At 7:51 am on January 12, 2007, a man wearing a baseball cap, T-shirt and faded jeans entered L’Enfant Plaza in Washington D.C. amid the morning rush of commuters and quietly removed his violin from its case. The violin was the rare Gibson ex-Huberman handcrafted in 1713 by Antonio Stradivari during the Italian master’s “golden period,” when his technique had been refined to its highest levels. After tossing some seed money into the case to encourage those passing by, the man lifted the violin to his chin and began to play the beautiful “Chaconne” from Johann Sebastian Bach’s Partita Number 2 in D Minor, considered one of the most difficult pieces to master.

On this particular morning, however, the violinist was not your ordinary street musician. It was Joshua Bell, thought by many to be one of the finest violinists in the world.

Of the nearly 1100 commuters that passed Bell that morning only seven stopped to listen and only twenty-seven gave money. Just three days earlier, Bell had played to a sold-out crowd at Boston’s Symphony Hall where mediocre seats cost $100. Bell usually earns around $1000 per minute, but his earnings that morning amounted to a little over $32.

“It was a strange feeling,” Bell said, “that people were actually, ah . . . ignoring me.”

Context is everything.

Bell’s performance was arranged by The Washington Post as an experiment in context, perception and priorities as well as an assessment of public taste. They wanted to answer the question, “In a banal setting at an inconvenient time, would beauty transcend?”

This is the same question we face every time we implement change. And the answer is a resounding “No!” If change is not framed in the right context then the organization will never see the beauty of the solution.

Researchers Achilles Armenakis, Jeremy Bernerth, Jennifer Pitts and Jack Walker identified five important precursors that determine the degree to which change recipients accept the context required for successful organization change. Assessment of these factors can help to gauge the degree of buy-in and determine the specific gaps in contextual understanding that may impact the success of your initiatives. In addition, these factors can serve as basis for planning and executing actions to enhance the understanding of change recipients.

As you manage your change efforts ask whether your stakeholders believe the following factors to be true:

• Discrepancy. The belief that a change is needed. The belief there is a significant gap between the current state of the organization and what it should be.
• Appropriateness. The belief that a specific change designed to address a discrepancy is the correct one for the situation.
• Efficacy. The belief that the change recipient and the organization can successfully implement a change.
• Leader Support. The belief that the formal leaders (vertical change agents) and opinion leaders (horizontal change agents) in an organization are committed to the success of the change and that it will not be another passing fad.
• Valence. The belief that the change is beneficial to the change recipient.

Every time I hear Tom Chaplin’s delicate and vulnerable delivery of Tim Rice-Oxley’s lyrics, I imagine an executive choosing this song as the script for their change announcement.   The balance between an urgent necessity and a confusing transition strikes a note of truth that if only spoken more frequently would show an incredible regard for the feelings of employees.  An understanding of that depth creates the trust and emotional connection needed to get others engaged, collaboratively, in building the future.

So little time
Try to understand that I’m
Trying to make a move just to stay in the game
I try to stay awake and remember my name
But everybody’s changing
And I don’t feel the same.

Happy Monday!  I thought I would start the week with something fun.  It’s an innovative video from OK Go, an alternative rock band with a reputation for making catchy, viral videos.  The band’s video for “Here It Goes Again” won a Grammy Award for “Best Short-Form Music Video” in 2007, and features the band members dancing around on treadmills.  This song, “This Too Shall Pass,” captures a combination of emotion that should seem familiar to any change manager:  resigned to the inevitable, reluctantly optimistic, resistant (this too shall pass) and focused on moving forward.  Enjoy . . .

You know you can’t keep lettin’ it get you down
And you can’t keep draggin’ that dead weight around.
If there ain’t all that much to lug around,
Better run like hell when you hit the ground.

When the morning comes.
When the morning comes.

You can’t stop these kids from dancin’.
Why would you want to?
Especially when you’re already gettin’ yours.
‘Cause if your mind don’t move and your knees don’t bend,
well don’t go blamin’ the kids again.

When the morning comes.
When the morning comes.

Let it go, this too shall pass.

Listening is an essential ingredient for innovation.

Eric Lewis listens to the world differently than the rest of us, and as a result, is creating the next evolution of jazz.  I had the joy of seeing him a number of years ago–before the hair–when he was playing with Wynton Marsalis.  Then, he was electric.  Now, he is unleashed!  His version of Evanescence’s “Going Under” is inspired.  He captures the raw energy of alternative rock, the spirit of classical jazz, and a plays with a passion that is transcendent.

Innovators, like all masterful change artists, understand the essence of things.  And that’s a level of listening that goes beyond just hearing.  Innovators get under the skin of things, not to control them, but to appreciate them and to empathize.  It’s that deep understanding, when combined with the same depth of perception in other areas, that opens up their ability to synthesize, make connections, morph and discover new possibilities.

In a panel at Wharton’s 125th anniversary celebration, C. Robert Henrikson, chairman and CEO of global insurer MetLife, said, “All parts of the organization must have a sense of the customers’ business to anticipate their needs and reach out with innovative ideas.”   In the same panel discussion, New York City developer Jeffrey Katz, CEO of Sherwood Equities, a major investor in Times Square, said business leaders must remain open to what comes their way in order to capitalize on opportunities.

Having a sense of; being open; empathizing.  That’s about listening.  Creating an innovation culture depends upon it.

After reading yesterday’s post, my good friend, Jerry D’Ascoli, sent me the above video set to Bowie’s original.  It’s from Hugh Atkin and I couldn’t resist sharing it with you.  Side-splitting cynicism aside, the video makes you realize the difficulty moving from talking about change to actually creating change, especially in the province of the political.  Hillary is right:  What we need is someone who can deliver change.  And that’s about more than just a good idea.  Happy weekend!

I’ve always loved David Bowie’s song “Changes” and its take that change is uncertain, sometimes regretful, but ultimately an inevitable part of growth.  But when I heard Seu Jorge’s interpretation, recorded for The Life Aquatic, I knew I’d found my favorite version.  In part, I’m a sucker for Brazilian music, and I was instantly taken by the rhythms and the alluring sound of Portuguese.  But now that I’ve seen the translation, I’m even more certain.  Jorge sees change as a positive, if not uplifting, step toward freedom and his destiny.  He suggests that change is not about turning to “face the strain,” as Bowie says.  Instead, change is the “train” we must board to take us to a destination that is “sublime.”  Poetry!

I’m not one to feel sorry about how things have passed
Time to leave, my time is up
Lots to still discover
Really sorry but gotta go
I’m on my way because nothing is left for me here
The show has ended
And don’t feel hurt because my time has come
That’s just the way I am

Changes… here comes my train
comes my train
I’m on my way and I’ll be ok
Changes… here comes my train
comes my train
I know it’s the right time and I’ll be alright
Moving forward, never looking back

It’s really no big deal; I’ll go have some fun
As much as life lets me
Time to wander; meet some good people if I need, give a hand
I see freedom on the horizon
You don’t really get it
New York, Ipanema and Hong Kong
That’s the wave I’m on

Changes… here comes my train
comes my train
I’m on my way and I’ll be ok
Changes… here comes my train
comes my train
I know it’s the right time and I’ll be alright
Moving forward, never looking back

I feel free, sublime
People here and there
The blue seas and sky

Changes… here comes my train
comes my train
I’m on my way and I’ll be ok
Changes… here comes my train
comes my train
I know it’s the right time and I’ll be alright
Moving forward, never looking back

Sometimes the most obvious solution is the most effective one — and the one least considered.

It doesn’t matter whether the relationship is romantic or professional.  It doesn’t matter whether there is conflict or consensus.  It’s not the persuading, cajoling, arguing or trying to make a point that’s going to create a breakthrough.  Instead, the key to forming effective, lasting relationships is simply to listen.