For What It’s Worth…Was It Worth It?

August 31, 2012 By 3 Comments

Your event is over and you’ve (mostly) recuperated from the physical and mental demands of planning and holding your event.  Was it worth it?

Here are three key factors to consider when answering this question:

  • Results: Was the event’s purpose (which is likely aligned with the organization’s purpose) achieved?  For a Christian event, were the spiritual purposes of the event accomplished?
  • Feedback from attendees:  Consider both anecdotal and more formal responses, like surveys, that you requested.
  • Financial Outcome: In this area, the bottom line is, well, the bottom line.

Whereas secular events don’t hesitate to include all of the above factors when assessing an event’s worth, sometimes Christians are hesitant to consider the financial outcome because it doesn’t seem as spiritually-focused as the others.

In our office, we always consider the financial outcome along with the first two factors once an event concludes.  We do this not only because we are part of a self-sustaining ministry that must fund itself through business principles, but also because the Biblical principle of stewardship encourages us to use our funds, time, and talents in a wise manner.  “It was worth it all if only one life was changed” has merit, but so does considering how we might have an even greater kingdom impact with the resources consumed by that event if we apply them differently in the future.

We don’t expect every event to be financially profitable every year, as potential for growth and future impact are always considered.  And, the profitability of an event does not automatically trump other considerations when determining an event’s worth, as there are numerous events we could plan that would be financially beneficial but not align with our purpose.  An event that falls within the intersection where attendees’ goals are met, our purposes are accomplished, and we exhibit wise stewardship has the potential to greatly impact lives both now and in the future.

Filed Under: Budget and Pricing, Leadership Helps, Post-Event Follow-up Tagged With: , , , , ,

Don’t Let Your Event Attendees Get Bored During Free Time!

August 29, 2012 By Leave a Comment

You know how conferences need to have free time in between activities and speakers? Well, they also need to have free time elsewhere. If you plan too much, your attendees could feel overwhelmed and are even more likely to skip an activity or simply not pay attention to a speaker. Here are some tips on how to give them the free time they need to focus, enjoy the conference, and simply stay awake.

First, you need to make sure you actually leave some free time. This can be done in a variety of ways. You can start every day at noon to give your guests all morning to relax and explore the conference center or town. You can end one day a little early to give them a night free to try a different restaurant. You can even give them a long lunch one day to pray or hike. Some of this will depend on what activities you have planned, what the weather is like, and what part of the world you are in.

To go along with that, check out what there is to do in the area, and give them an easy-to-read, organized, and extensive list or brochure of the cool activities, noteworthy restaurants, and distinctive places in town (and even at your own venue) to check out. You can learn what’s around by simply calling the site and asking a customer service representative. You can also check out some websites (even their own) to see what’s in town.

What else can you do to help? Provide local transportation information (taxi numbers, bus schedules, etc.), local area maps, prices of each restaurant and activity, directions and addresses to suggested destinations, and any other insider or “local” tips that the venue’s customer service can give you. While some attendees might want to stay in their rooms during free time, encourage them to take advantage of the situation. Your guests will thank you for the hospitality.

What else do you do to help attendees enjoy free time at a conference?

Filed Under: Activities/Recreation, Christian Retreat Ideas, Meeting Set-Up Tagged With: , , , , ,

3 Ways To Ensure Positive Team Building

August 27, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Planning an effective team building retreat can be a daunting task.  Organizing activities to foster creativity and group participation to generate new ideas is tough. Here are  3 ideas to keep in mind while leading any team building event to ensure a positive experience for everyone involved.

Build Trust – Trust is a huge part of life, no matter if you’re at work or at home. If you don’t have trust, communication and collaboration will also be nonexistent. If some people aren’t participating, or they’re getting their few ideas shot down, it’s going to be hard for them to trust the group. Keep an eye out for this and remind them how it’s done!

Increase Communication– Communication is a huge piece of team building, and also a giant part of any group work. The fact that everyone understands what is going on, who is in charge of what, what the exact goals are, and what steps to take to get there, is crucial. As the “boss” or “planner,” talk to your groups, be available to listen to their comments, and invite questions from staff, coworkers, and other guests.

Boost Collaboration –Some people work best when collaborating with others, while others excel working alone with little to no outside help. If you’re having a corporate team building retreat, or any kind of retreat that focuses on team building, a lot of independence needs be left at the metaphorical door. Team building is all about learning together, growing together, and working together. While conducting your team building strategies, keep an eye on people who are trying to take over the conversation or group, and encourage everyone to participate.

Keeping these 3 ideas in mind during team building activities will ensure positive results.

How have you implemented these ideas with  your team?

Filed Under: Leadership Helps, Teambuilding Tagged With: , , ,

Overworked At Work?

August 24, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Feeling a little overworked at work? Trying to squeeze 60 hours of work into a 40 hour work week? If you answered no to both of those questions, count yourself very fortunate. In today’s economic times, a company or organization trying to squeeze more productivity out of fewer employees is quite the norm.

I don’t know about you, but when I’m feeling overworked I tend to push the blame for that elsewhere. I think I sometimes fall victim to this tendency because it’s easier to complain and blame others instead of taking responsibility. In today’s guest post, Jason Dyba (creative director at Long Hollow Baptist Church) takes an honest look at why being overworked may just be our own fault and then gives some great suggestions on how to overcome being overworked.

I hate it when my boss assigns me a ton of work, more than can feasibly done in the allotted time. I hate when he/she has no clue what is required to accomplish such a task. I hate when no one helps me on projects that are beyond a 1-person job. And, most of all, I hate when the entirety of this problem is really my fault. 

 You see, over time I’ve realized that if my primary response to being overworked is… (read entire post here)

When feeling overworked, what works for you in reducing that tension?

Filed Under: Leadership Helps Tagged With: , , , ,

What Did I Learn On That Retreat Again?

August 22, 2012 By Leave a Comment

A retreat is meant to be a calming time where kids and adults feel closer to our Lord Jesus Christ. While at the retreat, it’s easy to feel the rush that comes along with the exciting weekend. But, once you get home, that high wears off, and it’s easy to fall back into your everyday routine. As a pastor, speaker, or event planner, you want to do everything possible to make attendees feel God’s love and implement the lessons learned weeks, months, and years after a retreat.

In a blog titled, “3 Ways to Make Retreat Lessons Memorable,” we discussed what to do during a retreat to help attendees after the event. (Go read that if you haven’t!) Now that you’ve applied all of those ideas, here are some tips on what you (the pastor, leader, etc) can do after the retreat to help your guests keep the retreat message in the minds.

  1. Send an informative email to the attendees of what you did that week. If you didn’t give an outline or notes during the retreat, you can give them after. Talk about what lessons were learned, what discussions were had and what activities were present. If possible, writing personalized notes to each attendee would be a nice touch as well.
  2. In the email, you can also (with consent) send a list of contact information of all staff, volunteers, and attendees. Having the names and phone numbers (and Facebook URLs) of other people could easily create long-lasting friendships between anyone at the retreat.
  3. Mailing out a DVD is another option to remind attendees of what was taught. Listening to the worship part of the retreat can mentally bring attendees back to the event very quickly, giving them the same overwhelming feeling of Jesus all over again.
  4. I was discussing this topic with a friend, and he gave me the best idea of all: Have each attendee write a letter to their future selves. During a break or at an activity, have guests write a letter to themselves about the event: how they feel, what they’re learning, and reminders of how they see the world at that exact moment. Then you can mail these letters a few weeks or months later.

Any other tips to keep the retreat feeling alive after it’s over?

Filed Under: Leadership Helps, Post-Event Follow-up Tagged With: , , , , , , ,
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