How Leadership Is Like Jazz

A perfect autumn afternoon at the top of a skyscraper in New York City. The sun had lowered in the sky highlighting the windows of the Chrysler building as the sounds of jazz music began to weave through the room. I had just finished a full day at a conference focused on the future of work and was networking with new colleagues when I heard the strands flow through the cocktail hour.

As we made our way over to the music, we discovered a jazz quintet playing. They were good. New York City jazz good, and being a lover of jazz music, I was in my glory. They played a few tunes and then one of the members turned to the audience, welcomed us in, and with a smile on his face posed the question, “Can anyone tell me who the leader in this ensemble is?” We all looked at each other, and a few replied they thought he was. He nodded and then asked, “Can anyone guess how many hours we spend practicing?” The responses were more audible echoing the general theme – a lot. They were so good. He nodded again, and then asked, “Can anyone tell me how leadership is like jazz?” Again, some mumbled replies and guesses.

At this point he introduced himself as the head of the organizational development department at Columbia and this was one of the school’s jazz ensembles. He went on to say there was no leader of the group and that they never practiced. “But how are you all so good?” someone asked. “We pay attention” was his reply.

He broke down what we were not paying attention to. First, everyone in the ensemble was a skilled musician, albeit varying levels. But they all brought their unique talent. They also all loved what they did and were invited in to do it.

They paid attention. To everything. They listened to ensure the notes supported each other. They watched to see if anyone wanted to ‘step in’ and dig deep into their instrument for a while. They watch to see is someone want to take a step in, the rest would hold back, giving the musician space to play. They listen to hear if anyone is getting lost or offbeat and they all worked collectively to gently support them, help them find the rhythm or give them space to ad lib. They gave visual cues of appreciation when someone accomplished something, giving them recognition.

Suddenly it seemed so obvious, but in fact had been so subtle. So graceful. We asked what happened when someone made a mistake – how did they handle it. The gentleman laughed and said, “That last set had at least five good mistakes in it, but we were paying attention and found a way through it together. We recognize a challenge and then work with each other to adjust and make it work.” It was all brilliantly simple, and yet hard. It takes work. It takes talent. And it takes the time to pay attention. But in the end, it’s beautiful. Just as great leadership should be.

There is a book written by Frank Barrett, ‘Say Yes to The Mess. Surprising Leadership Lessons from Jazz’. I highly recommend it!

In The Moment