I went to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra on Saturday night to see Riccardo Muti conduct the New World Symphony by Dvořák. It was one of those performances that hits you right in the chest – thrilling, precise, emotional, and alive. Honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever heard the CSO play with that level of passion and unity.
On the bus ride home (we’re just a quick hop on the 3 or 4 bus south), we ended up chatting with a couple who had also been at the concert. I said, “Wasn’t that incredible?” And the man replied, without missing a beat:
“Yes! The orchestra plays next-level excellent when Muti is conducting.”
And he was right. When a group loves and respects its leader, you feel it in the room. You hear it in the music. They don’t just perform – they rise. They give more. They sync. They stretch. They go all out.
It’s the same for every team I work with – tech teams, nonprofit teams, association teams, ERG committees, executive cohorts, and boards. When people believe in the leader, the work changes. The energy changes. The outcomes change.
The Science Backs It Up
Because yes, I love a good metaphor – but let’s also talk data:
- 70% of team engagement is directly tied to the manager. (Gallup)
- Teams with great managers see 23% higher profitability and 18% higher productivity.
- Psychological safety – the sense that “it’s safe to show up as myself”—is the #1 predictor of high-performing teams. (Google’s Project Aristotle)
- People don’t flee companies – they flee managers. In fact, 57% of employees have left a job because of their boss.
In other words:
A good leader doesn’t just influence performance.
They conduct it.
But It’s Not Just About the Leader
Here’s the part I see every single week in workshops and retreats:
When people care about the folks around them – their peers, their collaborators – they automatically go “next level.” They stay later. They think smarter. They act with generosity. They’re willing to do the hard, unglamorous, grunt-work pieces of the job because they’re in it together.
No team loves every task. And no orchestra loves every piece in the program. But when they love the people they’re playing with – and the person waving the baton – it transforms the entire experience.
This Is the Heart of Engagement
If you want to keep your best people – truly keep them – you must invest in building connection, trust, and alignment.
Not once. Not as a checkbox.
But as a core leadership practice.
I see this during Values Workshops, in LEGO® Serious Play® builds, in Designed Team Alliance conversations, in culture sessions where the walls turn into mosaics of ideas and insights. When people feel connected, seen, and heard, they show up differently.
They play all the right notes.
The Maestro Lesson
Riccardo Muti doesn’t get brilliance out of the CSO by pushing harder or demanding perfection.
He gets it through presence, connection, respect, and genuine care.
And that’s the secret every leader can learn.
If you want a truly excellent, high-performing team, start with what the great conductors do:
Care about your people.
Show up for them.
Listen to them.
Lead with presence and humanity.
Do that – and your team will play their hearts out.
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