Labours of Love - Sister Snog on Camera

Effective team communication extends far beyond words. Research reveals that up to 55% of communication is non-verbal, yet most corporate training focuses solely on verbal skills. What if the secret to building stronger, more intuitive teams lies not in another PowerPoint presentation but in discovering your team's natural rhythm together?

Full disclosure. My life partner is Hela Wozniak-Kay.

Hela is The Connectress. She connects women in business. She also inspires quite a few. All part of the service, which is, officially, Sister Snog, a tribe of like-minded, driven business women.

Lives on Camera

Hela is a major part of the reason why I've been inexorably connected with the working lives of women most of my own life in business.

I've been documenting the connecting lives of these marvellous mavens on film for the past decade and a half.

It's been quite a journey. And because, as you might imagine, I had pretty much full licence, I got stuck into sonic as well as visual creative production. I composed a Sister Snog theme tune and sonic ident as well as taking certain production liberties with more recognisable tunes.

Here's one of the first - a homage to The Women, an ancient and gloriously celluloid celebration of the power of women's relationships, starring, unusually for Hollywood at that time (or any time, come to think of it), a cast made up entirely of women. I can hear them cheering from heaven!

In 2011 Hela formed Sisters of Soul, a joyful Sisterly choir. I'd like to say they stormed the charts - sadly they didn't though there's always next Christmas! Check out their rendition of Breakout below.

Here's another from Sisters of Soul - a benefit concert for Katie Piper and RAFT, a medical research charity. It's rather Beautiful, as you can see and hear.

For some years, Hela and her now-reclined Sister-in-arms Annie Brooks hosted Sister Snog in-person events, now known as Wonderful-One-Offs, in London on the first friday of every month. All events are themed meticolously and lovingly planned by Hela, and style and sisterliness are greatly encouraged. First Fridays became a renowned celebration of the glories of sisterhood in business. This is one of my favourites - Purple Reign.

Since the Pandemic, Hela has hosted many a virtual gathering but that hasn't stopped her from continuing her creation of visually sumptuous Wonderful-One-Off lunches. Here's one of the latest - Tartan Army.

It's been quite an experience, becoming the lens for this amazing tribe.

The My True Talent Way

1. Personality forms the basis of all teams

2. Play pumps their creative hearts

3. In harmony, they build performance, culture and wellbeing

For more information on how I can help your people, go to mytruetalent.co.uk or call me direct on 07970 282490.

The Unspoken Symphony: How Musical Workshops Are Revolutionising Team Communication

Effective team communication extends far beyond words. Research reveals that up to 55% of communication is non-verbal, yet most corporate training focuses solely on verbal skills. What if the secret to building stronger, more intuitive teams lies not in another PowerPoint presentation but in discovering your team's natural rhythm together?

The Science Behind Musical Team Building

Recent studies demonstrate that musical workshops create profound neurological changes that enhance team dynamics. When teams engage in synchronized musical activities, several powerful mechanisms activate:

• Neural synchronisation - Brain waves literally align when people move to shared rhythms creating deeper interpersonal connection

• Enhanced listening skills - Musical collaboration demands real-time responsiveness to subtle auditory and visual cues

• Improved coordination - Teams learn to anticipate each other's actions through non-verbal signals, much like musicians in an ensemble

Research from medical education shows particularly compelling results.* When medical students observed chamber musicians rehearsing, they significantly improved their ability to interpret non-verbal interactions with both colleagues and patients. So it's clear that, just as musicians coordinate complex performances through subtle gestures and expressions, high-performing teams develop their own intuitive communication patterns. It's part of what it takes to engender a culture.

From Theory to Practice

Leading organisations are already harnessing these insights through innovative musical workshops:

• Jazz Improvisation Sessions** teach teams to lead and follow simultaneously fostering flexible leadership and shared initiative. Participants learn to create solutions collaboratively while adapting to change - essential capabilities for contemporary business challenges.

• Rhythm and Body Percussion Exercises*** develop synchronisation and responsiveness. These structured activities enhance focus, quick thinking and the ability to coordinate actions without explicit verbal commands.

• Ensemble Playing**** builds deep listening capabilities and mutual support. Teams must encode and decode subtle signals to maintain cohesive performance skills that translate directly to improved workplace collaboration.

The Business Impact

Organisations implementing musical team building report tangible benefits:

• Increased psychological safety as teams learn to trust non-verbal cues

• Improved meeting efficiency through better reading of group dynamics

• Enhanced creativity through collaborative musical creation

• Stronger team cohesion via shared rhythmic experiences

The key lies in music's role as social lubricant, breaking down barriers, reducing stress hormones and creating an environment where authentic communication can flourish.

Orchestrating Success for Your Team

Implementation requires both strategic thinking and practical experience. At My True Talent, we've developed Music 360 for Leaders & Teams - creative workshops that go beyond typical team building. And you don’t have to be a Callas, Simone, Rattle, McCartney, Beyoncé or Stormzy to be involved. With us you can:

• Build strong connections by composing your team's signature tune

• Break down barriers through shared playlist creation and musical storytelling

• Enhance personal branding by exploring individual "walk-on music"

• Unlock key decisions using stories from musical history and collaborative creation

We’re also able to combine musical activities with our personality profiling tools, using Facet5 assessments and structured debriefing, to ensure insights are put into practice in the workplace. Whether delivered as focused half-day sessions or comprehensive full-day workshops, each experience is tailored to your team's specific communication challenges.

Success lies in connecting the musical experience to measurable workplace improvements - enhanced meeting dynamics, improved project coordination, and stronger psychological safety within the team.

The Future of Team Development

As remote and hybrid work continues to challenge traditional team building, musical workshops offer a unique solution that transcends physical boundaries. They tap into fundamental human capacities for synchronisation and connection, creating teams that communicate with greater fluency and collaborate with natural coordination.

The evidence is compelling: when teams learn to move together, they learn to work together. Every high-performing team has its rhythm - the question is whether you're helping yours find it.

Ready to discover your team's natural tempo? The key to breakthrough communication might be just one workshop away.

The My True Talent Way

1. Personality forms the basis of all teams

2. Play pumps their creative hearts

3. In harmony, they build performance, culture and wellbeing

For more information on how I can help your people, go to mytruetalent.co.uk or call me direct on 07970 282490.

Sources

• * Utilizing Chamber Music to Teach Non-Verbal Communication to Medical Students: A Pilot Initiative

• ** Teambuilding with Jazz - New York Jazz Workshop

• *** Musical Team Building The Music Workshop Company

• **** Ideas for corporate music team building. - Whereez

• List of 21 Non-Verbal Activities for Team-Building - playmeo