Do you allow yourself to enjoy your work? Many people I see get bogged down in the daily grind, barely keeping their heads above water. They seem far from happy. Perhaps the last thing on their minds is to take the time to appreciate what is going on around them; noting the valuable contribution they and others are making and trying to enjoy the overall experience.

It may take a leap of faith to do this, or permission from your boss, but when this approach is adopted in the music world the performance improves.

I was rehearsing Bruckner’s 4th Symphony recently. In the slow movement, the strings play challenging chords and chromatic melodies. It is difficult to tune the notes and harmonies accurately whilst maintaining the rich tone required. Noting the strings were getting too stuck in the detail, the conductor gave them permission to take more time and enjoy the music they were making. As they lifted themselves from the complexities of the notes, everything started to come into perspective. They relaxed and the music came alive.

Have you ever heard your leader in the business world ask this?  To take the time and appreciate what else is going on around you. I haven’t heard it too often.

Life has to be better if we try and enjoy the process of what we do – to recognise the bigger picture around us and enjoy the ride.  By balancing what we do with those around us, greater efficiencies occur, the process is more enjoyable, the work more collaborative.  The Bruckner certainly sounded a lot better for it.

I met a guy recently who told me he didn’t have a musical bone in his body. This got me thinking – what are musical bones?

• According to some they were the world’s first musical instrument. Bones from birds (the flying variety) were fashioned into primitive flutes.
• To others they were the earliest forms of the horn or trumpet which were made from stags’ horns, conchs & shells.
• Alternatively, our inner ears, where sound waves are turned into nerve impulses, are encased in the temporal bone which is the hardest bone in the body. Perhaps this is the musical bone.
• …Musical Bones is an album by the Upsetters.

But what did this guy really mean?  I imagine he was talking about his own perceived musicality; he didn’t think he was musical; that he didn’t have a musical ear. Yet I bet you he could recognise the mood of his wife when she phoned him up, just by the tone of her voice. He could tell the difference between the engine note of a Ferrari and an Aston Martin (yes he was a banker!). He would be able to tell you which was Madonna and which was Kylie on the radio. He certainly can hear.

I don’t buy it when people say they are not musical. It is one of those generalised limiting statements which often come from some insecurity or the other. Perhaps he was told when he was a kid he couldn’t sing, or was tone deaf – and that has stayed with him ever since. This sweeping statement has limited him from a world of music, from the freedom it brings, from the understanding and growth we can individually derive from it.

Music is everywhere and it impacts everyone. Deeply. We just don’t realise it. Imagine the movie Starwars with no sound track. Imagine a soccer match with no singing. Imagine an Abercrombie & Fitch store with no beats. Imagine a world not touched by Pavarotti singing Nessun Dorma.

If musical bones are a “musical ear” then the guy I met does have a musical bone in his body – in fact everyone does. It’s just he’s not been shown it. But when he is, he will be released into a whole new realm of musical appreciation and self-understanding. His life will be better for it.

A friend of mine has recently gone to Haiti in a nursing capacity to help the victims of the recent earth quake. The conditions were war-zone-like – a make-shift hospital had been set up inside a large tent alongside the runway at Port-au-Prince. The patients, many suffering from horrible injuries, were lined up in long rows inside the hot and humid tent. The nurses were required to work 13 hour shifts, in what was essentially organised chaos.

My friend told me the assault on the senses was incredible – the noise of aircraft continually taking off and landing right next to the tent; the heat; the smell; the intensity and the responsibility of the work; the long shifts with little respite.

But then she remembered she had taken a small guitar with her. In the evenings she found solace in playing music to her co-workers and the patients. The music brought hope and joy to those suffering considerably. It diluted the intensity and lifted them, bringing restoration ahead of another long day.

A tale of two concerts and two leadership styles.

Over the last week I have witnessed first hand two conducting and leadership styles, that speak a simple message which is so relevant to leadership in the workplace.

The first was a performance of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, possibly the hardest piece for a conductor to lead and an orchestra to play. It was tremendously exciting and a very good performance. As the applause broke out, the conductor honoured each individual soloist in the orchestra (e.g. the 1st bassoon) by asking them to stand. And then he asked each section to stand. Only when the whole orchestra was standing did he turn around and take his bow. As we packed away, he made the point to come round to each player and thank them for their contribution – even though he must have been shattered at the enormity of the effort to conduct the work.

Contrast to this weekend – the concert conducted by the “choral” conductor referenced in my last blog post. The audience enjoyed the performance; the choir, soloists and orchestra did well; we got through the hairy moments by basically ignoring the conductor and playing as one large ensemble.

He took his bow. Then he encouraged the vocal soloists to take theirs. The choir were already standing up. He did 2 curtain calls. The orchestra was not once asked to stand, and then he left – not to be seen again.

He may have simply forgotten to recognise the orchestra in the applause. But that he simply vanished with no “thank you” back stage was simply rude and one of the most de-motivating examples of musical leadership I have seen.  A simple thank you goes a long long way.

Make sure you give your people a real thank you today for their contribution.

Have you ever been in the situation where a new boss comes in who just doesn’t have a clue? I witnessed it this week in an orchestra rehearsal.

The conductor was a “choral” conductor who knew seemed to know very little about conducting let alone rehearsing an orchestra. We were “rehearsing” Rossini’s Stabat Mater ahead of a concert with his choir.

His beating pattern was all over the place; he let obvious errors go by.  The players whispered and muttered under their breaths; gave each other knowing glances – they were not happy bunnies.  Some players suggested he went quicker. He responded by saying it wasn’t a democracy. And then he suggested the woodwind had slowed him down; they quipped back they were following his tempo. Ouch. In the coffee break everyone was giving an opinion on how to conduct a eight beat rhythm.

I’ve never seen anything like it! It was embarrassing.

But how often do you see this in the workplace? New boss comes in with the “boss’s” hat on. Acts the part but has little impact. Metaphorically they wave their arms around but don’t have a clue.

They may have a different background; maybe from a different industry; or a different company with different ways of doing things. Possibly a different skill set. And I have no problem with that – it should be encouraged to diversify and shake things up. The trick is to balance the given authority of the role, with winning the people you lead. Avoid bashing. Respect the team you’re given. Don’t arm-wave and pretend you know what you’re doing. Just be up-front and open about what you can do and what is more challenging for you.

The conductor could have won us by simply saying: I am passionate about this piece of music and excited about the concert. I am not used to conducting orchestras, so please let me know if there is anything I can do to make your lives easier.

In an open forum speaking event in a corporate conference exhibition hall recently, I played a group of delegates (all strangers to me and to each other) the song Beautiful by James Blunt. I asked them to reflect on how it made them feel.

A youngish lady puts her hand up and says “it made me reflect on a time when my life was once beautiful”.

It never ceases to amaze me what profound things people will say in response to music.

I played golf with Tiger Woods a few weeks ago.

…actually I didn’t, but I did have the opportunity one evening to play my french horn in one of the leading orchestras in the UK, alongside their horn section. This, I tell my friends, is a bit like going for a round of golf with Tiger Woods.

A few things struck me. They played really loudly (and quietly). Their confidence and rock solid ability inspired my confidence. They really knew the music inside out. They had strong opinions on what they thought of the conductor, who as a guest conductor, seemingly had not won the hearts and minds of the players (well the horn players at least).  They bantered with the other sections (standard practise in an orchestra!). They were really nice blokes and had some great stories. They were incredibly encouraging and supportive and empowered me to lead the desk.

It reminded me of some great leadership examples from business – the time when as a graduate entrant I was given time to share my views to board level; the various mentors I have worked with; when the CEO personally called me to provide support to an initiative I was working on; the opportunity to sit at the board table and observe; the time when during a high-level meeting to discuss strategy, the MD asked me to propose my ideas (I was the most junior), and they were universally accepted; and how the greatest leaders have that ability to make you (personally) feel important.

It reminded me to make time to hang out with the guys you look up to and always be open to learn; and similarly make time to support and empower those who may be aspiring to be like you.

I came across this video of Obama introducing a night of music from the Civil Rights movement at the White House. He speaks about the music (freedom songs) providing a “soundtrack to the movement” which “gave strength” and that the movement was “sustained by music”.  Interestingly, Dr King when looking to mobilise communities, focused on those who were disciplined enough to sing freedom songs.

It is easy to sing when you’re happy, when times are good. Just listen to the football crowd when their team is doing well. But it is hard to sing when times are tough, when people are threatened. But it is at these times when the power of song is at its most potent. It feeds our spirits and provides hope.

Where are the songs today? In the mist of economic turmoil and uncertainty, do you hear the music, do you hear the cry of the people?  Where are the freedom songs?

Perhaps we need to find our voices again?

Obama speaking on how music inspired the Civil Rights Movement

Check out this quote from Einstein:

“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.”

Do we give ourselves time to imagine? To dream? Do we know how to? And what new opportunities and value creating schemes are in our reach when we dare to do so?

I love this story – it almost reduced me to tears first time I read it. Whilst it is was an experiment to explore peoples’ taste, perceptions and priorities in a social context, for me there is a strong leadership parallel here. As leaders do we recognise our environment around us – do we understand, appreciate and value it? Do we look at people and make rapid assumptions? How much more is out there, in our teams that we just don’t realise…what are we not grasping?

The story appeared in the Washington Post sometime in 2007. I have summarised it.

A busker on a cold winter’s morning sets up his spot in a Metro Station in Washington DC. He plays six Bach sonatas for 60 minutes. 2,000 people walk through, probably commuting to work. 3 minutes into the performance, a middle aged man notices a musician playing. He pauses a few seconds, then hurries on.

7 minutes into the performance the busker receives his first dollar – thrown into his hat, by a woman who doesn’t stop.

Then a young guy stops and listens. Realises the time and moves on.

A while later, a young child stops, but his mother is in a hurry and drags him on.  He stops again, but the mother really is in a  rush and pulls the child along – the child keeps looking back. This happens several times with other children and parents – without fail the parents walk on even though the kids are clearly captivated.

The busker played for 3/4 hour without stopping. Six people specifically stopped and listened, and 20 people gave some cash, but they continued walking. He earned $32.

He completed his performance after an hour. The normal hustle and bustle of the metro took over. There was no recognition, no thank you, no applause.

The violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the finest violin players on the planet.

The pieces he played were incredibly ornate and he played them masterfully. His instrument was worth about $3m. He had performed a concert just days before selling out the venue at an average of $100 per seat.

What are we missing?  What are we not seeing or hearing because we are wrapped up in our processes, routines, and our own worlds?  Try walking past a busker now?!

Click here to hear the performance: Joshua plays Bach in the DC Metro