3 Strategies for Transforming Your Program Through Intentional Connections

Transforming a music program requires program-wide reflection at least once a year and perhaps each semester to ask ourselves: where are we?; where do we want to be?; and how will we get there? about every aspect of the program.

 In the Strategic Booster Academy online training, we take a deep dive into the entire Reflect , Imagine, and Strategize framework. My quick win for today deals with three things that I've found dramatically transform programs. Education is filled with acronyms, right? Like many artists, I struggle with my self-esteem.  So I decided I'd give this idea its own acronym. I call it the NNIT rule. My wife always says it's way cooler if you say something really fast and confident with a confident inflection as though everybody in the room knows what you're talking about.  Thus, NNIT. But what does it represent?

New skills + New language + Intentional follow-up = Transformed community

 New skills.

Do you want to transform some element of your program or booster club?

Now is a perfect time to act. First, let us consider “new skills” for emotionally healthy leaders.

In my reflection, I believed we would benefit if I could find new ways to offer opportunities for students and adults to have a voice and share their thoughts in a safe way? Two apps I've found helpful are Padlet and Storm Boards. By learning some new tech skills we can provide a great opportunity for all to have a voice to share their insights for the benefit of the group. Additionally, they allow for easy exporting for sharing to aid in future strategizing. Another new skill might be to utilize a management app like the BAND App to increase communication effectiveness where all communications and notifications live in one place. BAND also allows the organization to have an official digital cloud storage archive owned by the organization instead of being depended upon individual members google drive folders. If we are functioning as a modern day non-profit small business we can transform our work with new skills.

 New language.

For emotionally healthy leaders, Pathways for Success authored by Tim Lautzenheiser and Scott Rush is a wonderful resource. They list 15 powerful statements for leaders. One that resonates with our topic today is one that I've heard echoed throughout my entire life since I was a little boy.  It's the one that says, “it's always better to be kind than right.” You know, in music programs, that can be kind of difficult because we work in a people-oriented business where peers interact with each other constantly, whether it's teenagers or adults. One way to transform our program is to consider our language to ensure we are always being kind in our communication.

 Our communications typically evolve around some kind of critique and analysis on a multitude of topics. I believe my students (and parents), for the most part, are bright committed individuals who want to do the right thing. Sometimes, they just need more information about how to do what they do. As a music teacher, I'm constantly assessing - fix this, fix that, do this, do this, it's easy to get into a pattern of kind of a verbal tick system without even realizing it, right?  By the time we end up at the end of a rehearsal, we may have spent a large amount of our time in negative verbiage without really realizing it, and worse, often we only highlight the problem without giving them information about how to do it or correct it.  Brene Brown says, “Clear is kind. Unclear is unkind.” Therefore, as we teach and communicate with our boosters, we need to be clear and provide information that elevates knowledge, insight, and performance. Furthermore, the words we choose to use should be framed in a positive exchange focusing on how one might progress. Taylor Watts, contributor in Crafting Culture: The Music Teacher Leader suggests teachers avoid the negative contexts of error detection by identifying positive elements in a student’s performance and then, suggest specifics in how they can take their efforts to the “next level” like they might employ new strategies for advancing to the next level in a video game. I think that strategy would be wise to use in guiding adults serving in our programs as well.

 New Language for Intentional Follow Up.

Whenever two people communicate with each other, there's always the opportunity for misunderstanding or hurt feelings.  I discovered 2 simple tools or models that can greatly help us have mature, healthy, well-run classrooms and booster club meetings.  In Peter Scazzero’s book, the Emotionally Healthy Leader, he notes using the phrase “I'm puzzled” in challenging situations to circumvent misunderstandings.  Being puzzled enables us to avoid assumptions, or any negative interpretations. For instance, if a special projects team member has a history of making purchases without advanced approval, instead of saying, “you've got to let us know before you make that purchase next time.”  Maybe you could say, “you know, I'm puzzled about why you didn't get prior approval before buying that purchase.” Or, if a team member is constantly late and submitting key information for your weekly email blast or a student is not turning in homework in time, instead of saying, “you've got to get your stuff turned in.”

 You might counter it with, “you know, I'm puzzled why you're having challenges meeting the Monday at noon deadline for our email blast” or “I'm puzzled why you're having challenges getting your videotape assignment submitted on time each week.” Scazzero says, those kinds of statements allow us a chance to pause before we rush to judgment.  

Moreover, when making a complaint about something in the organization or how things are running in a rehearsal, Scazzero advises when someone has a critique it's always best to be followed by a recommendation. The concern begins with the words “I notice”, and the recommendation is launched with the phrase “I prefer.” For example, a team member sends another team member the names of the participants in their fruit sale one hour before the unloading of the fruit truck… causing a lot of uneasiness for the other committee members.

 As a healthy leader, consider encouraging this type of language:

 I noticed that you sent me the names one hour before the truck arrived. I really appreciate that.

I'd prefer in the future if you could send me those a day ahead so that I can prepare the list in an Excel document and share that with our team.

 Or if a key team member is always late to the project team booster meeting or students are late to sectionals, thereby wasting precious time, you could say:

You know, I noticed you're arriving late for our meetings. I'd prefer that you let us know.

Just send me a quick text or email so we can rearrange our agenda, so we don't waste time with everybody else who's able to be here.

 I found that this strategy works well with our students in rehearsal too:

 You know, I've noticed measure 24 that the notes seemed a little crushed together.

 I prefer that you play all those 4 16th notes evenly so that we can all arrive on beat 3 precisely at the same time.

 Scazzero also states it's a simple phrase but saying “I notice” and “I prefer” helps our teams relate differently. That little phrase allows us to be more kind and more effective.

When there's people involved, there's going to be annoyances and irritations.  But these two tools, “I notice” and “I prefer” as well as the “I'm puzzled” can help you create a positive organizational help by providing leadership with a gentle accountability and kindness.

 Summary.

Transformation is empowered as we explore new skills and technology to help give our students and parents voice and choice in a safe way. We can utilize new language with employing phrases like “I'm puzzled”, “I notice”, and “I prefer”. If we want to make sure that our team is more open to our kind redirection, we should begin with acknowledging efforts that we appreciate and offer praise. Praise is free. It doesn't cost a thing. Then, to be an emotionally healthy leader, you're going to be intentional in offering feedback either in the moment or post event that always includes a recommendation or solution through the implementation of our new language, “I notice” and “I prefer” strategies.

I hope these ideas can help you transform your program through intentional communication and strong connections where all have a voice and ownership in the journey.

Resource:

Scazzero, P. (2015). The emotionally healthy leader: How transforming your inner life will deeply transform your church, team, and the world. Zondervan.

Vandewalker, D. W. (2016). Boosters to the Rescue.