The Mastering Chaos approach employs music improvisation methodology as a very effective lens to examine team building issues and can be especially useful when things might be getting a little problematic.
Group music free improvisation might seem a complete mystery to many as to how anything good can emerge from the apparent chaos. But, perhaps somewhat surprisingly, it does. Below the surface material emerges into the foreground. Other musicians respond and gravitate towards the idea to form a dialogue. There are ways which members of the group respond which will not be obvious to the unpractised ear. However what goes on is transferrable beyond the musical boundaries. Knowing what happens in the musical improvisation can assist your team in working more creatively and effectively and show you ways of being much more flexible with your own leadership skills.
To many reading this for the first time this may seem astonishing. It is often said that improvisation in the business world is something we do only when things go wrong, when things aren't working out, or maybe when we need to ‘chill out’ on a company incentive. I would like to examine the possibility that in the serious matter of ‘doing business’ we improvise more than we know or would care to admit. More than this, that when we are planning, organising and processing, that improvising (or making it up as we go along) is not just a separate thing, but is thoroughly laced within the business activity. My contention therefore is that, as organising entities, our function in business may be significantly more improvisational than is generally recognised and rather less deliberate than is often portrayed. I hope to show that business development and business leadership in particular have much to gain from an understanding of the art of improvisation. ... ... more
