Am sure many of you like to travel. I personally admit I am an avid traveler. I love to travel. But, why do we travel? Why do we visit faraway countries, taste different, delicious food, enjoy beautiful beaches or lovely, captivating landscapes that are so different than the ones we find in our own country? Why do we engage in learning other cultures, learn a few foreign words to get around more easily and are often inspired to adopt the clothing style of that particular culture? We might all explain this in our own way, but one thing traveling does, is that it takes us to places we’ve never been before, opening our minds to new ideas, new sensations, new experiences. We return richer from travel, wealthier in many aspects. Probably you’ve never thought of it, but aren’t we travelers all adventurers in our own way?
"The gladdest moment in human life, methinks, is a departure into unknown lands." - Sir Richard Burton
Why can’t we do the same in our profession life? Why not travel and explore what industries other than our own are doing? How are their organizations setup, what do their leaders do to ensure growth, what are their behaviors and attitudes, what does company culture mean to them? We might find similarities. We might find differences too. We may recognize that their organizational behaviors would be a good fit for our own company. Perhaps not. We visit a country and there's something we like, some things we like less. But as in traveling around the world, traveling to other industries broadens our mindset, opens new perspectives and gives us ideas how we and our organization can develop and grow.
Have you ever thought of looking to music as a professional travel destination? ConductVision is not exactly a tour operator, but we do take you on a tour of the music world, to explore and discover the wealth of knowledge, wisdom, skills and experiences that have accumulated throughout centuries. Looking at leadership, organizational behavior and structure, processes and individual qualities, you can cherry pick those qualities that will bring long-lasting positive change to your organization.
The diversity of music structures, the larger than life figure of the music conductor, can blow your mind away with ideas and solutions. Musicians, who play in teams from early childhood, offer us a whole toolbox of skills that are critical for good teamwork. Adopting music terms into our conversation will help you articulate your thoughts in amore powerful and argumentative way.
"The best way to know a 'thing' is in the context of another 'thing'." - Leonard Bernstein
It takes courage and guts to venture outside of our professional environment, which sometimes resembles a bubble that is about to burst but doesn't. That is why now is the time to travel beyond your professional comfort zone and transform the way you think about business. The sensation will be rewarding, recognizing that other industries may have the solutions we have for years been looking for.
Thanks for reading. Be courageous.
Bibi Pelić
Founder of ConductVision