Look at the careers of bands like the Beatles, the Rolling Stones or CSN&Y. While the songwriting chemistry of Lennon and McCartney was prolific, their conflict resulted in a marital separation. On the other hand, the angst between David Crosby, Stephen Stills, Graham Nash and Neil Young was the glue that kept them together. The Stones just seem to keep rolling through adversity after adversity.
The music industry is filled with stories of brilliant artists who either sustain effective teamwork or succumb to the frailty of human connection. The art that results is often the byproduct of such synergy or disintegration. Many of the world’s best tunes are written about the pain or pleasure of relationships. The bands that thrive follow a simple formula that cycles through repeating stages of investment, trust, innovation and distancing.
Stage 1: Investment
The team acknowledges their circumstances, establishes interaction norms, arrives at consensus about their goal and invites respectful conflict as fuel for growth.
Stage 2: Trust
The team strengthens their connection by collaborating in a culture of psychological safety where accountability is non-negotiable.
Stage 3: Innovation
The team uses the platform of trust as a foundation for exploration and discovery. The differences embraced in the investment stage are harnessed for creativity.
Stage 4: Distancing
The team adapts to the changes in its ecosystem by mourning loss, refueling and embracing their new circumstances. This sets the stage for a new round of investment.
Think about the teams in your circle. What stage best defines your growth? Is your team re-establishing after a change? Are you in the process of building or rebuilding trust? Is your group poised to create something new? Are you navigating a significant change? Every team is in one of these stages and, like most good bands, is trying not to get stuck. The challenge is to keep moving from one stage to the next, cycle after cycle.
