Using the magic wand

Sometimes, you wish your projects would unfold differently. Team members would be engaged, you'd feel more energized, and it wouldn't require you such big efforts to actually pull yourself into your daily work. If only you knew what should change, you could devise new goals, and make sure everyone (or at least you) would be happier to be part of the work team. Problem is, nothing is really wrong. Work gets done, quality is good, everyone is dedicated. It's just that fun isn't there and that you feel depressed, your creative well is empty and you don't know how to fill it up.

One key question may help you: "If you had a magic wand and could actually change something (anything, as crazy as it may sound -- we're not looking for practical solutions here) to the current way the project goes, what would it be?" The rationale behind this question is to put yourself in a state of mind where you are looking for what's missing or needs to be changed, without censoring yourself with what you feel may be doable or not. I've known this consultant trick for a while, but I used it for the first time yesterday only, twice -- and I made two very important discoveries about the theatrical project that I'm currently part of.

The first answer I got was from one actress, feeling frustrated for not understanding how to deliver some of her lines. She wished that there was more fun in the cast, and a shared, detailed undestanding about what the play is about. We're dealing here with a very dense and heady play, which makes such a goal totally legitimate -- and in the same time difficult to achieve, given the time constraints. Exploring further, it became obvious that the theatre company was lacking alignement, and this alignement was sacrificed in favor of the significant mass of work that remains to be done.

The second answer was from the director himself, who confirmed me it was not fun to attend those rehearsals. He felt depressed, emptied of any creative energy, and wished that he could extend the rehearsal process to three more weeks. This sounded to me as a clear sign of the "not enough time" syndrom.

It came as a big surprise to me that what we were trying to solve aesthetically on stage (understanding meaning, finding creative energy) has more to do with team dynamics in the first place (seeking alignement, prioritizing tasks). I have yet to find proper answers to these newly discovered problems, but they are definitely situations I know how to deal with. More to say about this in the days to come -- stay tuned.