It’s Your Playlist

In May of 2021, we threw a conference and then an after-party in Philadelphia. People had been cooped-up from Covid for well over a year, and as the restrictions loosened, we got close to 100 educators together for a day of learning and an evening of merriment. 

We billed the after-party as “The Best Party Ever” as we knew people would need an outlet after being online and in masks for so long. 

We booked a venue in Center City, Philly, ordered a bunch of food, paid for an open bar, and even brought in a photo booth and props for people to take pictures. 

I also asked my team at Skyrocket to contribute to a playlist of songs that would be playing throughout the party. And they did to the tune of nearly 200 songs by artists from Michael Jackson to Def Leppard and from Beyonce’ to Metallica. 

A few days before the event, I closed the playlist. No more songs could be added. Then, I went through the entire playlist deleting songs I didn’t think fit the vibe, grouping similar artists/genres/eras together, and re-ordering the songs so the night kicked-off with a bang, the sounds got more mellow during dinner, and then the list picked up again for the dancing portion at the end. 

That’s a lot of work just for a playlist. And no, you leaders on here should not be that involved in everything your team is doing. You must delegate and you must be okay with someone doing things differently than you would. 

But to me, that playlist was different. It was the driving force behind the event, and any one miss, like a Kenny Rogers song in between “Just Dance” by Lady Gaga and “Rhythm of the Night” by El DeBarge could totally sabotage the vibe. 

I needed that event to be great, and so that playlist had to hit every mark. And it did. 

This year, your goals, your mindsets, and the actions you take in service of them, are like your playlist. You get to control those things. To an extent, yes. But more than most of us think. 

What are you trying to accomplish? What will you need to do to get there? Which months will you fast every day? Which months will you skip alcohol? Which months will you outline that book you’ve been working on? How many dates will you and your partner go on? When will you fly to England to watch that Manchester United match you’ve been wanting to get to? 

It’s your playlist. Make sure it has the right tunes on it. Otherwise, you might end up dancing to someone else’s songs.