. Another ironic thing is that in the world of improv we practice and preach the concept of “yes, and”. I had almost forgotten how to “yes, and” myself and put out offers for others to “yes, and”. The chances of someone saying yes are at least 50%, but if you have no one to ask for a yes, the chances increase to 100%. Basic math. We need people around us to improve the odds of getting a “yes” – of moving forward and progressing to the next level in life and work.
This week I started working from my remote office of Collins + Company. I knew I would love it the second I walked in to visit. The music playing, the sunny colors, the sound of people talking and laughing, the energy … and at least five more people to add to my network who don’t really know me yet, but let me in without reservation. I had planned on going only once this week, but the energy was so great that I re-arranged my schedule to be there twice. There I sit in the conference room and every now and then someone pops in to chat about something … my business, their business, personal things like “why do we procrastinate?” or “do you know what the theme of this playlist (on the IPOD) is?” I even reviewed an intern’s resume and gave advice. My collaboration and creative muscles are stronger already this week. AND, while one could think that one could become distracted by others throughout the day, I welcome these types of distractions instead of being distracted by the laundry, the dogs, the retired neighbors knocking on my door because they see my car in the drive way.
The biggest benefit so far is the mere exposure to idea people. And while I’ve often become irritated when people say “you know what you should do?”, I welcome it in this environment. I used to take that as a judgment from others that I didn’t know what I was doing. And the “yes, and” technique helps me at least listen to what others have to say because maybe I don’t know everything OR maybe I forgot about something so basic, such as putting video clips from our show on Facebook every day to continue to educate people about our business. Many new ideas have come out of this week and the “new office”! The dogs, nor the neighbors, have ever given me such good ideas!
And oh yeah, I’m blogging again! Welcome back creative muscle!