Don't just seize the moment – make it!

In business, timing is crucial. The ability to recognise or create the right moment can determine success or failure when it comes to investment, marketing, or product development. 

Timing research is well established in business management. Product entry timing – when to enter a market with a new product, with its advantages and drawbacks for first-movers – is one the most active research areas in management and marketing, while action, attention, and timing are also important for identifying the optimal time-cost curve in business model innovation. However, the underlying principles of timing and how to acquire timing skills have remained elusive. 

Now cutting-edge, cross-disciplinary timing research is coming to light thanks to a first-of-its-kind collaboration between one of the world’s top business schools – Henley Business School, part of the University of Reading – and Berklee College of Music, an iconic global brand and the top choice in contemporary music education, with campuses in Boston, New York City, Valencia in Spain, and Abu Dhabi. 

The research was carried out by a team with a rich mix of academic and professional backgrounds in music performance and business management. Ray Seol, Assistant Professor of Professional Music (chaired by Toki Wright) at the Berklee College of Music, and Barry van Zyl, former drummer for the Johnny Clegg band and other international stars and creative strategist and educator at Henley Business School Africa, combined their creative energies to produce the new research report ‘Timing Matters: Applying Musicians’ Insights to Business’. 

Timing as a skill set 

Before embarking on their rigorous, peer-reviewed analysis, the pair had ‘jammed’ together on a number of informal collaborations around the entrepreneurship of music. ‘We talked about the possibility of expanding our jamming into the realm of research, in order to understand how musicians perceive timing and see if this can be applied to the world of business,’ says Seol. 

To do this, Van Zyl and Seol took a deep dive into contemporary professional musician’s lived experiences with timing. Their research also reviewed findings from chronobiology and cognitive neuroscience. 

What they found confirms that musicians have an intuitive grasp of timing, and the better the musician, the more likely they are to use timing effectively. Crucially, this appears to be a skill that can be learned and honed over time, which as Seol says, ‘opens up a whole new perspective on timing as a skill set.’ 

‘Timing in music is the ability to stay synchronised and maintain rhythm and tempo while performing in a group setting,’ explains Van Zyl. ‘It is not only a mechanical, but also an expressive process, where a performer places the right notes and beats in the right places at the right moments to create the optimal musical experience. This ability to use timing expressively differentiates skilled musicians from novices and influences the audience’s positive or negative perception of a performance.’ 

He adds that good timing is not a skill that is limited to musicians. ‘Anyone who has ever given a business presentation or led a team meeting knows that a successful outcome is determined by rhythm, tempo, and the sequence of actions and responses, much like what musicians do during a performance. Timing, similarly, is an essential element of strategic decision-making.’ 

Good timing starts with deep listening 

The research suggests that to develop good timing, people can start by paying closer attention to what is happening around them. 

‘Musicians develop deep listening skills, which, with practice, allow them to intuitively understand where the beats can be placed ahead or pushed back to create the right ‘vibe’, the groove that gets everyone in tune,’ says Seol.

According to Seol, another key finding is how musicians can alter their perception of timing, based on what’s going on around them. ‘We have termed this concept the “elasticity of timing”.’ 

Some musicians slow down or speed up their playing without disrupting the main tempo to create performance dynamics. As one of the research participants, a gospel singer and songwriter, explains: ‘We can create a space where people feel they can safely breathe and exhale in the moment. Thus, the time we control may actually be more about controlling its perception.’ 

Similarly, timing can be sped up without rushing. 

This “elasticity of timing”, the research suggests, can help managers lead their operations holistically rather than chronologically or linearly, recognising both seen and unforeseen business opportunities and creating moments to breathe without slowing down or to accelerate without rushing. 

‘The learned abilities around elasticity of time can be linked to the concept of flow, a psychological state characterised by complete immersion and engagement in an activity, coined by psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi,’ says Van Zyl. ‘Like flow, embracing the concept of elasticity can give people a greater sense of control, better focus and creative problem solving and, ultimately, more enjoyment.’ 

The importance of preparation 

Also like flow, timing skills are trainable and able to be practised. ‘The old cliché of practice makes perfect applies here,’ says Van Zyl. ‘The importance of daily practice to master a craft, grit and resilience is key, hence the better the musician, the more skilled they are at timing.’ 

It is also possible to create the conditions for good timing and elasticity to emerge, the researchers propose. This is not simply about being aware or identifying opportune moments – to be “in the right place at the right time” starts before the opportunity occurs. Yet, says Seol, ‘we found that preparation is more important than planning because “good timing” is always present.’ 

Musicians are constantly listening “further ahead” and exposing themselves to every possible musical opportunity, he adds. ‘In business, timing is about dealing with uncertainty, and the research suggests that leaders can, like musicians, anticipate what’s ahead and proactively create the conditions that allow them to respond to opportunities as they present themselves.’ 

Mastering the art of timing can become a leadership super skill, concludes Van Zyl, similar to the famous “reality distortion field” that was popularised by Steve Jobs. ‘Jobs was famous for, his ability to distort reality and convince others to believe in his vision, even when it seemed impossible, that’s the art of good timing. When you don’t only seize the moment, but you make it!’ 

The research report ‘Timing Matters: Applying Musicians’ Insights to Business’ authored by Van Zyl and Seol is part of a larger initiative called the ‘Theory of Groove’. Theory of Groove is a three-way collaboration between Barry Van Zyl, Ray Seol and Toki Wright, chair of the professional music department at Berklee College of Music, that explores a new framework for defining what groove means in everyday life and how it can be applied in various fields to enhance human activities. Wright, Seol and Van Zyl have also developed and delivered a series of workshops, benefiting both musicians and business leaders by helping them understand and apply their own version of groove and a book manuscript is in preparation.

Photo caption: Toki Wright, Ray Seol and Barry Van Zyl