“The line dancing lesson will start in five minutes.."

That’s the announcement that was made while out at dinner with an executive team mid way through running their Digital Transformation Strategy retreat last week. 

Watching line dancing is hypnotic, and these dancers were experts. I enthusiastically joined the CFO and CIO on the dance floor ready and willing to learn. 

It seemed that the teacher suddenly sped up her pace and complexity as soon as we stepped on the dance floor. 

For the next 20 minutes, she shouted confusing phrases like applejack, anklerock, and fan kick. I spent most of the time moving right when everyone was moving left and facing the back of the room when everyone else was facing forward. So I quickly left the dance floor. 

It was a sharp reminder for me about how it feels to be at the bottom rung of the learning ladder. I hadn’t mastered it as quickly as I hoped and I wished the teacher would slow down. I wanted to practice the steps to the music, not learn more steps, and I ultimately just gave up. 

What changes are you trying to drive in your organization and are you paying attention to who’s dancing in time to your tune?

Dedicated to growing your business,

Val

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