We recently connected with Lindsay Audette and have shared our conversation below.

Lindsay, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

About 10 years ago, my business partner and I were about to graduate from the Second City Hollywood Conservatory Program. We had bonded with each other over our shared love of laughter and once our classes and performances had ended we both asked ourselves what else we could do with our brand new skills? Both of us agreed that while we loved performing, but there was something missing for us as we continued to do show after show. We wanted to share these amazing tools we had learned. It became very obvious to us that our knowledge and passions could really help people, and that’s what we were going to do! I think that’s the dream alot of people have, to find something to do that they love to do that is also good for the world. I look back on the reasons that I decided to take my first improvisation class; I wanted to be more confident, more able to roll with the punches, and generally to present myself in the best light possible. Improv did this for me and SO MUCH MORE. So I thought, if it could do this for me – then why not everyone? Since then, it has been very important to me to give people access to the skills that helped me.

At the time, I was working for a non-profit for women lawyers in Los Angeles and several of the lawyers had seen our shows. One day, the organization asked me if I could share some of the things I had learned from my comedy training with them. I asked Maureen to join me and we created our first Improv for Lawyers Workshop! It was a BLAST and everyone learned a ton, but the biggest takeaway for us was what a huge impact just a bit of basic improvisation could have on people. The change we saw in people that night, even in such a short time, was incredible and we knew we had something special.

We began with Improv for Lawyers and then went on to do Improv for Business, Executive Coaching, Team Building Workshops, and so much more. About a year after we began doing our workshops, we ended up doing an improv group for a local addiction treatment center, which is where our Improv for Recovery and Improv for Mental Health was born. It has been such a gift for us to be able to help people going through all kinds of struggles learn to use laughter to heal. We now have a team of 25 wonderful people facilitating groups and workshops with us and sharing the laughter all around the country!

Lindsay, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

AdLib LA began seven years ago with improvisation-based workshops for businesses, professionals, and teams as well as individual coaching. We customize each workshop to fit the needs of the client, ranging from communication training to team building – all using the basic tools of improvisation and FUN! Our workshops help clients to be the best versions of themselves as well as connecting well with others. Once we were established in that sphere, we moved into the Mental Health world by doing weekly improvisation groups at several local substance use disorder and mental health facilities. Over the last few years, we have expanded in the mental health field and have begun to offer other creative modalities alongside our improv programs. We currently do things like creative writing, and narrative music groups with our clients as well. We love to help clients find creative ways to express themselves and connect with others.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

We have grown a good deal over the years, and alot of that is due to word of mouth. I believe this is the absolute best marketing there is. I think that a solid and unique service will get you in the door, but who you are as a person and your work ethic will keep you there. I have always put a good amount of time and energy into making sure that our clients are always getting the very best from us and are never disappointed. Whether it’s communication, invoicing, showing up on time, being a team player – all of these things come into play when a client is thinking of who they can recommend to a friend.

Maintaining your relationships with clients is also very important. We have learned that if you stay loyal to a client, you get to grow with them. They grow, you grow – everyone wins! Pay it forward, help someone out, etc…it will all come back to you.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

Leading and managing my team is actually my favorite part of the job! I take huge pride in making sure that every team member’s needs are being met and that they are happy and fulfilled. Working in mental health can be challenging, so I make a point to make sure our team is able to take “mental health days” when they need to and that we always have an open line of communication regarding any challenges or hiccups they may encounter. I think it’s very important that your team knows that management is on their side, has their back, and is there for them no matter what. We try to do team building activities often, so that everyone can connect and have fun together. I think that prioritizing fun and connection helps work feel less “worky”. We have monthly trainings via zoom to make sure everyone is up to date on new things and more importantly to give everyone a chance to talk about anything they need to – never underestimate the power of letting someone talk. Communication is key!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.adlibla.com
• Instagram: adlibla
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTc4E_ItHLc