What a Wonderful World

I see trees of green, red roses too

I see them bloom for me and you

And I think to myself

What a wonderful world

-Thiele and Weiss

Ah, what a wonderful world. Can you hear Louis Armstrong’s gravelly voice (What a Wonderful World) singing perhaps one of the most uplifting songs ever written? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could have that sense of awe and peace as we celebrate what we have accomplished and close out our workday? Let’s be honest, most of us are pros at skipping the celebration part. Instead, we prefer to ruminate on what we didn’t get done and drag ourselves into our precious personal time like overworked zombies. Who needs victory dances when you can collapse into bed with a to-do list for tomorrow, right?

Ready for a change? Read on to see how this week’s wonderful Kickstarters team used positive framing to look differently at closing out the end of the day and reframed a lack of trust in leadership.

(In case you are interested, “What a Wonderful World” runs just 2:17. What would happen if we created a new habit and simply listened to the song at the end of every workday?)

Positive Frame #1

Name it: I beat myself up at the end of the day for not getting enough done.

Flip it: I don’t beat myself up for not getting enough done.

Frame it: Celebrating with amazement what I have done to the best of my ability for today.

Additional Positive Frames

• I celebrate my successes and achievements at the end of the day.
• It’s amazing to feel at peace and knowing that tasks are completed.
• Peaceful and powerful I glide into the evening.
• I accept that I have done what was possible to the best of my ability.
• I recognize that what I achieve each day will vary and I am okay with knowing that I have done the best I had to give each day?
• I keep a positive mindset knowing that I have done all I can for today.
• I celebrate what I achieve each day, and I am at peace knowing I have done my best to complete what was possible to complete

Generative Questions

Once the frame was in place, the group created generative questions that would create a conversation worth having with oneself.

• When have I had a sense of accomplishment before? How did I make that happen?
• What can I celebrate from today?
• What would bring a sense of accomplishment?
• What is a great transition into a peaceful evening?
• How can I carry forward what I have accomplished today into my work tomorrow?
• What is going on under the surface for me today?
• When have I felt good at the end of the day? What went well in your work?
• Who am I at my best?
• How do I get in my own way?

Positive Frame #2

Name it: Staff no longer trust leadership.

Flip it: Staff trusts leadership.

Frame it: An inclusive, positive culture where all voices are heard.

Additional Positive Frames

• A dynamic organization changing lives.
• We have a positive organizational climate/culture that engenders collaboration, engagement and commitment
• Staff is included with management in dialogue around change.
• Leaning in to change and moving forward together.
• Trust and Unity have helped us achieve our goals.

Generative Questions

• Imagine it’s 5 years from now an article is being written about our success. What would you want the headline to say?
• What needs to be in place for staff to feel heard?
• When was the team included before in designing an initiative? What happened?
• What leadership behaviors convey an openness to staff’s opinions and contributions?
• When have you felt valued in the organization? What happened to help you feel valued?
• What are some signals that our colleagues are engaged?
• What are we not seeing?
• What would complete trust and unity look like in our organization

Cool Tip

Our two examples today demonstrate how positive framing can be used individually and with others to shift from a negative, deficit-based frame to one that defines the desired outcome.  Often, we get caught up in “doing” and we don’t make the space to “think” about the outcome that we want. One method for making that space is to pause, breathe and get curious. Another is to simply stop and smell the roses: ‘tis indeed a wonderful world.

Resources

LouisarmstrongVEVO. (2016, October 3). Louis Armstrong - What a wonderful world (Official video) [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBrd_3VMC3c

Songfacts. (n.d.). Louis Armstrong: What a wonderful world [Web page]. Songfacts. https://www.songfacts.com/facts/louis-armstrong/what-a-wonderful-world

Photo Credit

About Monday Kickstarters

This topic came from our third Fall 2024 Monday Kickstarters session series. If you'd like to learn how to have conversations that create meaningful and productive engagement, join us for Monday Kickstarters and find a resource, book, game, or course that works for you. 

Shared by: Sylvette Wake, a certified Conversations Worth Having trainer and co-founder of the CWH Institute.