How to bring “jam session energy” into meetings
Last year, my son joined a songwriting program for young people at Bondi Pavilion, run by a crew of seasoned musos.
He already knew how to play songs on his guitar, but the program taught him how to create them. Not alone, but with people he had just met.
They taught him how structured improvisation channels creativity. Here’s the process he learned:
First, you warm up and tune in together. Then someone lays down a chord progression, setting a groove. Next it’s time to start riffing, taking it in turns to improvise, both musically and with lyrics. No judgement, just layers of ideas built on one another. Everything played is recorded.
Later, they’d listen back, find the magic, and reshape and refine it. New musicians regularly dropped in to offer their take and push the work even further.
In a few short months, my son went from never having written a song to recording one with a new band and hearing it played on local radio.
They called it songwriting. I saw masterful collaboration in action.
Here’s how you can bring that “jam session” energy into your next problem-solving session:
Start with alignment – Loosen up with a quick icebreaker and tune into the shared challenge.
Set the groove – Define the core problem, the goal, and the constraints. That’s your chord progression.
Encourage improvisation – Invite ideas without judgement. Take turns. Riff. Build.
Capture and review – Record the sparks (whiteboard, notes, AI summary), then revisit with fresh eyes.
Add a wildcard – Bring in someone unexpected to challenge and expand your thinking.
Not all of us can be rock musicians. But we can all bring a little musical genius into our meetings to inspire creativity.
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