One skill at a time: a rep-based approach to changing improv habits

One skill at a time: a rep-based approach to changing improv habits

From Your Improv Brain by Jen deHaan

March 30, 2026 · 15 min · Episode 45

About this episode

This episode discusses how to change improv habits through focused repetition and understanding neuroplasticity.

You know that thing where you learn a skill in class, you can explain it to someone else, and then you get into a scene and your brain does the old thing anyway? This episode is about why that happens and what to do about it. Your brain runs on pathways, and the ones you've reinforced the most fire first under pressure. Understanding a concept intellectually doesn't change the pathway on its own, which is why a single workshop or class series on a skill often doesn't stick. The good news is those pathways can change. Neuroplasticity, my friend! Drawing on Olympian Eileen Gu's approach to neuroplasticity and metacognition, this episode breaks down how repeated, focused practice on a single skill can start to compete with your old defaults. For neurodivergent brains, this is both encouraging (your current defaults aren't necessarily permanent) and sometimes frustrating (executive function challenges can make sustained practice harder to maintain). The exercise this week is designed to give you a high volume of reps on one specific habit, with a solo modification you can adapt to conversations in your everyday life. KEY TAKEAWAYS: Your first instinct in a scene is whatever brain…

People in this episode

Host: Jen deHaan

Topics covered

  • neuroplasticity
  • improv skills
  • repetition
  • executive function
  • metacognition

Keywords

  • improv
  • neuroplasticity
  • repetition
  • executive function
  • metacognition
  • skill learning
  • brain pathways

More episodes of Your Improv Brain

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Your Improv Brain podcast page.