Kristen Brun Sharkey: Using Improv to Drive Real Change in Leadership and Innovation

About Kristen Brun Sharkey:

Kristen Brun Sharkey is an executive coach and facilitator who spent 15 years leading teams in ad tech and marketing at major companies, including Yahoo, Verizon, and Hearst. She holds a Master’s degree in Management, Strategy, and Leadership from Michigan State University and is an ICF-credentialed coach. Through her company, Emboldify, Kristen leverages techniques and principles from improv theatre to enhance leadership skills, helping leaders at all levels improve their decision-making, drive innovation, and execute effective change.

In this episode, Dean Newlund and Kristen Brun Sharkey discuss:

• Using improvisation to strengthen leadership presence and decision-making
• Improv techniques for driving innovation and creativity in business
• Improving team dynamics with collaborative storytelling and communication
• Strategies to overcome fear and resistance to creative activities
• Integrating improv methods into structured leadership coaching

Key Takeaways:

• The "one-word story" exercise helps reduce overthinking, improve collaboration, and build trust by having participants contribute spontaneously to a collective story.
• The "Yes, And" technique fosters psychological safety in brainstorming, ensuring all contributions are validated and promoting an inclusive, innovative environment.
• Improv-based leadership exercises help leaders build authentic presence, overcome imposter syndrome, and engage their teams more effectively.
• Practical debriefs with improv activities provide actionable insights, turning creative exercises into real-world applications that enhance leadership and teamwork skills.

"One of the things I really picked up from improv... I actually had a teacher who called it ‘yoga for the inner critic’… it really leads toward being able to separate what is your intuition from what is just your inner judge trying to shut things down.” — Kristen Brun Sharkey

Connect with Kristen Brun Sharkey:  

Website: https://www.emboldify.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kristenbsharkey/

Love and Leadership Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/love-and-leadership/id1757968042

12 Improv Exercises That Anyone Can Do on Their Own to Improve Their Leadership Skills: 

https://embldfy.link/bZUT

See Dean’s TedTalk “Why Business Needs Intuition” here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEq9IYvgV7I

Connect with Dean:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgqRK8GC8jBIFYPmECUCMkw

Website: https://www.mfileadership.com/

The Mission Statement E-Newsletter: https://www.mfileadership.com/blog/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deannewlund/

X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/deannewlund

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MissionFacilitators/

Email: dean.newlund@mfileadership.com

Phone: 1-800-926-7370

Show notes by Podcastologist: Hanz Jimuel Alvarez

Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it.