How You Can Change World
I can still remember the day I squeezed into a jam packed recital hall to watch Maria Callas, one of the most renowned and influential opera singers of the 20th century, conduct a private masterclass for opera students. One by one, each young singer stood before Mme. Callas, thrilled, but probably terrified at the same time, and sang an aria as she gazed at each one, her expression like a stone mask until she raised her hand when she had heard enough. Some made it through completely, some did not.
Trembling, I sat in the safe darkness of the audience agonizing over every singer’s nervous intro, brave performance and the whiplash of her silencing hand. One by one, like sheep to slaughter, they opened their mouths, bared their souls and got cut down. And these singers were the best of the best, selected for this rare and unique opportunity.
How could anyone even dare to think they had what it takes to sing before the great Maria Callas?
I was sure she was going to rip everyone apart and then sing the aria herself to show the world how it was done. Period.
Until one young singer changed everything.
She took her place by the piano and turned to the audience. When she began to sing, I sat up: It was perfect in a completely unexpected way.
Like there was never ever another way to sing this song and it felt as if she was singing directly to me.
And to Mme. Callas, apparently because she sat up too.
The entire hall was electrified by this subtle but unmistakeable change in the diva. The singer finished her performance with a respectful nod and looked at Mme. Callas who gave the faintest hint of a smile, as if in recognition of a dear friend.
“You have not performed the song. You have possessed the song. This moment, it belongs to you only. Well done.” said Mme. Callas in her fabled bel canto soprano voice.
I didn’t know it at the time, but I had just been given the greatest gift - the secret for changing the world from Maria Callas.
There is only one way, one voice. Yours.
Only I thought it worked for opera singers.
What does opera have to do with anything?
Everything.
We are sitting in the conference room at the Museum of the Moving Image surrounded by a sea of flip charts and Post its covered with ideas, thoughts and wishes - a group of us focused on creating our strategic plan.
But we were still deep in discussions punctuated with probing questions.
The right answers seemed to be hovering in the room, present yet elusive.
And there were so many of them.
Was the right thing to include something for everyone, wait - let’s make sure we don’t offend anyone, oh, but what about this opportunity, how could we possibly explain this to our funders…
Based on research conducted by our strategic planning consultants, hundreds of voices in our particular universe revealed how critical it was for us to know what we do and why.
To stake out our space of excellence.
This is a pivotal moment for us and we truly want to know how to be truly great in our work, to define our impact on the people we serve and to declare our reason to exist.
Doing anything less would condemn us to the realm of the mediocre.
Not relevant, not essential and not worth funding.
Not good.
But what does success look like for us?
Then it hit me: I’d already seen what that looks like.
What that sounds like.
I couldn’t feel anything anything more powerful than what had happened years ago in that recital hall—my world being changed by an unforgettable voice and vision.
My whole mindset changed in an instant.
I opened my eyes, my shoulders relaxed, my breathing slowed, and I started to enjoy the experience.
It wasn’t so serious anymore—it felt more like art.
So, after the meeting, I started to think about else Maria Callas is famous for saying,
“Art is domination. It’s making people think that for that precise moment in time there is only one way, one voice. Yours.”
It felt as if a cloud lifted and I saw our plan taking shape with greater clarity and power.
I was eager to take ownership of the moment. To claim our unique voice.
And to say no to everything else.
Here’s the honest truth: Most of us never achieve our full potential and power due to lack of focus and follow through. Plus the mistaken belief that doing less is a bad thing.
- We want to reach everyone
- We want to do everything
- We think we know what we are doing
- We jump from one shiny opportunity to another
- We don’t know when to say NO
- We are reactive more than we are proactive
What you can do next
Boldly answer these 4 questions in one sentence.
OK, ready?
- Why is your work important?
- Who is it for?
- How will you make her life better?
- What does success look like, sound like, feel like?
And here’s the secret
Say no to everything else.
To make sure we continue to do only the things that we should be doing, we created a really cool decision making tool that we can apply to every opportunity, project, expense that comes our way to keep us on track.
“The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything.”
Warren Buffet
We need to know when and why we say No so that we can focus on being great at what we say Yes to.
I believe artists do all of this instinctively.
Their art is a reflection of a practice, a lifetime of making a million focused artistic decisions that results in possessing a moment that has the power to change you forever.
Doing anything less seems like a deplorable waste of time.
Whether you work on strategic plans or sing at the Met.
Isn’t it time you own your moment?
Hoong Yee is a writer who draws. She is the author of Rabbit Mooncakes, a children’s picture book and the Executive Director of the Queens Council on the Arts. Hoong Yee is married to a nice Jewish boy and they live in Rockaway Beach, NY with their family. Visit her website at hoongyee.com
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