“Life is a lot like jazz…”

“Life is a lot like Jazz… it’s best when you improvise.”

-George Gershwin, American composer and pianist

Photo from Flickr by Renzo Ferrante

Photo from Flickr by Renzo Ferrante

As I drive to and from work each day, I listen to contemporary jazz on Sirius/XM radio. Over the years I have also attended numerous concerts by many of my favorite performers.

Quite often the songs and tunes with which I am familiar sound a bit different from those I hear on the radio. Perhaps the reason for the variations is the fact that “real jazz” played in “real life” must be an act of improvisation. Many famous performers utilize local musical talent, who need to adapt to the other’s style with little rehearsal, unlike the weeks and months it can take in the studio to record and get it right.

EXERCISE:

Where would your professional or personal life benefit most by being more flexible, and improvising with those around you to play beautiful music together?

“In the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too) those who learn to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed.”

“In the long history of humankind (and animal kind, too) those who learn to collaborate and improvise most effectively have prevailed.”

– Charles Darwin, author of On the Origin of Species

542Image from Flickr by hassanrafeek.

A few weeks ago, I was watching a show about animal intelligence on public television. Highlighted on one of those episodes was the bottle-nosed dolphin. Among their various demonstrations of intelligence was a unique form of innovative and collaborative fishing where one dolphin corrals the fish in a turbulent circle of mud and bubbles, causing the fish to jump into the waiting mouths of the other dolphins.

You can see the clip from the episode here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzfqPQm-ThU

Exercise:

How and where can you maximize your innovative and collaborative efforts to more effectively prevail and achieve your professional and personal goals?

Discuss this exercise with your friends, colleagues, family members, and coaches to take advantage of Darwin’s observation.