Thanks to Whom am I here today?

Quick Description

Players reflect on their lives by answering the question: Thanks to whom am I here today?

Lots of people standing in the shape of an arrow. Thanks to whom am I here today? An improv activity to reflect on their life journey.

How to Play

Frame the activity as an appreciation of the people around you.

Give everyone in the group a piece of paper and pencil. Ask them to find a spot to site in the classroom or elsewhere. Ask them to take 20 minutes to compile a list of individuals who have contributed to their journey, answering the question: “Thanks to whom am I here today?”

They can interpret “here today” in any way they wish.

Notes

This activity focuses on one of the main skills we try to teach when we teach improv: the shift from being self absorbed to being interested and absorbed by your fellow players.

This is different from asking: “what am I grateful for?” Which is a good exercise as well. Answering the question “Thanks to whom am I here today?” or “Thanks to what am I here today?” can expand your thinking.

There are things that happen that we would not choose…but there may be something about the experience that propelled you to your current path.

Patricia: When I give it as an exercise for a class, I say, if you turn in your list, you’ll get extra credit.

Debrief: I ask them if there was anything they discovered who surprised them.

Variations

Warm up exercise. All the player stand in a circle. Go around a circle and each player gives 2 examples of thanks to whom am I here today? Try not to repeat the kind of example someone else has just made.

Corporate workshop. When working with corporate groups, you can introduce a competitive aspect to the activity. Divide them into smaller groups of 3 or 4 and task them with brainstorming the most extensive list. The true intent is to initiate a line of thinking about the various ways we are interconnected. We owe our presence to a multitude of individuals. Some may inadvertently be overlooked because we perceive them as merely “doing their job.” For example, the individuals who created WordPress enable me to share this activity, thus I am indebted to them.

Origin

I learned this activity from Patricia Ryan Madson the Author Improv Wisdom. She says that is a Japanese meditation practice adopted to improv.

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