Improvisational Conversation Workshop

As a professional, your life is full of improvisational situations where you are called to think, listen, and speak on your feet with colleagues, management, customers, and strangers, as well as in interviews or networking events.

In a series of fun games and activities, UCSC Extension communications instructor Craig Harrison will introduce you to concepts and strategies that help you navigate unscripted situations with confidence and put others at ease in the process. You'll learn unique strategies and tips for you to confidently excel in these situations while being yourself! 

Learning Outcomes

• Develop skills and a mindset to improve your presence in different conversational environments 
• Apply curiosity, compliments, and rhetorical questions when meeting strangers
• Employ the power of asking questions to draw out others, and identify commonalities and differences you can converse about
• Rate your current listening skills and apply new approaches to become a great listener
• Practice professional techniques for initiating and disengaging from conversations 
• Employ the power of politeness and demonstrate a touch of class in your conversations
• Receive resources for further developing your improvisational confidence and phraseology for professional conversational situations 

Craig Harrison has taught for UCSC Extension since 2000 on topics including credibility in the workplace, listening skills, meetings management, positive political skills, and storytelling in business. He currently teaches Business Communications, an eight-week elective in the winter and summer quarters.

This event is hosted by the UCSC Extension Career Services Program.