This is a summary of the book titled “The Leaders’ Playlist” written by Susan Drumm and published by River Grove Books in 2022. If there was a book that connected music to leadership, this might be the first. That’s because the author, as a leadership coach to top notch executives, connects leaders’ behaviors to childhood experiences and emotional triggers, specifically music which she then uses as a way to combat strong feelings at work and even overcome trauma. This forms her imaginative path to transformation.

She says music creates or strengthens neural connections and pathways and by changing your playlist, you can change your subconscious emotions and that leads to changes in your behavior and your life. Self-discovery through music can reveal your unique leadership style. You can even bring out the best in your yourself by changing your emotional frequency from anger and fear to love and empathy. To succeed, do the inner work. Invest reflection, effort and time to change your old and new playlists. She offers a seven-step process to do so.

The effect of music on body is science. For example, listening to music during exercise has proven to make you feel less fatigued, require less oxygen, and experience more endurance and energy. It even works on severe Alzheimer’s patients who don’t react to most stimuli, but music is an exception. She even gives a personal experience of including songs like “Jar of Hearts” a song about breakup, to soothe her stresses around betrayal and exclusion, and switching to songs like “24K Magic” that filled her with energy and happiness.

These are not a metaphor. Literally music alters subconscious drivers that helps you heal and change how you think leading to improved productivity. It is worthy of investment. Feelings like music emit frequencies that other people register. If a good laugh is infectious, good vibes from positive music is also infectious. This process of discovery demands deep reflection and curiosity as well as a willingness to explore memories and experiment. In a candid share of her memories, she talks about her resentment at her father’s infrequent violent outbursts on an otherwise overall good standing, that translated to her infrequent overreactions at work. The triggers for her fight or flight reaction were overcome with a heightened self-awareness and a new playlist. By recognizing and working on these, she even emerges a more authentic self as called out by others. By recognizing your wounds, you heal them. Her seven-step method to do so involves the following: 1. recognize that you are hitting a wall, so you can build a new playlist, 2. get to know yourself including those that you avoided introspecting earlier, 3. Identify five emotions that truly steer you, 4. connect your emotions with your memories and observe, 5. Build your “wounded” playlist to associate with those emotions that might include lyrics or rhythms that resonate with you. 6. Build your new playlist with the opposites of those emotions and tunes and 7. Find your “meaningful mission” by relating to a greater purpose that helps others. I appreciate the playing of upbeat tunes before conferences and meetings more after this reading.