Some error occured while loading the Quick View. Please close the Quick View and try reloading the page.
How do we design for connection?
A sense of belonging is not a nice-to-have but a fundamental human need. At work, at home and in our communities, belonging shapes our health, wellbeing and ability to thrive. Yet as society becomes increasingly individualized and workplaces evolve, many people are left feeling disconnected and isolated.
The Choir Effect introduces 12 practical principles for building trust, connection and belonging, drawn from scientific research, real-world examples and lived experience. Inspired by the remarkable bonding effects of communal singing, it explores what singing together reveals about human nature and translates those insights into practical tools for application in our everyday lives. Discover how to create environments where people feel safe, valued and connected, whether leading a team, strengthening personal relationships or building a community.
At a time when loneliness, polarization and social fragmentation are on the rise, The Choir Effect offers a timely and hopeful response. Combining compelling stories, accessible research and practical exercises, it provides a framework for creating shared experiences that foster trust, connection and belonging.
James Sills is an award-winning musician, author, speaker and choirstarter whose work centres on using the collective singing experience as a tool for human connection and transformation. He partners with organisations including Coca-Cola, Lloyds Bank and the NHS, designing large-scale singing events that build trust, culture and belonging.
James is a TEDx speaker, the author of Do Sing: Reclaim Your Voice. Find Your Singing Tribe (Do Book Co.), and a regular contributor to TV, radio and print media, including the BBC, NBC and Psychologies magazine. In 2020, he founded Sofa Singers, a global online singing community that brought thousands of people together during the Covid-19 pandemic, earning him a UK Government Points of Light Award.
He is currently the musical director of Bantam of the Opera, a BBC-founded project that has taken fifty Bradford City football supporters from stadium to stage, with performances for King Charles III, BBC Sports Personality of the Year and the FA Cup Final at Wembley.
Introduction
The Belonging Gap
What Singing Teaches Us
From Insight To Action – How To Use This Book
Part One – Transient Belonging
Intro: What is transient belonging?
Principle One: Build The Container
Principle Two: Start With Trust
Principle Three: Set The Energy
Part Two – Tribal Belonging
Intro: What is tribal belonging?
Principle Four: Establish Shared Rituals
Principle Five: Balance The ‘Me’ With ‘We’
Principle Six: Be A Participant, Not An Observer
Part Three – Transformative Belonging
Intro: What is transformative belonging?
Principle Seven: Synchrony Creates Deep Bonds
Principle Eight: Listen Deeply
Principle Nine: Lean Into Vulnerability
Part Four – Transcendent Belonging
Intro: What is transcendent belonging?
Principle Ten: Find A Common Purpose
Principle Eleven: Find The Flow
Principle Twelve: Create Moments Of Peak Connection
What Next?