When Opinion By Committee Can Lead You Astray October 22, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Last night we went to a local chain restaurant. It wasn’t great. It wasn’t bad. It was average at best. After our meal, I told others about my visit. My relatives all had an opinion about the restaurant. So did my spouse and my friends. I started to post a comment in Facebook to ask … [Read more…] Filed Under: Experience Design Tagged With: , association best practices, committee best practices, committees, decision-making, opinions, thinking
Conference Education’s Dirty Little Secret October 21, 2014 by Jeff Hurt All conference education has a dirty little secret. And it’s bigger and dirtier than most. The big skeleton in the conference closet is that most attendees will forget the majority of what they hear during the event. The current design of the education session sabotages your learning and retention. Let’s Waste The Company’s Money No … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , adult education, adult learning principles, conference best practices, education best practices, speaker tips
2015 Customers, Social Media And The Hospitality Industry [Infographic] October 17, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Does customer service belong on social media or not? As the debate continues, take a look at how social media customer service may evolve over the next year within the hospitality industry. Image compliments of Best Hospitality Degrees Filed Under: Social Media Tagged With: , hospitality industry, social media and customer service
The Tragic All Too Common Brain Busting Conference Lecture October 16, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Have you seen the Gary Larson cartoon of the student asking if he can be excused because his brain is full? As author Roy Pollock points out, it’s funny as a cartoon. However overwhelming a listener’s brain is a tragic and wasteful problem that happens in many education sessions. Especially conference keynotes and breakouts. Jam … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , brain-friendly conferences, cognitive overload, conference best practices, Education & Adult Learning, lecture
Conference Education Sessions Must Override Attendees’ Need For Predictability October 14, 2014 by Jeff Hurt We are hard-wired to be like the Fraggles. But we are better off being like the the Doozers. Be A Doozer Not A Fraggle If you’ve ever watched the 80s tv show Fraggle Rock, you know the Fraggles and Doozers. The colorful, fur tuft tipped tail Fraggles only have a 30-minute work week. They dedicated … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education, Experience Design Tagged With: , association best practices, brain-friendly conferences, change, change management, conference best practices, conferences, meeting, meeting planner, strategic planning
Do Millennials Prefer Virtual Meetings? No! Face To Face Matters! [Infographic] October 10, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Conventional wisdom says that millennials prefer virtual and digital meetings over face to face ones. According to this infographic, compiled by CT Business Travel and NeoMam Studios, a digital design studio 78% of Gen Xers & 80% of millennials say they actually prefer in-person communication with their colleagues. 87% of all professionals believe that face-to-face … [Read more…] Filed Under: Hybrid & Virtual Tagged With: , digital events, face to face meetings, hybrid meetings, Millennial, virtual meetings
Four Objections To Changing Conference Education And Experiences October 9, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Change freaks many of us out! We fear it. We ignore it. We refuse to accept it. It’s really not change that freaks us out. It’s the unknown of the outcome. It’s so much easier to keep things the same because we know the results. Defining Change According to psychologist and therapist Roger S. Gil, … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , association best practices, change, change management, conference best practices, conferences, meeting, meeting planner, strategic planning
Walk A Mile In Your Attendees’ Shoes To Improve Their Experience And Increase Your Empathy October 7, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Improving your empathy is a key to increasing your conference profit. Many conference organizers and hosts think that empathy has no place in their conference business. They believe that registration systems, schedules, speaker management tools, marketing, social media and conference attendee, exhibitor and sponsor forecasts are more important. But their view is wrong. At least … [Read more…] Filed Under: Experience Design Tagged With: , attendee experience, conference best practices, conference experience, customer empathy, meeting professional, strategic empathy
We Are Drawn To Effortless Education Which Results In Temporary, Fleeting Illusions Of Grandeur October 3, 2014 by Jeff Hurt There are no shortcuts to learning. Yet, we believe there are. We rush to see the top 20 tips in 60 minutes. Or the six best pointers an expert has learned from their own success. Our brains love lists. And our brains will take the easy route to alleged learning anytime. The Illusion Of Knowing … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education Tagged With: , adult learning principles, adult learning strategies, conference best practices, conference education, education best practices, list education sessions
Is Your Success Dependent Upon Proving You Are Smart Or Learning? October 1, 2014 by Jeff Hurt I don’t divide the world into the weak and the strong, or successes and failures… I divide the world into learners and non-learners. ~ Sociologists Benjamin Barber. Your Drive To Learn All babies are eager to learn says Stanford professor, neuroscience researcher and author Dr. Carol Dweck. “You never see an unmotivated baby,” she says. … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education Tagged With: , adult learning principles, change, fixed mindset, growth mindset, learning, mindset
