Spring Cleaning Your Mindset

As of 11 days ago, it OFFICIALLY springs! After what feels like the longest winter we have experienced, with COVID restrictions on our seasons and new challenges along the way, we have finally made it to the other side. 

Spring always reminds me of new beginnings and fresh starts…maybe that is because I live in the midwest where I can FINALLY dust off my sandals again. There is one thing every band program has in common this time of year: We are gearing up for our new fall seasons! New leadership teams, new show ideas, new staff, and most importantly, a new season to make a lasting impact on your program and students.

When is the last time you took the chance to step back and think about how you are running your programs? Or how your program is being lead? After reading Humanocracy by Gary Hamel and Michele Zanini, I gained a new perspective on how to recharge your thinking and Music Effect Design is ready to help fuel you and your team with new ideas for this upcoming season!

Every year starts fresh, with a new mix of students and parents who you will inspire and grow beside. Fall 2021 is a blank slate eager to be painted. Are you willing to make small changes to find out what will work best with your new season? In the book Humanocracy, it states, “The pace at which any organization evolves is determined in large part by the number of experiments it runs.” This is a great reminder that change is the key factor in growth, not tradition and consistency.

But how do we run these experiments in a band program? Before we explore that in detail, pick one change you want to see in your program. That could be with your staff, students, parents, leadership, etc. BEFORE thinking about restrictions and reality, what are two paths that could help with this situation? While reading the fresh outlooks, refer back to the change you picked and figure out how to implement these ideas into your new season.

Here are two fresh outlooks you can implement right away into your NEW season: 

1. Experimentation

When was the last time you took a risk with your program? The last time that you tried something new? When was the last time that you encouraged your staff members to try something new? What about your students or leadership teams? I can think of so many times that I held back on a decision due to risk…and then watched another program thrive with that choice. I would think “if only….” 

People’s biggest fear in experimentation is failure. This means if you are encouraging new ideas from staff and leadership teams, you must de-risk the personal consequences if something may go wrong.This isn’t to say that goals and laws should be discounted…duh…but the threat of “getting in trouble” if a staff member tries a new teaching technique for a student doesn’t pan out well should be off the table – creating a culture where mistakes will be made if WE are paving the path to success is the only inviting mindset of a human-based program. Experimentation is how we drive towards new insights and better experiences for our students, despite the failure that occurs along the way.

2. Mini-hacks

No, not hacking as in computers. Hacking as in finding new ways to solve problems or approach situations. Encourage your staff and leadership teams to look at situations and find solutions to small problems. Let’s say students are struggling with being ready for rehearsal – a student leader or staff member decides to make a list for the members so it is easier to remember. Calling them hacks and having them “collect” hacks like a competition can re-energize the thinking of change and encourage experimentation.

3. Collecting Input 

Whose input are you gathering before implementing changes into your program? This not only has to do with what you are implementing, but how successful you will be while you implement new changes. Creating buy-in from anyone involved in your program is imperative. Collecting input into your participants can help you provide what they NEED instead of what you think they WANT. Remember, your program is filled with people who are not like you. Reaching to change everyone isn’t the goal…but creating a place where they feel seen and heard is. 

I encourage you to create surveys for your staff, students, and parents with questions that most relate to your program. This will help the participants in your program feel heard (especially if you touch on overarching topics) and encourage a culture of teamwork which is proven to be widely successful in growth. 

In this book, they put it boldly: “you have a choice: moan or mobilize” – what will be your choice?

Be on the lookout for new products from Music Effect Design that are largely influenced by this book and its authors.