3. Rehearse For Success

To know what people really think, 
pay regard to what they do, 
rather than what they say. – Rene Descartes

Anxiety is caused 
by a lack of control, 
organization, preparation, 
and action. – David Kekich

Well done is better than well said. – Benjamin Franklin

The value of rehearsing music correctly is an essential practice (pardon the pun). The value of rehearsing music with a focus on excellence builds to and excellent performance! If the choir or orchestra learns something wrong, then it will take 10 times longer to fix it that it would have taken to learn it correctly the first time. One time when Joseph Flummerfelt, resident faculty at Westminster Choir College, was working with my choir in FLorida, one of the sopranos blurted out “we don’t have to work as hard now, it just a rehearsal. We will work harder in the performance.” To which he replied, “We always work hard and give our best, especially during rehearsal. It’s important to form good habits.” His point is applicable to all of our work – in music as well as in corporate life! In the section above I wrote about recruiting the best people for your planning teams like you recruit the best player or singers for music ensembles. Get the best people and create an environment where they are inspired and encouraged to contribute their best. Create the DNA in your organization for excellence!

If you conduct boring, unproductive meetings, then you are rehearsing for boring outcomes and average results. Inspire excellence by planning and conducting effective meetings. Plan the meeting, be prepared, ask others to arrive prepared, send out a list of outcomes (never plan activities or “agenda” – plan outcomes or “deliverables”), and let people use their skills to build the success of your vision. It’s still your vision and you are still the leader, but you now have a team that will magnify the results because it’s now their project as well!

Inspire excellence by modeling excellence. The Transformational Leader sets the pace!