You don’t have to be a rock star with a million-dollar album to say, “Music replaced my life. “You would possibly be the leader of an organization and look for a way to overcome an impediment or challenge that has tormented you. , potentially for years.
The key to solving an ongoing leadership challenge might lie in the music you pay attention to. Listening to the right music can change the way you think, help you overcome obstacles, and become a better leader.
Suppose you get frustrated with your team and wonder why they aren’t as motivated or engaged as you are, why they don’t handle consumers the way you’d like, why they can’t delegate completely, or anything else. , you’re probably wondering, “How can I change them?”
But that may not be the right question. What if you asked, “What can I replace in myself?” What if what you want to replace is your internal environment, not your external environment?
That’s the question that The Leader’s Playlist, the first book by Harvard lawyer-turned-CEO educator Susan Drumm, invites leaders to ask.
I had the opportunity to interview Drumm for an episode of Amazing Business Radio. In the interview, she talked about revolutionary tactics that leaders can make more effective. Specifically, he shared a hard and practical tool for turning subconscious perspectives and behaviors that can create poor leadership outcomes. . That tool is music.
According to Drumm, music is “a brain tool for turning unhelpful leadership patterns. “Drawing on his decades of training senior executives, adding billionaire CEOs and high-profile politicians, Drumm knows that when someone suffers as a leader, especially if they experience strong feelings like burnout, frustration, imposter syndrome, etc. , it’s because there’s a looping internal “playlist” that shapes how they understand their situation, not external pressures.
Drumm says, “That playlist of ideas helps keep them stuck. You have some comfortable background music that you couldn’t possibly hear, but it’s there, distracting from your emotional state.
The in-house playlist is rooted in the “wounds” of the formative years. Drumm highlights the not unusual “playlist titles” he finds among the executives and leaders he coaches, adding, among others, the following:
· I’m all alone
· I’m smart enough
· I am trapped and confined
These subconscious messages are deeply ingrained in the leader’s psyche, and it’s challenging for top leaders to simply think about how to get off their playlist.
During my interview, I asked Drumm if gambling music could drastically replace a mood. She temporarily replied, “Yes,” so I told her a short story about a favorite song I pay attention to in the morning when I want a little nudge to get it. Go ahead. The song is Perfect Day by Hoku. Es the upbeat song that sounded like the opening song of Legally Blonde. The lyrics don’t fit the ethics of my painting (“The sun rises/It’s a little after noon/Make me breakfast/Leave the paintings to someone else”), however, the energy, lightness and overall sense make it a wonderful song, at least for me.
Music can replace your mood, clear your mind, and replace your way of thinking over time. Drumm’s eBook outlines a strategy for music to tap into your subconscious. Change how you feel and you will replace your thought patterns. Their goal is to help leaders create a playlist that reflects the life they want to lead, understand how their existing playlists came to be, and realize how the power of music can unlock a leader’s true potential.
So if you’re struggling to lead your team effectively, find an internal playlist that’s playing in the background and then create a literal playlist to redefine those beliefs. As Drumm says: your personal evolution triggers your leadership evolution!
A community. Many voices. Create a free account to share your thoughts.
Our network aims to connect others through open and thoughtful conversations. We need our readers to share their perspectives and exchange ideas and facts in one space.
To do so, please comply with the posting regulations in our site’s terms of use. Below we summarize some of those key regulations. In short, civilians.
Your message will be rejected if we notice that it appears to contain:
User accounts will be blocked if we become aware that users are participating in:
So, how can you be a user?
Thank you for reading our Community Standards. Read the full list of publication regulations discovered in our site’s terms of use.