Originally published on Advisor Perspectives, July 2, 2018

When I started speaking to groups, I thought everything had to be perfect. I spent a lot of time (and money) on my PowerPoint slides. I rehearsed my talk until I could recite it flawlessly, almost without thinking.

I exalted the power of structure and order.

I’m pretty sure you feel the same way.

I was wrong and so are you.

Recently, I’ve been coaching a few advisors who have seen my presentations and wanted help with theirs. I shared with them my flawed assumptions. Now I want to pass on what I’ve learned to you.

Expertise matters

What I’m about to discuss doesn’t obviate the need for expertise. I spent a year doing the research in my book, The Smartest Sales Book You’ll Ever Read. Obviously, I’m familiar with the major studies upon which I rely and can respond to questions about them.

When you are giving a presentation, you always need to be knowledgeable about your subject matter.

My breakthrough came when I learned about the power of chaos. It changed everything for me.

The power of improvisation

On January 24, 1975, jazz pianist Keith Jarrett was scheduled to perform a concert in a small venue in Cologne, Germany. The person in charge of arrangements for the concert was an inexperienced 17-year old.

When Jarrett arrived to check out the piano, he found it was not his preferred model. Worse still, it was in “abject condition and badly out of tune.”

Jarrett was known as a perfectionist (sound familiar?). When he learned the piano couldn’t be replaced, he initially refused to perform. While technicians frantically tried to fix the piano, it remained far below his standards. But he was cajoled into not canceling.

In order to work around the deficiencies of the piano, Jarrett needed to massively improvise. He wore a back brace for extra spinal support and pushed himself to his limits in an effort to overcome the defects in the piano. The producer of the recording of his performance said: “Probably [Jarrett] played it the way he did because it was not a good piano. Because he could not fall in love with the sound of it, he found another way to get the most out of it.”

The album from that session sold over four million copies and is the best-selling piano album of all time.

That’s the power of improvisation.

The power of chaos

There’s ample evidence that improvisation stimulates creativity. One study found “chaos stimulates creative thinking and creates a necessary condition to initiate the process of self-organization.”

Some neuroscientists believe “creativity is at the edge of chaos.”

Even the military, which embraces structure and order, is “learning to embrace elements of chaos.”

Practical application of chaos

I stopped giving structured talks. Instead, I invite the audience to ask me questions. I convey my research in the context of my responses. This approach requires me to improvise. No two talks are the same because the audience always has new questions.

My theory is that improvisation pushes the brain to its limits, by forcing us to react to new stimuli. When we engage in that process, we reach levels of creatively far beyond what occurs in a structured presentation.

When I confront resistance to learning the Solin Process℠, I now understand it’s because advisors are comfortable with setting an agenda and following it. They’re in control. They believe there’s little margin for error.

Yet, when they engage in unstructured conversations, following my process, they find it transformational. They may not realize that what’s happening is they are far more engaging, likable and relatable.

The combination of chaos and improvisation is the awesome power hidden deep within your brain.

Unleash it!