From Our President

THE VALUE OF ALIGNMENT

As singers, we understand the importance of proper body alignment to the production of good vocal sound. In fact, we focus on it a great deal when first learning how to make it a routine singing habit. Where are my feet? Are my knees soft, is my sternum lifted, what’s going on with my pelvis, ribs, shoulders and arms? What about my neck and chin? So many elements of the body to tend to, and so much to think about when first learning those basic principles of good alignment and what it feels like to achieve it. We make and take the time to learn it because we know it’s crucial to the singing process. How many of you have watched a voice teacher adjust the length of the singer’s neck or the position of their chin by a mere millimeter and then hear the singer’s sound completely free up and change noticeably? Alignment matters.

Of course, alignment matters in many areas of life and in the world in which we live. My car’s tires need to be aligned or I’ll be buying new ones sooner than I’d like! Parents spend thousands of dollars getting their children’s teeth aligned, chiropractors make a living aligning spines, and we hope and pray that our planets are forever aligned! Don’t you love it when, driving down long streets with lots of traffic lights, the lights are totally aligned with the speed at which you are driving? Yes! Alignment is good, it makes things work, it makes things easier, it helps create success.

Organizations know the importance of alignment, too. In particular, they know how important it is that an organization’s mission aligns with its core essential values and that all activities undertaken by the organization are aligned with and driven by that mission and those values. This kind of alignment provides clarity of purpose, action and outcome. It ensures that the flock flies in formation, never at cross purposes, and that the organization’s precious resources are expended effectively.

Throughout its almost 75 years of existence, Sweet Adelines International has performed many an alignment check—ensuring that at any point in our history our values are aligned to our mission and to our strategic goals. We are undergoing such a process now. Fueled by member input and outsourced research collected over the last two years, the Sweet Adelines International Visioning Retreat held last November kicked off a robust realignment of the values, mission and strategic priorities that will guide us into the next 10 years of harmonizing the world. This creative and collaborative process is exciting and revitalizing, generating new energy in all that we do. And, just as when learning how to align our bodies for singing we must focus on the many details of what we are doing, realigning an organization’s essential values to its strategic efforts takes time, dedication, and concentrated thought. The Visioning Team has worked extensively on creating a 10-year vision and its five guiding principles for our organization. Those crucially aligned statements will guide everything that we do over the next ten years. In June, the International Board of Directors will update our current strategic plan guided by this vision and its fundamental values. When complete, this comprehensive work will provide our roadmap to the future. It’s a very exciting time to be a Sweet Adeline!

In harmony,

Patty Cobb Baker International President