Celebrating Missed Notes

Benjamin Zander is a world-renowned conductor and the current music director of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra. In working with superbly talented musicians, he has developed a curious technique for improving their abilities and triggering their growth as a musicians: he celebrates mistakes. For example, when a musician in his orchestra misses a note, they are to raise their hands in triumph and with pride while the rest of the orchestra pauses to join them in their moment of “celebration.”

At first glance this may seem silly or corny at best, but I think there is some real genius behind this policy. Ben realizes that in order for his already accomplished musicians to continue to grow and improve, they need to play at the edge of their current capabilities. In stretching them beyond their comfort zones, he accepts and even expects that errors will indeed be made as the musicians push themselves into new territory. This technique is not meant to tolerate errors made because of complacency or lack of attention, but to give the artists freedom to fail as they seek to work beyond their limitations and then rewarding them for taking that leap of faith.

In our own lives, it’s important for us to recognize the difference between mistakes being made because of lack of effort and those made in the pursuit of expanding the boundaries of our current abilities. And when they are of the latter variety, we must learn to give ourselves the freedom to celebrate the accomplishment of “missing the note” we may not previously have even dared to attempt.

Comments

Toxic Humility

We have all seen false humility: the guy who tries to hide his arrogance with feigned modesty. It’s usually pretty obvious and always obnoxious. But there is also another variation of false humility out there: toxic humility. This is often displayed in self-deprecating talk and a lack of self-confidence, belittling or undermining one’s own talents and abilities. The danger in this kind of behavior is twofold: it is too often accepted as true humility and like a virus, it spreads doubt and disbelief. To clarify, it is not that the bearer of this toxic humility isn’t honest about his view of himself. That is the very issue: he absolutely believes he has little value or utility. He thinks downplaying his own worth is humility but I disagree. CS Lewis said it best when he wrote, “Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it's thinking about yourself less.” His point being, true humility is not an ever-present raincloud of self-doubt that follows you around. It’s a focus on

Glutton for Punishment

I’ve learned over the years that being comfortable can be a dangerous thing. I try to find paths to discomfort to push me out of my realm of “safety.” However, I have noticed my ability to develop comfort zones amidst discomfort. I’ve found ways to be comfortable in uncomfortable circumstances. I wonder, do I need to be stretched beyond those areas as well? One of the areas in which I have adapted to the discomfort is the gym. I don’t go to the gym to exercise, to get stronger or even to be healthier. It’s grown beyond that. Now, I go to the gym to clear my head by testing my will and resolve. I do it to see how hard I can push my limits and I strive to outwork everyone else there. I may not be the strongest, the fastest or the fittest. I may not lift the most weight or even do the most reps – I can’t control any of those variables – but I can control my effort. So one of my goals for each workout is to unleash more effort than anyone else at the gym. But along with this

Commitment

You know what the problem is with a lot of goals and grand plans? They are mostly fueled by emotion rather than commitment. It is why most New Year’s Resolutions are long forgotten by now and many aspirations quietly fizzle out over time. True commitment is sticking with the effort even – if and especially when – the emotion has diminished or disappeared. Emotion can be a great initiator of action, like kindling on a fire, but it lacks staying power. Commitment is the logs that keep the fire burning long after the kindling is consumed. The butterflies after falling in love, the best intentions of waking up at 4:30am every day to work out after you join a new gym, the excitement of your first day on campus, even the sleep-deprivation induced euphoria of a new baby: all kindling. But it is commitment that keeps you working hard on the marriage twenty-three years after “I do.” It is what causes you to keep going when you do not want to make one more sales call, do one more presentat

Mindset Matters

Search This Blog