The Partially Examined Life Philosophy Podcast PEL Presents PvI#109: Choose Your Own Failure w/ Rich Baker
Jan 10, 2026
Rich Baker, an improv teacher and author of Improv Made Easier, discusses the valuable role of failure in learning and improvisation. He emphasizes the difference between personal and objective failure, and explores how context shapes our responses to humor. The conversation touches on the risks of public performance in the digital age and how modern improv navigates sensitive topics. They even create a comedic scene about stakes and expectations, while considering ‘yes-and’ as a tool for acceptance in creative settings. A fascinating blend of humor and philosophy!
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Failure As Essential Practice
- Failure is necessary for learning because repeated attempts build skill and confidence.
- Rich Baker says improvisers sit on thousands of failed scenes that made later success possible.
Stakes Determine Safe Failure
- Stakes change what counts as acceptable failure; low-risk practice invites more errors.
- Rich compares learning in simulators to real high-stakes jobs like surgery where failure is unacceptable in practice.
Tour Or Resume: A Bandmate's Choice
- Mark recounts his bandmate refusing to tour for a year because he feared a résumé gap.
- That choice ended their musical partnership and shaped divergent career paths.
