Do. Be. Do. Be.

Dobedobedobedobedo!

It’s time to get funky, get your paints out, write a sonnet, grab your tutu and your play-doh. Make a mess, a lot of noise, put on a play, graffiti your bathroom, dye your hair blue, sing an aria, make a new dance step. Create!

We’ve got a brand new decade in which to do brand new things. If you were to unleash your creative spirit as you transform the world, what could happen?

Good leadership is like jazz – it wants a solid underlying structure, a strong foundation, and then it’s time to improvise, to go where the energy is, to play with timing, rhythm and pattern. Transformative leadership is about creating something fresh and new.

This is as good a time as any to take risks, and to try on new ideas - no reason to hesitate. Is there something you’ve been wanting to do or try that you haven’t gotten to? What is it? Perhaps it is something you loved awhile ago, don’t do anymore, and you have some desire to reconnect to. What would it take for you to delve into and honor your creativity?

How are you feeding your creative spirit? We all have one, and it is easy to neglect in the day-to-day running of our organizations and our lives. Is there anything wildly generative you’ve been longing to do?

And who could do it with you? Even the best jazz artists have partners - who might you want to play with?

Let’s make this a decade where we break out of old molds and find new and interesting ways to bring change and renewal to our world. I’m not saying that we should jettison all that has gone before us, in fact, quite the opposite. We’ve never been here before, and that’s due to the work of those who have come before us, and upon whose shoulders we stand. This decade, however, brings us to a new place in time, so let’s make the most of this opportunity and satisfy our deepest creative desires.

I invite you to make a date with your creativity. Celebrate the spark of life that is you! Your leadership will thank you for it.

And so will I. Happy 20-teens!

Akaya

January 2010