I read a great article today in the Connect Magazine for meeting planners.  I thought I would share it with you here.

Becoming A Better Leader

Companies today often operate with skeleton staffs where employees are asked to juggle multiple jobs with less pay—a recipe for burnout. Whether you manage a staff around you while planning meetings or you started your own events business decades ago, it’s your job to keep the people around you—and yourself—happy. If there is discontent on your team, maybe you need to become a better boss.

Be the Leader You Would Follow

Begin by knowing and understanding yourself. “Know your strengths and weaknesses, your vulnerabilities and your blind spots,” says Jennifer B. Kahnweiler, Ph.D., executive coach and author of “The Introverted Leader.” “Self-awareness helps you to be more effective because you’re able to supplement your team with the people that complement your strengths and weaknesses.”

John Brubaker, performance consultant, speaker and author of “Overtime Victory: Success Strategies from the Locker Room to the Board Room,” says higher-ups should ask themselves one question: What characteristics would I like to see in my people, and how would I like to see them change? Maybe the answer is a positive attitude, greater resilience or servant leadership. Perhaps it’s communication or relationship-building skills. Then cultivate those traits in yourself. “Great companies [have a] person at the top [who] is modeling what he wants from his sales managers, his VP and his customer service representatives,” says Brubaker. “No one is going to buy anything you’re selling unless you own it yourself first.”

Get Personal

Regularly connect with each team member on an individual level. “Get to know the people behind the jobs: what their personalities are like, what their interests are, what makes them tick,” says Kahnweiler. “Know what drives [them] and makes them want to stay and work harder. All effective leaders are great listeners. When they listen they not only build trust and credibility with their teams, but they also, usually, elicit terrific ideas.”

Brubaker points to a real-life example of servant leadership at CleanBrands, where CEO Gary Goldberg does something similar to a physician’s rounds in a hospital. Goldberg goes through the sales department asking, “What’s the one thing I can do right now to help you with what you’re working on?” Every day, he checks in on his employees. “You’re making an investment of your personal time and your willingness to put down what you’re doing, to make sure you help other people,” says Brubaker.

Maximize Your Human Resources

Brubaker and Kahnweiler agree: Great bosses make their people look good. They tune in to their employees’ talents, play up those strengths and maximize each individual’s ability to succeed.

By getting to know, and listening to, your team, you’ll know what motivates them, says Kahnweiler. “For one person, it may be getting to go to a new training course that’s going to ramp up his skills, where [for another person] it might be getting to have some time off so she can be with her kids more. You can then recognize and reward people with what matters to them.”

Kahnweiler encourages deliberate job-design to play up individual strengths. A planner should know, for example, that more introverted team members shouldn’t be placed on a trade-show floor to interact with sponsors and attendees. Rather, that person may be better suited to go behind the scenes and help with logistical planning, office duties and housing issues. “People are motivated when they can use what they already do well.”

Brubaker calls this strategy “the power of one”: the ability to identify and maximize the one thing that a particular employee does better than anybody else. “If you can put each of your people in a role that maximizes [his or her] ability to succeed, you’ll have the right people in the right roles, with the right goals…the basis for a successful team or department,” says Brubaker. “A leader who can help their people discover their unique talents, and channel those into their work, can have unparalleled results.”

By Maria Carter

I hope you found this as helpful as I did.

“The meeting system is broken. We can fix them. Let’s go.” Strong words from Al Pittampalli. In his new book, Read This Before Our Next Meeting, Al is very direct in calling for a change to the way businesses do meetings. I happen to agree with him and enjoyed reading his book.

If you’re a leader, read this book and then think hard before scheduling that next meeting. If you’re not the one calling the meeting, but you still have to go, read this book and then start holding the person leading the meetings accountable for how they utilize/waste your time.

Meetings are still necessary. Just don’t let them get in the way of doing the work. Enjoy Al’s little video intro to his book.

The Modern Meetings Revolution from Al Pittampalli on Vimeo.

When you take a stand on Biblical truth, it’s not a matter of what will you do IF you’re attacked. You will be attacked. People will say terrible things about you, your organization and/or your church. Things that are untrue, mean-spirited and many times, personally hurtful. How do you respond?

In the following video clip, Bill Hybels (Willow Creek Community Church) does a great job of responding to one such attack. The background here revolves around a last minute decision by Howard Schultz, chairman of Starbucks,  to back out of speaking at the recent Global Leadership Summit hosted by Hybels and the Willow Creek Association. Schultz’ decision was a reaction to an online petition to boycot Starbucks if he were to speak. The driving forces behind the petition believed the Willow Creek Association to be ”anti-gay” and thus did not want Schultz to speak at the event.

After watching the video, I’d love to hear what you think. Do you agree with how Hybels responded? If so, why? If not, how would you have responded?

When a potential customer first comes in contact with your ministry or business, do they encounter a selling or buying environment? For many of us, I would venture to say it’s a selling environment. In other words, you center your marketing and sales efforts primarily on you and your product.

While it’s important to tell people about your ministry or business, this should not be the main focus. Instead, concentrate on creating a buying environment, where the focus is on customers and what they want. A great way to create this environment is through building personal relationships with your potential customers.

At LifeWay’s Ridgecrest and Glorieta conference centers, our sales staff emphasize building relationships with both existing and prospective customers. Our desire is for our customers to connect personally with their salesperson. We strongly believe that people buy from people they like and to whom they feel connected. This means that making sales is all about the relationship.

You can do many things to build relationships with your customers, but here are three to focus on first and foremost:

1. Be a good listener. Too many sales people talk too much. If you do all the talking, then you’re creating a selling environment. Remember, it’s not about you and your facility. The goal is to give your attention to the customer and to create a buying environment. Concentrate on asking questions to get to know your customer. This will help build rapport and get the relationship off on the right foot. Find out what’s important to them, what they want, what they need, etc. The more they talk, the more engaged they become in the possibility of buying from you.

2. Partnership. We are a ministry, serving other ministries. We want our customers to know that we see ourselves as their ministry partner. This means we are willing to do whatever we can to help their ministry be successful, even if that means they don’t hold their event or conference with us. Putting their ministry first, above our desire to sell our facilities, helps us demonstrate our commitment to the relationship. Time and time again, this commitment has resulted in groups looking for ways to buy from us.

3. Frequency of contact. It’s difficult to build a personal relationship with someone you only contact once a year. The same is true in business. Most sales people only get in touch with their customers when they need something from them (i.e. a signed contract, a meal guarantee, rooming list, etc.). Instead, focus on maintaining regular, ongoing contact with your customers. These contacts can be in the form of a phone call, an e-mail, a handwritten note or even a link to an article you think they may find helpful. The “how” is not as important as the fact that you are willing to invest time in building the relationship.

A word of caution when it comes to contact frequency: Just as some friends need to be touched more than others, the same is true here. Be sure to get to know your customers well enough that you know how frequently you need to contact them.

Regardless of who the person you’re speaking to is , they all could be potential customers for your organization. How are you building your relationship with them? The answer to that question could go a long way in determining your ministry’s future direction.

Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.

The form that the observance and celebration of Labor Day should take were outlined in the first proposal of the holiday — a street parade to exhibit to the public “the strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations” of the community, followed by a festival for the recreation and amusement of the workers and their families. This became the pattern for the celebrations of Labor Day. Speeches by prominent men and women were introduced later, as more emphasis was placed upon the economic and civic significance of the holiday. Still later, by a resolution of the American Federation of Labor convention of 1909, the Sunday preceding Labor Day was adopted as Labor Sunday and dedicated to the spiritual and educational aspects of the labor movement.

As a guy who’s been to all manner of meetings I would like to speak on behalf of the person in the seat at your next event. You may well know that attendees have a lot more influence now. Social media tools packed into mobile devices give them broadcast, publishing, recording, and distribution accessibility before you’ve even started the program. Have you considered the ramifications of that?

If your event is great, people are likely talking about it. If your event stinks, I guarantee you they’re talking about it. The social media savvy attendee will either be your biggest advocate or your biggest threat and you may never even meet the person.

Suffice it to say, it’s worth knowing what keeps this kind of person happy. Here are seven ways to keep the social media savvy person at your next event:

Give them some space. Nobody likes to be crowded and it’s especially uncomfortable for a long event. Try to let them have as much room as possible while still accommodating the group as a whole. Can you add an extra table or two so there’s more room per person at each table? Is there room for people to spread out in the venue or should the Fire Marshall be concerned? Giving extra space is valuable the personal space conscious attendees out there.

Give them power. If it’s going to be the kind of meeting where they need to plug in laptops, be sure there are enough power outlets within reach. That may mean power strips around the room or reconfiguring the space into power and non-power zones, but at least make it clear where it is and how to get it.

Give them good wireless Internet. Events are notorious for bad wireless Internet connections. The people most likely to talk about your event are the very people who will be frustrated with a poor connection. Ramp up your wireless signal in anticipation of a group that might use it a lot and don’t even think about charging them for access. You’ll never hear the end of that.

Give them good food. Ben Franklin once said, “A full stomach makes a man happy.” Actually, he never said that but he should have. Food is tricky but they want quality and quantity. If it’s a lunch or dinner please don’t serve that chicken dish with the funny sauce. Get good food and keep it coming. P.S. Nobody eats the radishes in the salads either.

Give them a super-simple schedule. When they arrive at an event make the schedule simple. Time, location, event, done! Let them dig into the details elsewhere. A cheat sheet version of the schedule is really nice to keep them on track. You get bonus points if you create a mobile version of the schedule, a downloadable PDF that’s mobile friendly, or a version they can sync to their calendar.

Give them real-time information. You may not know this but there’s an entire channel of dialog happening behind the scenes whether you want it to or not. You can join this dialog or choose to observe, but either way you should watch the Twitter feed. Try using Twitter search or a tool like CoTweet to monitor conversation. If you provide a hashtag for the event you’ll make monitoring even easier and be appreciated by the attendees also.

Give them a fast pass. Believe it or not, people don’t like to feel like cattle. Herding is rarely appreciated but is still a common aspect to attending events. Have you considered ways to let some people in early? Is there a way to beat the rush? Can an additional entrance be opened? Think about rewarding the people who get there early with early entrance or at the very least do something nice for people while they wait like handing out doughnuts. If they’re going to be cattle at least give them some hay.

Bill Seaver is the founder of MicroExplosion Media and has consulted numerous organizations to help them understand and apply social media into their marketing initiatives.

Here are a few good books we have been reading here at LifeWay Conference Centers.  We’d love to hear what you’ve been reading, please share a few of your good books in the comments…

Same Kind of Different as Me
By Ron Hall, Denver Moore and Lynn Vincent

It begins outside a burning plantation hut in Louisiana… and an East Texas honky-tonk… and, without a doubt, in the heart of God. It unfolds in a Hollywood hacienda… an upscale New York Gallery… a downtown dumpster… a Texas ranch.  Gritty with pain and betrayal and brutality, it also shines with an unexpected, life-changing love.

Linchpin
By Seth Godin

In bestsellers such as Purple Cow and Tribes, Seth Godin taught readers how to make remarkable products and spread powerful ideas.  But this book is different.  It’s about you – your choices, your future, and your potential to make a huge difference in whatever field you choose.

The Millennials
By Thom S. Rainer and Jess W. Rainer

At more than 78 million strong, the Millennials—those born between 1980 and 2000—have surpassed the Boomers as the larger and more influential generation in America. Now, as its members begin to reach adulthood, where the traits of a generation really take shape, best-selling research author Thom Rainer (Simple Church) and his son Jess (a Millennial born in 1985) present the first major investigative work on Millennials from a Christian worldview perspective.

Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die
By Chip Heath and Dan Heath

Made to Stick is a book that will transform the way you communicate ideas. It’s a fast-paced tour of idea success stories (and failures)—the Nobel Prize-winning scientist who drank a glass of bacteria to prove a point about stomach ulcers; the charities who make use of the Mother Teresa Effect; the elementary-school teacher’s simulation that actually prevented prejudice . Provocative, eye-opening, and funny, Made to Stick shows us the principles of successful ideas at work—and how we can apply these rules to making our own messages “stick.”

Today We Are Rich:  Harnessing the Power of Total Confidence
By Tim Sanders

A decade after his meteoric rise in the business world, Tim realized that his success and generosity stemmed from his confidence, taught to him as a child by his grandmother, a remarkable person named Billye. She taught him that rich was the belief that “you have enough to go around, enough to share. And when we share, we are worth something.” She knew from her experiences, including the Great Depression, that the key was to possess total confidence: In yourself, the others you rely on and a power greater than yourself.

UnMarketing: Stop Marketing. Start Engaging.
By Scott Stratten

UnMarketing shows you how to unlearn the old ways and consistently attract and engage the right customers. You’ll stop just pushing out your message and praying that it sticks somewhere. Potential and current customers want to be listened to, validated, and have a platform to be heard-especially online. With UnMarketing, you’ll create such a relationship with your customers, and make yourself the logical choice for their needs.

Late last year, I wrote a post entitled “Ready Or Not, The Smartphone Revolution Is Coming“. With the recent launches of the Verizon iPhone 4, the latest generation of Droid devices and now, the first of the 4G smartphones, I think it’s pretty safe to say the revolution has arrived.

Now that more and more of us are walking around with smartphones, the tendency for them to become major distractions will only continue to increase. You know what I’m talking about. The guy who plays Angry Birds in the back of the room during a meeting. The lady at lunch who’s continually checking email rather than joining in conversation. The bozo texting while weaving in and out of rush hour traffic on I-65.  Not that you or I would ever do these things, but you get my drift.

So, for those of you new to smartphones and a reminder for those who aren’t, here are 3 smartphone etiquette guidelines you need to follow. By doing so you will endear yourself to friends, family, co-workers and total strangers alike.

1. Don’t multi-task. I use to tell my wife that I was perfectly capable of eating breakfast, reading the paper, watching ESPN and talking to her at the same time. Guess how that worked out? Same’s true for trying to text, read emails or surf the web while carrying on a conversation with the person in front of you. Just doesn’t work. All you’re doing is telling the person you’re with they are not as important as your smartphone.
2. Use spell check or slow down on the typing. Remember, every message you send out is a reflection of you, both personally and professionally. Don’t be like a certain Nashville area student pastor who has earned a reputation for butchering his tweets. (It’s OK. We still love you!) The fact you’re using a smartphone, with it’s tiny keyboard, does not excuse typos.
3. Don’t be a lap reader. You know what I’m talking about here. The guy in the meeting who always has his head down because he’s focused on his smartphone and not the meeting. It’s pretty hard to be engaged when everyone else knows what you’re doing. Don’t be that person.

In the interest of full disclosure, I have to confess I do pretty well with #2, but have definitely been guilty of #’s 1 and 3. What about you?



A few weeks ago, I read a post on CVENT entitled “10 Things I Love About Meeting Planners“. The author of the post listed 10 things they loved about meeting planners and why.

As I read the post, I couldn’t help but think how difficult it would be for a planner to live up to all 10 of the things listed. Doing so would pretty much make them perfect in the eyes of others in the meeting world. A pretty high standard, don’t you think?

While none of us will ever be perfect, I thought it might be helpful if I listed some of the things she loved about meeting planners and then asked a few questions to help you gauge whether or not someone might find those lovable traits in you.

• Always Prepared – How organized are you? Do you wait to the last minute to plan your event? Do you take time to come up with contingency plans for when things don’t go quite like you expect them to?
• Composed- When things hit the fan, how do you react? Are you cool as a rule, or do you let people see you sweat?
• Wired for Possibilities- Are you a glass half full, or half empty kind of person? Do you see possibilities where others see only obstacles and reasons why something won’t work?
• People Connectors – Do you enjoy putting people together?
• Generous Hearts – Are you a go-giver? Do you keep your eyes open for the quiet people at your event? What about looking out for those in need?
• Extra-Mile Team Players – If you commit to do something, does it happen? On time? Are you willing to do whatever you can to ensure the success of your event? Even if that means taking on the least desirable tasks?
• Friendly & Fun – Is that how people would describe you? Do you run around your event with a smile on your face, or are you always looking serious?

As a meeting planner, what other lovable traits do you want people to find in you?

Before answering, or shooting fiery arrows in my direction, let me explain why I’m asking this question. I recently read an article on LifeWay’s Women Reaching Women blog that got me thinking. (Those of you who know me, know how dangerous this can be!)

The article was entitled “The Spin for the Women’s Ministry Leader“, and it was aimed at getting women’s ministry leaders to stop and think about how they are doing ministry. To make her point, the author told of an experience she had in a Spin class where the handlebars on her bike became wobbly. As she tried to fix them, she found herself turning the adjustment knob in all directions, to no avail. As the handlebars were coming off in her hands she heard a voice say, “Turning the knob is not going to help anything. It is obviously broken”.

“Wow!” In the business world, I was taught that doing the same thing over and over again, while expecting different results, was a classic definition of insanity. Her point was that this is true in ministry as well. Because we’re out front as leaders, we’re often not willing to change direction, stop what’s not working, ask for help or utilize the talents and ideas of others.

So, when it comes to your events, are you insane? Do you have an event that is declining? Too often the tendency is to think if we just work harder and promote better, attendance will be up this year. That may be true, but several years of declining attendance could also mean the event is dying.

Events are a product and like all products, have a life cycle. Launch, ramp up, plateau, decline, end. The key is to know where you are in the life cycle of the event. If attendance for your event has been declining, here are several questions you need to be asking yourself and your planning team:

• Is there still a need for this event?
• Why are people not attending?
• Has the program grown stale?
• Am I still excited about this event, or just going through the motions?

Just because your event is in decline doesn’t necessarily mean it needs to go away. Business journals are full of case studies where companies have been successful in extending the life cycle of their key products.  However I’d be willing to wager that very few were successful just doing the same old, same old and expecting different results.

Thoughts?