A man sat at a Metro station in Washington, D.C. and started to play the violin one cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces over the course of about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, thousands of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.

After the first three minutes a middle-aged man noticed the musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried on to meet his schedule.

A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip; a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping, continued to walk.

A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.

The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother tried to hurry him along, but the child stopped to watch the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.

In the 45 minutes the musician played, a total of only 6 people stopped and stayed for any amount of time. Twenty people gave him money while continuing to walk at their normal pace. He collected a total of $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded or gave him any recognition.

None of the listeners knew that the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the world's greatest musicians. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written with a violin that was worth 3.5 million dollars.

Two days before he played in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100.

This is a real story. The Washington Post commissioned Joshua Bell to play incognito in the Metro station as part of a social experiment about the perception, taste and priorities of people.

So, here is the key question:

If we do not have a moment to stop and recognize one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing or have we framed out?

Our perception (or frame) often holds certain conditioned references or responses. Most people's frame-of-reference views musicians in Metro stations as bums looking for handouts, which of course is a shame since in this instance it blocked out some of the best music they may have ever heard.

In 2011, let's open our eyes (and ears) to new opportunities, new ways of leading, new ways of learning, and new ways to create your BEST GAME!