Shana Merlin Speaking Topics

• Improv Skills for Work and Life

  What if the secret to thriving in uncertainty wasn’t more control—but better improvisation?

  In a world where plans change, information is incomplete, and the pressure is always on, the most valuable skill you can build is the ability to adapt in real time. In this high-energy, laughter-filled keynote, Shana Merlin of Merlin Works reveals how the tools of improv comedy can transform the way you lead, communicate, and collaborate.

  This isn’t about being funny—it’s about being flexible, resilient, and fully present when it matters most.

  Through interactive exercises and surprising insights, you’ll discover how to:

  • Turn unexpected challenges into opportunities
  • Build trust and connection quickly with anyone
  • Communicate clearly—even without a script
  • Stay calm, creative, and confident under pressure
  • Bring more joy and humanity into your work, even in tough times

  You won’t just learn about improv—you’ll experience it. And you’ll leave with practical tools to handle whatever comes next…with a little more confidence and a lot more fun.

• The Adaptability Advantage: How Improv Prepares Us for What's Next

  The future belongs to people who can adapt.

  In a world of constant change, competing priorities, and unexpected challenges, the ability to think on your feet is no longer a nice-to-have skill—it's essential. The problem? Most of us were taught to seek certainty before taking action. Today's workplace rarely offers that luxury.

  Drawing on over 20 years of experience teaching improvisation to business leaders, educators, healthcare professionals, and teams of all kinds, Shana Merlin reveals how the principles of improv can help anyone become more resilient, collaborative, and confident when the path forward isn't clear.

  This highly interactive keynote blends laughter, audience participation, and practical tools that participants can apply immediately. Attendees learn how to recover quickly from setbacks, embrace change instead of resisting it, communicate more effectively under pressure, and stay creative when circumstances shift.

  More than a lesson in adaptability, this session helps people rediscover a sense of play, possibility, and enjoyment—even during challenging times.

  Participants leave energized, connected, and better equipped to handle whatever comes next.

• From Colleagues to Community: Building Better Teams Through Improv

  Strong teams aren't built through org charts, email threads, or project plans. They're built through relationships.

  Whether your employees work remotely, in person, or somewhere in between, most teams spend far more time focused on tasks than on the human connections that make collaboration possible. Company meetings, retreats, and offsites offer a rare opportunity to bring people together—not just to exchange information, but to strengthen relationships, build trust, and create a shared sense of purpose.

  This highly interactive team-building experience helps colleagues connect, communicate more effectively, and rediscover the joy of working together.

  Using engaging activities from the world of improvisation, participants laugh, play, collaborate, and create together while developing practical workplace skills. Along the way, they learn how to listen more deeply, build on each other's ideas, adapt to unexpected challenges, and create an environment where everyone can contribute.

  Perfect for company-wide meetings, department retreats, conferences, and leadership gatherings, this experience creates meaningful interactions between people who may not normally work together and strengthens existing relationships among those who do.

  More than an icebreaker, this session creates the kind of shared experiences, inside jokes, and positive memories that strengthen culture long after the event ends.

  Participants will:

  • Build authentic connections across teams and departments
  • Strengthen communication and listening skills
  • Practice collaboration in a low-risk, high-fun environment
  • Learn how to support and build on others' ideas
  • Increase trust, flexibility, and adaptability
  • Create shared experiences that reinforce a positive culture

  Participants leave energized, connected, and better equipped to work together.

• The Art of Influence: Navigating Difficult Conversations, Conflict, and Negotiation

  Every day, we need to influence others without relying on authority. We negotiate priorities, resolve disagreements, advocate for our ideas, manage competing interests, and build support for change. Yet many people approach these conversations with anxiety, avoidance, or a win-lose mindset.

  In this engaging and highly interactive session, Shana Merlin draws on the work of Dr. Rick Kirschner in The Art of Change to combine insights from improvisation, communication science, and negotiation strategy to help participants become more effective influencers and communicators.

  Through practical exercises and real-world applications, participants learn how to build trust quickly, reduce resistance, navigate conflict productively, and guide conversations toward mutually beneficial outcomes. Whether you're leading a team, closing a sale, negotiating a raise, managing stakeholders, or handling a difficult conversation, these tools help you communicate with greater confidence and impact.

  Participants will learn how to:

  • Build trust and rapport in challenging conversations
  • Listen for underlying interests, concerns, and motivations
  • Reduce defensiveness and resistance
  • Influence without manipulation or force
  • Navigate conflict while preserving relationships
  • Negotiate outcomes that create value for all parties
  • Communicate with greater presence, confidence, and credibility

  Participants leave with practical frameworks they can immediately apply to their next negotiation, sales conversation, leadership challenge, or interpersonal conflict.

• The Connected Clinician: Communication Skills for Patients and Medical Teams

  Healthcare professionals are asked to make fast decisions, communicate clearly under pressure, and build trust in moments that matter. Yet many of the most challenging clinical situations are not medical—they are communication-based.

  This highly interactive, experiential workshop uses improvisational techniques to strengthen presence, connection, and collaboration across medical teams. Designed for physicians, nurses, administrators, and clinical staff, the program improves both patient communication and interprofessional communication, helping teams work more smoothly, efficiently, and humanely together.

  Through hands-on exercises, instant feedback, and practical application, participants learn how to stay grounded and present with patients, build rapport quickly with diverse individuals, and navigate tense or emotionally charged interactions with greater ease. Equally important, they develop stronger communication habits within medical teams—improving handoffs, reducing misunderstandings, and strengthening collaboration across roles and departments.

  The focus is on real-world communication skills that enhance patient care, improve team dynamics, and support healthier, more connected medical workplaces.

  Participants will learn how to:

  • Stay present and focused in high-pressure clinical settings
  • Build trust and rapport quickly with patients and families
  • Improve clarity and efficiency in both patient and team communication
  • Navigate difficult or emotionally charged conversations
  • Strengthen collaboration across interdisciplinary medical teams
  • Improve handoffs, coordination, and shared understanding among providers
  • Respond flexibly when unexpected situations arise

  Participants leave with practical tools they can immediately apply to improve patient care, reduce communication breakdowns, and increase confidence, clarity, and connection across both patient interactions and team collaboration.

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