Episode 214: New Ways To Build Your Teams Confidence and Selling Skills

Looking for a unique way to build self-confidence in your team? Today's podcast is all about confidence. Chris Trew is a touring comedian, sportswriter, and creative coach. He uses his background in improv comedy to help people find their funny whether they are using it for performance or self-improvement. His work has been featured at events like SXSW and San Diego Social Media Day and festivals of all kinds all over the country. His foundation of Improv Comedy provides the framework for everything he does. Whether he's teaching a workshop to 100 professionals in a conference setting, a group of 6 for a small business happy hour, or a Zoom for literally anyone, the material is the same. If you want to learn how to boost creativity in the work environment, he's your guy. Biggest Takeaway You Don't Want To Miss: One Improv class could change how you communicate, listen to people, and the way you share your own stories. Having said this, you can be a better communicator, leader, listener, or storyteller which you can incorporate to your business or personal life to make it more engaging and fun. Improv is extremely portable and very flexible. Chris can teach the same workshop to different groups of people regardless of number. He can even highlight a specific goal that you want for your employees or team. With Improv Comedy, you will develop the " Yes, And " mentality and it's a must learn! - listen to Chris and me in the podcast to know what I mean. Confidence Building Show Highlights: What is Improv comedy, 2.11 How can Improv help business owners, 4.42 Who takes Improv classes, 11.03 How Chris comes to work with your team, 13.27 Chris wrote a weird book about sitting close to basketball players at NBA games, 20.20 Did you enjoy the show? We would love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review! Click this link –Bella In Your Business Click on the ‘Subscribe’ button below the artwork Go to the ‘Ratings and Reviews’ section Click on ‘Write a Review’ Links: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christrew/ https://www.instagram.com/christrew/ Are You New Here? Welcome, I am so glad you are here. If you are a dog walker, dog sitter, cat sitter, doggy daycare or kennel owner, then you found the right place. Jump Consulting is the one place on the internet to get all the resources you need for your pet care business. Can I give you some freebies to generate sales and increase revenues for your business? Grab your freebies below. Are you starting out? Been in business for less than two years? Get your startup resources here. Do you own an established pet care business and you want to take it to the next level.? Get Your builder resources here. Transcript: This is episode 214 of Bella in Your Business. Hi there, I'm Bella Vasta from Jump Consulting. You might know me from CBS, NBC, Fox, Huffington Post, Entrepreneur, or maybe you've seen me speak on stage or read my book, The Four Dogs That Every Business Owner Needs. In any case, get ready because you're about to get your hashtag Bella Butt Kickin' in this next episode of Bella in Your Business. So what do you say? Let's get ready and jump. Welcome to Bella in Your Business. My name is Bella Vasta and today I have my friend Chris True with me. I met him because during this whole COVID stuff, one of my speaking engagements at Social Media Day San Diego was canceled—or rather, moved virtually—and the amazing organizer, Tyler Anderson, who you've also heard on this podcast talk about user-generated content, decided to bring Chris in. He had actually taken his entire team out to see Chris and do some really awesome exercises with him, and it was phenomenal. It did not feel like a virtual conference because of my guest today. As we were doing these exercises and talking about improv and what he does, I was thinking, wow, this would really help my business owners be better leaders, better communicators, and have some fun during some employee meetings. So you guys listen up because in the 200-plus episodes that Bella in Your Business has been around, we ain’t seen nothing like this yet. Chris, welcome to the show. Chris thanks Bella, saying what an intro and how happy he is that the event still happened, mostly because he got to meet people like her. Bella tells him he’s magnetic, and she thinks it’s because he’s such a great communicator. She says many listeners will improve their communication skills just by hearing him. Chris is a touring comedian, sports writer, creative coach, and uses his background in improv to help people find their funny—whether for performance or self-development. Bella mentions that he’s been seen in things like South by Southwest, Social Media Day San Diego, and festivals everywhere, including Sturgis. She asks him to take it back to basics: what’s the big deal with improv comedy, and why should business owners care? Chris explains that improv comedy is a game changer for everyone. He believes every single human should take at least one improv class—it changes the way you communicate, listen, and share your story. Worst-case scenario, it’s a ton of fun, but everyone always learns something. While most use improv for comedy shows and festivals, others like him have branched out to teach classes for businesses that need team-building or just want to treat employees to something fun. He says the same things that make an improv scene funny—collaboration, communication, and flexibility—are the same things that make you a better communicator, listener, and leader. CNN even said every boss should take an improv class, and Forbes recently featured business professionals moonlighting as improv comedians. He adds that when work becomes fun and communication becomes magnetic, people connect better. People don’t leave jobs; they leave people. So if leaders can make their teams fall in love with the workplace through better communication, everyone wins. Bella loves that, then asks how improv specifically helps business owners. Chris says the number one thing you learn in any improv class is the concept of “Yes, and.” The “yes” means accepting your scene partner’s idea; the “and” means building on it. You’re never just “yes-ing” someone without adding anything, and you’re never saying “no, but.” You’re always accepting and adding. That’s what makes improv successful—and what makes any human interaction work. He says if you think that sounds obvious, you’re probably thinking of your best friends—the people with whom communication flows naturally. But imagine using “yes, and” with the people you butt heads with. That’s when it becomes transformative. Bella asks how he’s managing this during COVID when in-person workshops are limited. Chris says it was a huge surprise to discover that Zoom improv workshops actually work even better in some ways. People open up faster on Zoom because they’re not physically on stage; they just unmute their microphones and participate. Those who would normally be shy in person are more willing to engage. Bella relates as a woman, saying she can see how Zoom removes self-consciousness—no worrying about body language or appearance; you’re just visible from the chest up. She jokes about pajama pants and says she can totally see how that makes people more confident. Chris agrees and says he’s thrilled to see people surprising themselves in these virtual sessions. Participants often say they can’t believe how much fun they had or how confident they felt. He’s excited for the day when they can translate that confidence into in-person classes again. He admits he wishes he could teach improv every day. Bella says he can be her friend and jokes that the only thing holding him back is himself. She shares that after meeting him, she immediately started searching for local improv classes because she saw how it could help her podcasting, coaching, and public speaking. She says it also boosts confidence and asks what kind of people usually take improv classes, since her listeners often say, “Yeah, Bella, but I’m not you.” Chris says about 25% of improv students come because they’re interested in comedy. Another 25% just want a fun hobby—like pottery or yoga. But the rest are there to improve their communication, leadership, and listening skills. Maybe they read an article saying improv can make them better salespeople or speakers. He says what’s beautiful about improv is that it benefits everyone equally—the same exercises and feedback help both aspiring comedians and professionals who just want to communicate better. Improv is like a “superfood” for personal and professional growth. He insists everyone should take at least one improv class. Bella recalls how Tyler took his entire marketing team to work with Chris and had so much fun that he later flew Chris to Boston as a surprise for them. She asks how Chris structures team sessions for companies—whether it works for just a few people or large groups. Chris says it’s extremely flexible. He can teach workshops for three people or thirty. With thirty, everyone still gets to participate, just in shorter bursts. The structure usually includes a warm-up to get everyone out of their shell, then a group exercise, and finally, a focused activity based on the company’s goals—like improving listening or brainstorming. Even if he doesn’t know a client’s industry, he loves helping them apply improv concepts to their world in real time. He gives the example of pet-sitting business owners who could use “yes, and” skills to help employees confidently handle consultations or client meetings. Bella agrees and says when she first tried improv, she noticed how it built teamwork and connection among participants—it’s not all comedy. It’s about trust and collaboration. That’s why she wanted him on the show: it’s powerful team-building. She then asks about his new focus on creative coaching.