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[ucb-professional-development]

What startups can learn from UCB’s success in comedy

Startup blogger Paul Chen took his experience watching shows at UCB and mapped out five reasons for UCB’s success that could provide useful insight for accelerators and incubators looking to grow their business.

1. Customer Exposure

[UCB] is a school of entertainment teaching the Del Close brand of improvising sketches. UCB has four branches and they put on an average of three shows per night...their students [are] exposed to real customers (real audience members) over and over. This allows them to get immediate feedback on what works and what bombs [and] allows the talent chances to work on his timing and pacing. 

Likewise, accelerators can expose their startups to real customers over and over to develop products that their customers want and can utilize real-time feedback to improve their brand.

2. Allow your talent to fail and suck a lot

When you are allowed to fail, you are more likely to take risks and think outside the box. You get to learn many valuable lessons from mistakes. That is where true innovation and creativity come from. The more you think about it, the more you mess it up. 

UCB provides students and performers with an environment where they can take risks and make mistakes. Much like improvisers, if accelerators and incubators overthink and are afraid to fail, they won’t be as innovative.

3. Use your network

One of the most valuable assets that UCB has is their alumni network. They constantly get A-listers to come in and work with their developing talents and put on shows. It also allows their talents to build up their networks. 

Kind of a no-brainer: startups should network with established talent to learn from them and build their own brand recognition. Our relationships are everything.

4. Learn how to build teams that trust each other

The success of an improv sketch is dependent on the team of performers to be able to gel, cooperate, and work like a well-oiled machine. Each team member's job should be to do their bit so other team members look awesome. 

The team-oriented, project-based environment of a startup is not so different from an improv team.  When the members of a team know their part and can trust each other, they can execute.  There is also the importance of a diversity of ideas, and both improv groups and startups thrive on their ability to combine unique experiences into a cohesive goal.  

5. Building a brand with success

One of the reasons behind UCB's success is their brand. It comes from fostering an appreciation and education of the arts from affordable and high quality comedic performances and classes. Students are given every opportunity to succeed in their performing and writing careers. If an accelerator is doing their job each startup should be on the way to viable commercial success.

Read the complete article here.

[ucb-professional-development]

Why your firm needs creative CLEs

The following is an excerpt from an article in Law360 by Lisa Ryan.

Seasoned lawyers often view continuing legal education courses as dull and obligatory, so several top firms have started offering out-of-the-box programs — from improv classes to game sessions — to condition their younger attorneys to not dread these professional development courses. "For lawyers, CLEs can feel like having to do your taxes or getting your teeth cleaned — an obligation that's painful and something you have to do," said Carey Bertolet, managing partner for North America for international legal recruitment firm Laurence Simons. "These programs rebrand CLEs so lawyers feel like they’re something more valuable.” Here’s why your firm would benefit from unique CLEs. Young Attorneys Will Associate CLEs With Fun Attorneys who have been in the legal game for a while are used to tedious online courses or potentially boring in-person professional development classes. But for new associates, some firms are introducing the concept of CLE courses as interesting and exciting. "It's a good conditioning exercise for young attorneys, and it's getting young lawyers in the habit of doing it," Bertolet said. Law firm Labaton Sucharow LLP opted to forgo drab CLE tradition and instead recently recruited famed improv troupe the Upright Citizens Brigade to lead its associates through a number of skits and lessons to learn about the art of improv. Michael W. Stocker, a partner at Labaton Sucharow, had been familiar with UCB's work thanks to the bevy of famous comedians it has produced, but when he discovered that they actually offered improv classes as professional development for lawyers, he jumped at the chance to bring them in to teach associates. UCB stopped by the firm's offices for two 3-hour classes this spring to help associates learn how to deal with the unexpected, from unusual turns in depositions, to judges that ask questions that seem to be out of left field, according to Stocker. The classes included funny skits, including one in which a "mayor" tried to sell the benefits of living in a town infested with alligators. "Associates quickly learned how to handle the anxiety of extemporaneous speech with a team consisting of an experienced lawyer and comedian. They also laughed a lot in the process — all for three points of CLE credit," Stocker said.

Other reasons included were that creative CLEs teach new skill sets and improve team-building through fun and relaxed professional development. Read the full article here.