Conferences Can Cultivate Curiosity Or The Cult Of Expertise Groupies November 18, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Everyone seems to be looking for the next sure thing. We like answers. We seek quick remedies. We attend conferences looking for shortcut solutions with big payouts. We expend a lot of energy to find tips to the trade, keys to success, or hacks that provide instant results. The less we have to work at … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , attendee engagement, conferences, curiosity, engagement, meeting planner, presentation best practices, presentation strategies
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
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
Crank Up Your Conference Emotional Intensity With Bright Lights April 3, 2014 by Jeff Hurt Forget about turning down the lights to set the mood for your opening general session. Why? It’s the perfect way to disengage and dial back your attendees’ emotions. If you want to emotionally connect and increase your audience’s emotional intensity, a University of Toronto study says you need to turn lights up bright! Bright Lights … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , attendee engagement, conferences, engagement, general sessions, meeting planner, meeting professionals
These Conference Presentation Myths Cramp The Attendee Experience November 19, 2013 by Jeff Hurt Most conference organizers see attendees as consumers of the conference’s information. Little thought is given to seeing attendees as active participants in their own learning and experience. 8 Myths That Restrict The Attendee Experience Here are eight conference presentation myths that you should avoid. Myth 1: The lecture or panel best serves all conference attendees. … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education, Speaker Coaching Tagged With: , active learning, active participation, association, conferences, Education & Adult Learning, engagement, learning myths, meeting planner, presentation myths, Speaker Emerging Practices
21st Century Revolutionary Conferences Have Transformed The Traditional Education Session October 21, 2013 by Jeff Hurt Conferences that focus primarily on lecture-based methods are becoming increasingly difficult to defend! There is ample evidence that the lecture creates phony learning, along with the inability to retain and apply what has been heard. Packed conference sessions and smile-sheet summary evaluations only indicate that attendees can successfully sit through dreary lectures. It does not … [Read more…] Filed Under: Conference Education Tagged With: , active learning, conference best practices, conference education, conferences, meeting planner, meeting professionals, trends
Conference Organizers Should Be Great CEOs: Chief Experience Officers! September 16, 2013 by Jeff Hurt What do conference organizers really do? They organize all the aspects of the conference experience. I believe that title—conference organizer–doesn’t serve us anymore. It doesn’t convey the right information as putting together logistics is like putting together quilt pieces without any plan. It’s just stitching pieces together and crossing your fingers that it will result … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , conference best practices, conference experience, conferences, event experience, Innovation, meeting planner, meeting professionals
Bringing The Sexy Back To Conferences [And Conference Planning] September 12, 2013 by Jeff Hurt If you have ever attended a conference, you know how most of them feel. They start with a general session, followed by a break, followed by concurrent breakouts, followed by a lunch, followed by exhibits followed by an evening activity. Rinse. Lather. Repeat for a couple more days. They all feel the same and follow … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , conference best practices, conferences, Innovation, meeting planner, meeting professionals
Meeting Planner, You Are Responsible For The Outcomes Of Your Decisions April 29, 2013 by Jeff Hurt This post is inspired by Mike Monteiro’s LeWeb 2012 presentation How Designers Destroyed The World which has application to all professions. Meeting planner, you are responsible for the work you put into that meeting. And you are responsible for the effects that work has upon that meeting. Meeting Planners Are Gate Keepers Of Conferences Meeting … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , meeting planner, meeting planning best practices, meeting professional
Fighting Cynicism As A Meeting Professional April 26, 2013 by Jeff Hurt Cynicism is contagious! So is hope! Which do you display the most? Cynicism or hope? And if you work with others that are true cynics, do NOT forward this post to them. It will just make matters worse. Cynicism Is A Luxury You Can’t Afford Cynicism is an ugly lavishness that you don’t need. It … [Read more…] Filed Under: Event Planning Tagged With: , conferences, meeting planner, meeting planning best practices, meeting professional
