Here’s a brilliantly delicate look at leadership by former conductor Itay Talgam who now runs the Maestro Program…

The “Maestro programs” were founded on the belief that, in the orchestra as in the work place, music has the power to create community and reinforce shared values. Music embodies knowledge and innovation, individual effort and collective achievement, and offers a work-environment that is full of opportunities for excellence and self-actualization – same as any successful business.

It’s so easy for managers to get caught up in the day-to-day life of contracts, agreements, and negotiations that sometimes we forget about what’s really important.  Leadership is about creating the structure and conditions that allow team members to perform independently. Really great leaders find joy in leading by helping other people tell their own stories. They understand that team members, researchers, or even students are not instruments for leverage but are partners, whose development is of central concern.  Great leaders intuitively understand that you can still be “in control” and let people be free.

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