Who are you jamming with?
When you think of a jam session you likely envision a group of musicians together playing their instruments, talking and making impromptu music. Musicians love it because they get to bring their talent to the collective in the creation of something amazing. Most of the best songs in the world were born of jam sessions.
I jam once a month with a group of leaders. My friend Tony used to host these sessions and I picked up where he left off sending a zoom invite to a few colleagues. Though, instead of musical instruments and singing voices, we bring our leadership experience and education. Our lyrics are the stories we share with the group. Without fail, each session inspires us and gets us thinking deeper about our own professions leading, coaching and teaching.
There is no leader in the group, no rigid agenda, just a collective of selfless, vulnerable people seeking inspiration and growth. We've tackled topics such as psychological safety in organizations, the relentless pace of operations leaders face, challenging yet supportive workplaces, and a variety of other leadership topics. The group consists of military and nonmilitary leaders, Americans and British, practitioners and academics. In between sessions there is often email sharing of ideas, presentations, and book captions.
Who are you jamming with? What is your profession or a topic which is near and dear to your heart? You ought to form a peer group of like-minded people who are eager to contribute and learn from each other. It is especially important if they are from different parts of the country or the world and from different companies. What they experience doing something similar to you can inform how you operate in your own profession. Most of us use the ideas and concepts of others in our daily work lives. Jam sessions can be wonderful forums to feed that need.
Select a small group and send a Zoom invite. Create some value for yourself and for others. Let me know when and where you are going to jam. I'll bring my leadership 'instruments' and join in! Better yet, contact me today and we will establish another jam group.
Have an impactful and fulfilling week. Let's jam!
Make it Personal!
Rob
Rob Campbell