In the movie The Bucket List, Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman play two aging men who meet in the hospital.
As they are discussing their mortality, Freeman’s character suggests that they should each create a ‘bucket list” of the things they want to do before they kick the bucket.
The movie documents their pursuit of the items on each of their lists and the development of a powerful friendship. Though it’s not the best movie either actor ever appeared in, it is both entertaining and insightful.
The concept of the bucket list is powerful because it forces you to think about what you really want to do in your life. After all, if you are going to write it down and commit to making it happen, you tend to focus on things you really want to do that you can envision yourself achieving.
And the same is true for your credit union.
No, I am not suggesting that your credit union is nearing the end of its life and that you need to create a bucket list to make sure you get the things done that you always wanted to do while it was in existence.
But I am suggesting that you consider using this approach to take your strategic thinking to the next level by following the steps below.
ACTION ADVICE:
1. Hold a fun, casual meeting where your leadership team and your managers create their personal bucket lists for what they personally want to accomplish before they leave the credit union. The exercise will help people see what is really important to them as they look at what they have accomplished and consider what is left to do to fulfill their vision. The result will be better decisions about where to allocate effort in the future.
2. Engage your Board in a similar exercise, but focus the list on what they want to see the credit union achieve in their lifetime. The real objective here is to help the Board think further into the future and to encourage them to really consider what is possible for the credit union. The result should be an improved focus on long-term strategic thinking, and the surfacing of some new ideas that may not make it into the usual conversations at the planning session.
Remember: The point here is not to focus the conversation on mortality or end of existence thinking, but rather to open up the discussion by considering the things that can and should be done. If you make it fun and celebrate all of the ideas that emerge, you can move your team and its thinking to the next level, and perhaps beyond!
I have facilitated a similar exercise where participants wrote their own eulogies. In the background we listened to “I Will Remember You” by Sarah McLachlan. However, the Bucket List idea is much more upbeat and sounds much easier to introduce! I wonder what song would go great with your Bucket List exercise.
RJ,
Thanks for the positive feedback. Your question is EXCELLENT, and something I have never considered. I too have used the eulogy exercise and found it valuable, but I agree that the more upbeat approach of the bucket list is easier for people to grasp and more upbeat. It merits more thought, but here are my initial ideas on possible songs to use:
Eye of the Tiger…has an inherent motivational quality and it upbeat enough to drive positive thoughts and ideas to the surface.
Somewhere Over the Rainbow…a bit more mellow, but the idea of possibility is at the heart of the song and depending upon the age of the participants, it might be a good choice.
Pachelbel Canon in D…this is an old reliable song for stimulating thinking as it is one of the only pieces of music shown to engage both the left and right hemispheres of the brain…I have used it a lot and found that it leads to a productive brainstorm for most groups, but the classical nature and its widespread use in weddings can limits it impact for some groups.
Let me stop there for now. I will think more about it and share any other ideas…and I invite any readers to offer up their ideas. For some reason I see the need to a fun uplifting song that makes people feel free and almost childlike as having the most potential to create a powerful experience with the exercise.
One caveat that I will throw out to consider…I have found that there are some people who really prefer no musical accompaniment to such exercises…they like to let their minds work without any distraction and sometimes ask me to turn the music off when I use it. And it seems that this group has grown over time…so you might just try it without any music and with to see which gives the best results. Or do what I tend to do which is play music at the breaks to keep the group engaged and upbeat, then allow silence during activity periods.