Is your conference content like an encyclopedia, a textbook or a report? Does your conference promote content-centric or learner-centric design? Unfortunately, most conferences default to content-centric design without even knowing it. SMEs Do It Difficultly If your conference prides itself on securing subject matter experts (SMEs) to present information, then consider the following. Your attempt to help attendees learn through SMEs, may actually be a barrier to learning. SMEs naturally … [Read more...]
Considering The Learning Journey At Conferences
Many years ago I taught school during the day and high school dropouts preparing for their GED exam at night. It was a grueling schedule. Yet, it was extremely rewarding. On The Road To GED Every evening, after a long day of teaching, I spent another five hours on my second job at Students For Success: The GED Academy. With many of the students, I had a decent chance of helping them improve their math scores. The reading, social studies and science tests were often more challenging. Why? They … [Read more...]
What Do Yearbooks Have To Do With Presenters And Audiences?
During my three years in high school, I diligently worked on our school yearbook. I even served as assistant editor and editor of our yearbook. I enjoyed the design process including creating each two-page spread layout. I also spent many hours making sure that as many of my peers were pictured in candid shots as possible. Where's Waldo And Jennifer And John And Sharon And...? Every summer, we would have a yearbook distribution day for the previous years' students. Guess what was the first … [Read more...]
Which Would You Rather Attend: A Speech Or A Movie?
Which would you rather attend: A ninety-minute speech or a ninety-minute movie? You've got to be kidding, right? The majority of us would rather go to a movie than a speech. Now, let's put this into a conference context. Given a choice, would you rather go to a two-day film festival or a two-day conference? Again, many of us would choose the film festival over the conference. Unless you just hate films. Why Movies Over A Speech? Why would many of us choose attending a movie over a … [Read more...]
Your Presentation Needs This Strategy To Succeed
There is one important strategy that your presentation must have in order to succeed. Without it, you are guaranteed a fail. Without it, you will not connect with your audience. Without it, your words will fall on deaf ears. Adults learn on a "need-to-know" basis! You have to explain why the listener needs-to-know your information. Solve My Current Problems Now Adults are problem-centric. They come to your presentation looking for an answer to their problem. In most cases, they don't … [Read more...]
From Boring To Beneficial Conference Education
Let's face it. Most conference education is yawn-stirring, sleepy-eyed, ho-hum, day-old soggy Melba-toast tasting boring. It makes root-canals seem fun! Regardless, the human brain loves to learn. In spite of our age, culture, gender and race, our brains are designed to always be on the prowl for new things to discover and experience. The brain is genetically programmed to learn. It's in our DNA. Our brains love to learn! Daydreaming Rules At Most Conferences Amazingly, our brains cannot … [Read more...]
Conference Presenters Can Literally Change Attendees’ Minds
Conference attendees generally want to learn. Presenters generally want attendees to learn. Conference organizers and hosts generally want attendees to learn as well. So why does so little learning actually occur at a conference? Good Intentions Pave The Way To Learning Fail The conference organizers' and presenters' intentions are good. Unfortunately, their intentions go awry because often a disconnect occurs in the "what and how" of learning. Typically, conference organizers spend the … [Read more...]
Do Not Start With The Roof: A How To Blueprint For Your Presentation Content
Imagine you're going to build a house. You don't just start building and add more wood as you proceed. Nor do you start with the roof and build from the top down. You start with a blueprint. You create a detailed and precise plan of what you want your house to be. The blueprint serves as the architecture and engineering design. It's the guide to building the house. Blueprint For Developing Presentation Content It's the same thing with your presentation. You should start with the end in … [Read more...]
