The leaders looked inside my grand piano with a sense of wonder. I had been invited to speak about the Artist Mindset and what it can offer leaders in their approach to technology—particularly AI.

A lively discussion followed:

“Our investment in technology is approximately 50 times greater than our investment in professional development. Are we perhaps investing too much in the perfect grand piano, but too little in the pianist who is supposed to play it? Do we have a technology bias? Which qualities should we develop to make full use of the potential of our investments in AI?”

A glimpse into my world as a concert pianist highlighted four aspects that may also be highly relevant to leaders:

1. Technical Competence

Owning an excellent instrument and having the technical skills to master it are essential foundations. But they alone do not make me an outstanding pianist.

2. Attitude

In a concert, everything becomes visible: Do I have something to say? Can the audience feel my passion? Am I willing to take risks? Do I dare to try something new? Can I deal with mistakes?

3. Perception

I need to be aware of everything happening around me—the audience, the space and the atmosphere—as well as of myself: Where do my strengths lie? How can I make the best use of them?

4. Creative Execution

In a concert, I have to bring all these elements together at exactly the right moment—under intense scrutiny and immense pressure. What appears effortless and playful is, in reality, peak performance.

Through musical examples, I made each of these aspects audible and immediately tangible. The leaders valued this change of perspective. One participant summed it up perfectly:

“As AI increasingly becomes a commodity, these aspects will probably become critical to our success as well. Experiencing them from a different perspective—and on an emotional level—makes their relevance to our own work immediately tangible.”