Keep your eye on your inbox soon for an email full of updates on changes happening in the Engage365 community, along with unveiling the community’s new look and features.

Starting today, there will be no new content or articles posted until we unveil our reinvigorated community update. You can still access any existing articles and content, your profile, messages and more, but nothing new will be posted by our internal team until . We encourage you to still dive into conversations, network with peers and read through the existing materials while we gear up for an rousing 2012.

Stayed tuned – we will have lots to share.

The Engage365 Team

There’s science to back it up.

Edward Glaeser, in his book Triumph of the City, cites a University of Michigan study in which researchers organized groups of people and asked them to play a game requiring cooperation.  The researchers organized one set of groups that played the game face to face; and another set of groups that played by communicating electronically.

The face-to-face groups thrived; the e-groups collapsed.

Togetherness magnifies people’s strengths, Glaeser concludes.

That’s why companies located in the geographic center of their industries are more productive; why workers who live in cities see their wages grow faster than others’; and why inventors are inspired by other inventors who live in the same community.  And it’s why, far from failing in the Internet Era, cities are blossoming.

“Humans communicate best when they are physically brought togther,” Glaeser says.

Wired columnist Jonah Lehrer points to a second study by Harvard Medical School that asked whether physical proximity affects the quality of scientific research.

The researchers analyzed 35,000 peer-reviewed papers, mapping the location of every co-author.  The results showed that, when co-authors were located close together, their papers tended to be of the highest quality (as measured by the number of subsequent citations).

“For whatever reason, electronic interactions are not (at least not yet) a substitute for the real world,” writes Lehrer.

“Our most important new ideas typically don’t arrive on a screen.  Rather, they emerge from idle conversation, from too many people sharing the same space.”

(Photo by statianzo)

Can we simply adapt and apply old skills to new contexts? Or do we need to learn new ways of thinking, doing and being?

One thing is certain. Our nonprofit institutions are dynamic, complex systems embedded within an even more dynamic, complex übersystem: human society.

The Traditional Nonprofit Conference Scenario

Consider the following typical conference scenario:

After registering for a conference and paying a fee, Sue travels to the headquarters city and hotel. (The conference is closed to individuals unless you can afford to pay.)

Once onsite, she makes her way to a large ballroom with theater seating for the opening general session. (Sue is tethered to this place and time if she wants to attend the presentation.)

Talking to others during the presentation is taboo and the host organization has a strict “lids down, mobile devices off” policy to help attendees focus on the content. (Sue is isolated from her friends even though she is surrounded by colleagues and wireless Internet access is available. Leaders forbid attendees from using those resources during sessions.)

Having read the final printed conference program (analog materials) describing the experience and education, Sue joins 1,500 others in listening to a 60-minute lecture. (Every registrant is a consumer of the same one-size-fit-all generic information regardless of their years of industry experience.)

The Everyday Experience Of A Conference Attendee

Now consider Sue’s experience during the rest of the day:

From her hotel room, the conference center, the coffee shop, the restaurant and bus, Sue connects to the Internet via her smartphone, tablet device and laptop. (Sue is mobile.)

She searches for information (digital resources are open for her to freely access) relevant to the conference’s presentations.

She texts with friends to see which education sessions they will attend. In some cases, she sets up onsite meetups with people in her social networks. (She is connected to other people.)

She posts in social networks questions about conference speakers and presentations. (She is connected to online communities.)

Her social connections respond with links to related information. (Her social networks are connected to content.) She skims the electronic materials (reading only what is important to her personally).

Later that evening at a meetup, she shares with her friends what she discovered about tomorrow’s speakers and presentations (creating and participating in the teaching process.)

6 Nonprofit Disconnects With Our Everyday Lives

People’s everyday lives are often drastically different than our nonprofit programs and services. It’s critical that our nonprofit institutions recognize, understand and adapt to these changes.

(These six society categories were first identified by David Wiley, 2006. I’ve changed the headings to apply to nonprofits.)

Nonprofit institutions once held a monopoly on industry specific information, subject matter experts and communities of likeminded individuals.

Today, nonprofit institutions are being challenged in each of their major functional areas:

• Access to specific content and information
• Education programs
• Research materials
• Hubs of likeminded individuals
• Advocacy issues

With no monopoly position and no bailout coming, are nonprofit institutions so arrogant as to really believe they are immune to what is happening in the ubersystem?

Tomorrow: More information about these six trends and the changing context of nonprofit institutions.

Which of these six categories will be the most difficult for nonprofits to address and why? How can nonprofit leadership help staff and other leaders change core organizational value to remain meaningful to individual’s everyday lives?

Posted with permission of Jeff Hurt. Originally posted at: http://jeffhurtblog.com/2011/09/28/disrupting-conferences-6-nonprofit-institution-disconnects/

(Photo by dogwelder)

Everyone has a good time and enjoys each other’s company, but at the end of the night most everyone goes home. And it’s possible you may never connect again with some of the people you had a really great time chatting with. But when you know you’d like to keep in touch with someone, you often exchange contact info. It’s really no different from how you should be thinking about building your email list using social media. It’s natural for interested people to move from the social arena to the more engaged space of the email inbox.

Earlier in the month, managing editor Martin Lieberman offered seven ways to build your email list on social media. Today, I’m going to add seven more to mix for you, but from the perspective of what happens once these people take that next step to learn more about you by visiting your website:

1. Include a link to your Join My Mailing List  form on all pages of your website. It’s great to have this link on your homepage, but if you’ve been off creating engaging content for other pages, then it’s possible your website visitors may never make it to the homepage because they’re too busy consuming the other stuff you’ve made for them. Don’t miss an opportunity to gain a new subscriber by not having the link where your site visitors are hanging out.

2. Make it about the value not the list. It’s easy to get obsessed about the list itself. When this happens it becomes about you and not about what your subscriber is going to get for turning over his or her email address. Focus on why someone should join. In your newsletters, encourage current subscribers to continue the discussion on social media. Better yet, be part of that conversation. This way, others will see what they’re missing and will sign up for your list.

3.  Keep your sign up form simple. Here’s an interesting statistic: Forms that take longer than 45 seconds to fill out and submit have an average fall off of 48% (Worldata Email Usage Study Q4 2010). Only ask for the information that is absolutely necessary and that you know you are going to use. Then time yourself filling out the form to see how long it will take someone else.

4. Post your privacy policy. Let people know they are only signing up for your email list, and that you won’t use their information for other purposes. Making this policy available offers an additional layer of trust to the email exchange. Remember, someone may be visiting your site for the first time. More trust equals more sign-ups.

5.  Remove unnecessary barriers. It’s easy for a visitor to get overwhelmed with information when he visits your website. The more things you have for the visitor to do, the easier it is for him to get distracted. You’ll want to keep people focused. If you want them to join your email list, then make that the main objective. Let your pages and content support the reasons why they should sign up.

6. Create a video. Use this video to let visitors know why they should sign up. This makes you and your organization more personable. Keep it short and to the point. You can also share the video on social media sites for increased exposure.

7. Create a “Reasons to sign-up” page. Survey your current readers about why they subscribe to your email list. Ask if you can use their comments to promote your list. Let their voice be the ones that tell potential subscribers why they should sign up.

So there you have some more ways to make it easier for those cocktail-party friends to take the next step towards becoming long-time supporters by joining your email list.

What tips do you have for building your email list? What did I miss? Share your thoughts with us here or on our Facebook Page.

Photo: Kirti Poddar

Posted with permission of Dave Charest. Originally posted at http://community.constantcontact.com/t5/Constant-Commentary/7-More-Ways-to-Build-Your-Email-List-on-Social-Media/ba-p/37889

My thinking was, how many times do the unsuspecting buy into the load of crap that companies in the industry are selling us. I snapped this image while I was at a Hilton in Chicago. This is the bottle of water that they serve.

One of our group said “Oh COOL” and I just sat and laughed and explained that this is the worst type of greenwashing there can be because it is so blatant and in your face.

What is ungreen about this bottle of water?

First there is the description:

• Called Green Planet! (Our planet is actually blue, they are selling you the word “green”)
• Vapor Distilled (The water for your iron is distilled as well)
• Minerals Added! (yep, they had to add minerals to the distilled tap water)
• Petroleum Free Bottle, made from 100% plant material (Hmmmm)

The description is what leads to the “Oh Cool” remarks. You say “awesome”  until you really think about how it is manufactured and realize that there is nothing at all green here. Why you ask?

Well, let’s look at the production and life cycle of the product. Here are some of the basic steps -

• You suck up local water (using oil powered machines)
• You bottle it (using oil powered machines to make the bottle and then do the bottling)
• You truck it half way across the country (using oil)
• You keep it cold (using coal or oil)
• You throw the bottle in the garbage (bag made using oil, garbage can made using oil)
• You then you truck it away (again with the freaking oil)
• You drop it at a garbage facility (teaming with oil)

How much oil, how much water and how many other resources were wasted just so you could throw a bottle in the garbage that will biodegrade.

Would not it have been simpler to just serve water in a pitcher? Wouldn’t that be the greenest option?

• The water is local
• The pitcher is reusable
• No additional trucking

Do what you must, but know this – Your attendees are not stupid.

Posted with permission of Keith Johnston. Originally posted at http://plannerwire.net/2011/09/21/dont-fall-for-greenwashing/

Frost & Sullivan, a growth consulting business, reported in April 2010 that a survey of 1,500 employees found that almost 2/3 used social media for work, and almost ¾ used it for personal reasons. Social media is a powerful tool to use to get the word out about your webinar.

Before the Webinar

1. Tweet your webinar’s details about two weeks beforehand. Invite your followers to tweet questions using a specific hash tag. Watch the conversation around the hash tag, and respond to people’s questions for more information. Tweet about the webinar every day before it takes place. When people register for your webinar, ask them to provide their Twitter name so that you can see what they’re saying about your organization and the webinar.

2. Post the specifics of the webinar on your company’s Facebook page once per day for two weeks beforehand. Link to the registration page in your post. Invite presenters and company employees to spread the word about the event as well. Encourage your LinkedIn network to spread the word, too. Briefly discuss the webinar in your company’s blog as well to give readers an idea of what topics you will cover. Flyte, an internet marketing and web design firm in Portland, Maine suggests offering discounts to people who “like” your Facebook page for the webinar.

Larry Chase of Web Digest for Marketers says that it is important to continue marketing your webinar even if you reach the limit of registrants for your webinar as about 50 percent of them will not attend. Chase also suggests sending reminders before the webinar to remind people when it is and how to log in.

During the Webinar

3. During the webinar, give participants the Twitter hash tag so that they can tweet about the event. Encourage them to use the hash tag in emails you send before and after the event, too. Give a company employee the task of monitoring tweets so that they can help participants with questions. If attendees have good ideas or information, ask the person to retweet it.

4. Assign another employee to tweet during the event and to update the Facebook and LinkedIn pages. The audience will remain engaged in the conversation when you provide new ideas and thoughts during the webinar. Mike Volpe of Marketing with Mike suggests that you answer all technical aspects of how to use software during the webinar in the first few minutes of the webinar. You might use social media to give pointers on how to reduce echo, ask questions or invite other participants during the webinar.

After the Webinar

5. Upload your recording to YouTube or Vimeo, to your website and your Facebook page. Another option is to put the presentation on a site like Slideshare. Put a registration page in front of the webinar on your website so that you can identify possible future customers who will use their business credit card to purchase your products or services.

6. Tell participants to continue using the webinar hash tag in their Twitter conversations after the webinar. Read comments and questions about the webinar on Twitter, and respond to them quickly. Tell people via Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn and any other social media platforms you use where they can find the recording of the webinar. Encourage them to talk about it, to contact you with questions and ideas and to share it with their colleagues.

Daniela Baker, social media advocate with CreditDonkey says, as you monitor conversations on your different profile pages, take note of what people are talking about. Create groups and hash tags about those topics to keep your audience engaged long after the webinar ends.

(Photo by rmburns)

Will QR codes still be relevant 5 years from now?  Nobody knows – and I won’t speculate.  Nevertheless, one thing we know with certainty is that we are living in a world where technology changes daily.

So, let’s make the most of what’s right in front of us now – a technology that allows for readily sharing multi-media content on the social networks to effectively multiply the reach of our online marketing.

I have previously commented upon on Qrafter, a iPhone and iPad QR code reader (scanner) and generator in one. There are many QR code readers, and just as many code generators.  However, when you combine the two AND add social sharing, you have a killer app.

That’s what Kerem Erkan has done with the recent updates to Qrafter.

A Two Way Street

Most people recognize that QR codes bring digital content to our physical world via mobile devices.  Using Qrafter, you can send that content back to your digital communities – or just share it with a friend via an email.

Imagine you are a realtor and you have a QR code associated with a listing that links to a virtual tour.  By scanning the code you access that multi-media content.  Let’s say you aren’t in the market for a new home but know a friend who is.

Qrafter allows you to email that code to your friend.  It also allows you to share it on Twitter or Facebook, thereby dramatically expanding its reach.  If you are – or have friends that are influential, there is no limit to how far that information will travel.

It’s a two way street.

And it’s free.

When you consider the breadth of our respective social graphs, its conceivable that just one social share of a QR code could extend to reach thousands of additional prospects. You know what they say in real estate – you only need one buyer, and that potential buyer may be a friend of a friend.

I created a QR code for this site and scanned it.  One tap gives me the following screen that allows me to share that link.

Maybe you are not ready to share – or maybe you are in a subway or on an airplane and don’t have an Internet signal.  No problem.

Qrafter and a few other QR code readers will save your scan into its history.  When you are ready to share, you simply access the history and share.

Don’t forget that you can use hashtags to bookmark newly discovered links on Twitter. I was reminded of this when I discovered Qrafter automatically embeds a #Qrafter hashtag into the Twitter share feature.  You just need to add your own.

Promote Your Content

Marketing spreads your message, and there are many ways to accomplish that.  One way is to share a link on the web.

This only works if you are on the web.  Sure, you can share that link on your physical marketing materials, but it’s less likely that one will take the time to type that link into their mobile device.

If a QR code happens to be available, you significantly increase the the likelihood that your content will reach a larger audience. 

And if you yourself only have access to your mobile device, you can accomplish that with Qrafter.  Here are the options Qrafter offers for QR code that I just created.

You can also create your QR codes with online QR code generators – with Kerem Erkan and i-Nigma being two of my favorites (both work with Android). However, by creating one with the Qrafter app you avoid the potential pitfalls – such saving it in a format that provides the necessary quiet zone.

Blurring the Lines

The best way to get the most out of your QR codes is to think of them not as digital links – but as physical representations of what that link provides.  That mindset will help you to discover more possibilities for amplifying your marketing message.

If you happen to be a realtor, your QR code is the home you are selling.  A home is physical.  A link is digital. A QR code is somewhere in the middle – and closer to physical if the data behind it has been carefully planned.

QR codes are like paper money – an intangible thing that makes the acquisition of the physical product possible. 

Just because you cannot deliver the physical product does not mean you cannot bring the means for experiencing it to your potential buyer.

Now you can with Qrafter.

Qrafter is a free app, but you need to invest $2.99 for all of these features , such as generating codes.

That said, you’ll notice there are no affiliate links here.  I willingly paid for my Qrafter app, and I’m glad I did because its the only one I’ve found that is keeping pace with the changes in technology – especially in regards to where the action is.

You and I both know that’s the social networks.

To close this out I’ll offer two invaluable resources.

For beginners: How You Can Grow Your Business with QR codes.

For the QR code savvy: 5 Best Practices for a Successful QR code Marketing Campaign.

Both are articles grounded in extensive research and interviews with experts from around the world.

Let me know what you think of Qrafter.

One added bonus is the new scanner activates in less than a second. Sometimes that’s all you have to read that code!

Posted with permission of Jeff Korhan. Originally posted at http://www.jeffkorhan.com/2011/09/social-sharing-with-qr-codes.html#en

[NCC]: What was the most difficult part of fundraising for this event?

• [Lindsey]: We were so impressed by the number of people who jumped at the chance to help us and offered their sincerest assistance throughout the process. However, because we only had a week to promote the event, and even though we got a great amount of publicity, it is always difficult to pull people away from their normal, day-to-day activities to come to an event on a Monday night. We were lucky that so many people were willing to change their plans or take that time out of their weeks to help us support Joplin.

[NCC]: How were you able to pull off such a huge/successful event in less than a month?

• [Lindsey]: There was less than two and a half weeks between the time when KiKi and I first met to discuss putting on this event and its occurrence. We both realized the enormity of planning such an event and the amount of work that would be necessary, and we were able to do that because we both have flexible work environments. However, we also realized that our best bet was to delegate and ask for help where we could. We immediately had many members of both the #eventprofs and #assnchat communities jump to offer their services, which was so heartening. I would say that the biggest reason we were able to pull this off is because of the relationships we’ve built and our willingness to help others over time – and those relationships are the reason why our friends and colleagues stepped up, and of course, the fact that the majority of people want to help, but have not yet found a way to do it.

[NCC]: What advice would you give to other event planners in terms of registration, attendance, social media, lessons learned?

• [Lindsey]: First and foremost, don’t undervalue the time you spend networking and making connections. You just can’t be successful on your own. Another lesson? Learn not only how to accept help, but how to ask for help. As event professionals, we are taught to control the situation and keep weaknesses in the plan to ourselves, but in our own industry, we need to be confident that others will be there when we need them to make an event a success. In terms of registration and attendance, keep in mind that publicity does not equal registrations, or vice versa. They are correlated, but one does not cause the other. Know who your target audience is and what will get them to your event. Strategic thinking is always most important in any planning process.

[NCC]: What online forms of communication did you use to promote #Red4Joplin? Which do you think was most successful and why?

• [Lindsey]: KiKi and I are both most connected to Twitter, so we probably used that network the most to promote the event, and were most successful just because it was our “home,” and we are most comfortable with it. However, we also used Facebook, LinkedIn, blogging, and other online communities. We set up a Facebook page, Facebook event, and a LinkedIn event. Social media can and will help you raise money if you know how to use it. Because of social media, and more specifically, Twitter, I met KiKi, knew more about the situation in Joplin and their needs, and was able to connect with people in the Joplin area and around the country who were just looking for the best way to make an impact. Don’t forget that social media, just like any other kind of media, is just a tool, and you need to learn how to use it best in order to be successful at it.

Lindsey also created a homepage for the event: www.red4joplin.org which included vital details such as the mission, registration through Eventbrite, and contact information.

[NCC]: You also created a press release for the event, what suggestions do you have for planners who are wanting to create press releases or those without the means of a PR firm?  Are there any sites you reference for a guide on press releases?

• [Lindsey]: Well, this was a very specific situation that many will not be able to replicate. However, I can suggest a few things that might be able to overlap. Write a press release like a story. Try to find something that people can really feel connected to, which the media can grab hold on, and push that aspect. Using Red4Joplin as an example, we highlighted the fact that KiKi and Kylee were local DC sisters looking to help their hometown of Joplin, that we were using a historic venue for the event, and that several distinguished guests would be making appearances. There are a few websites where you can publish press releases for free (www.npr.org, www.directionsmag.com, www.free-press-release.com), or you can pay less than $100 at www.prweb.com so that news organizations can pick it up and you can point important parties to the legitimacy of your event. To read the Red4Joplin press release click here.

[NCC]: If you could change any aspect from the event whether planning, fund-raising or anything else, what would it be and why?

• [Lindsey]: There were so many inspirational, heartwarming, and just plain amazing things that came out of this planning process that I don’t think I would change anything. Of course any event can be better or worse, but we did our absolute best and we were very pleased with the outcome. Our hope is with the people in Joplin and if nothing else, we can be quite proud of bringing awareness and financial relief to a town which needs to know that the rest of our country is thinking of them and wants to help. My suggestion to others is to do your best, go with the flow and remember the reasons why you are putting on your event in the first place.

Thank you Lindsey! It was great hearing about your experience planning this event in less than three weeks. Thanks for sharing your story of triumph for this event and tips to other planners. You did a superb job planning, gaining interest and rounding up attendance under pressure! If you were unable to attend and are interested in donating, please contact Lindsey Rosenthal, Kiki L’Italien or Kylee Coffman.

Posted with permission of Sarah Vining. Originally posted at http://www.conferencecenterblog.com/2011/06/17/lessons-and-triumphs-planning-red4joplin-interview-with-lindsey-rosenthal/

A convention theme can have the same effect by tying together common themes at breaks, the keynote speaker, break out speakers and the after dinner speaker.
Simply take variations of your convention theme and have conference speakers call it back throughout the day.

When you reinforce your theme it creates a congruence and point to the event. The theme should not be an afterthought but deliberate connections weaved throughout the convention.

Set the stage at the opening keynote session by explaining the theme, why you chose it and what it means to delegates. Ask the keynote speaker to relate her message to the theme.  You could have a panel discussion or facilitated session that discusses and digests different elements of the theme.

Publish the theme through twitter early on to generate input on conference speakers and sessions.

Find relevant sponsor organizations to back the theme (ie-a green theme would be ideal for a green organization to sponsor)

In the conference brochure have the convention chair write a welcome letter to delegates highlighting the theme

In convention delegate bags, put flyers and materials relevant to the theme

Give gifts to the conference speakers, keynote speaker and after dinner speaker relating to the theme.

Create dinner table centerpieces related to the theme

Have interactive games or quizzes that generate conversation around the theme. (a treasure hunt, crossword puzzle, etc tying in the theme
)
When thanking a keynote speaker or after dinner speaker relate learning points to the theme

Have follow up through your association newsletter, blog and twitter discussing the theme

Continually Banging people over the head with a theme has the added benefit of it having a lasting impact.

Posted with permission of Jody Urquhart. Originally posted at http://www.idoinspire.com/blog/bid/60248/How-to-Reinforce-Your-Convention-Theme

Recently, he agreed to answer five questions on important event industry trends.  You can read his answers to my first two questions here.  These are the final three questions I asked, along with David’s answers.

Are there any trends taking place that you consider bad for events?

Fear of Feedback

Are boring or ineffective events death? Did your event run its course?
Boring events have been bad since the beginning of time. But now we have the technology to find out soon and make adjustments. So why do they still occur? People don’t want to know when their event is a failure. Dwindling attendance is the ultimate vote, but do you have to wait until next year or your next event to know that your event was a failure? I think fear of getting feedback is still a major trend that we are not seeing effectively addressed.

When planners don’ t recognize that something is failing, when attendance is down year after year, it is a sign that something has to be done. With all the tools of feedback in today’ s world it is easy to do that kind of analysis. Events evolve, times evolve, and the needs of your audiences evolve.

Over-Dependence On Technology

I feel that a dependence on technology is really bad for events. Events are about storytelling, flow, pace, social engineering and numerology. The brain works more emotionally rather than logically and events have got to create that managed serendipity that make events magical.

Don’t Be Too Big For Your Britches

The past controversy over the caterer not showing up for the premiere of a major motion picture pointed out to me that it is important for event planners not to get too big for their britches.  Attention to all of the details makes it imperative that someone is watching at all times.  Unlike other businesses, you can’t just plan something on the spreadsheet and it will happen in the event world. Someone actually has to go to the meeting with the entire team to make sure that everything is working properly.

If someone has too many events and cannot focus on the event that he has in front of him then it usually will not be successful. All attention has to be put on the event at hand.  Doing the day-to-day grunt work, no matter how  high up the ladder you are is still as important as ever.  Checking with the caterer to make sure he has t the  right date  is not above any of us.

What new technology or tools should event professionals be keeping an eye on?

Business Gaming

Business gaming allows organizations to move from tell to show and experience. Just the high-level simulation tools used in business gaming are so sophisticated that even the military can be using games that business organizations are using. People have to realize that usually things don’ t work out the way you plan.

You can plan as much as you want in business and still not be prepared for unexpected circumstances. Business games allow organizations to test how workers deal with issues under pressure. It is much better to do it in a business setting for practice rather than with real customers. What is also very cool about business games is the ability to measure absolutely everything that someone does and to see how their workforce stacks up.

Presentation and Story Telling Tools

Is PowerPoint dead? How do we engage people by combining words, video, photos, in a seamless way to tell the story to get the point across, to learn about a new thing, to influence, or to just entertain.

I have frequently use PREZI as a very effective way to combine video, words, and pictures to improve my storytelling.

With all the change that is occurring right now, what is the best way for event professionals to stay on top of things?

I saw a great Ted talk recently where the speaker talked about understanding the why as opposed to the what. It’s important that we understand why humans gather in order to do our jobs. Learning everything about the motivation of gatherings, their connection to how the brain works, and how they inspire people to make change is critical to our understanding of what we do. I see the why of what are are, in effect, managing: the 21st century town squares of our society.

It is important to understand logistics of planning an event as a given. Those things should be done with the highest level of integrity that is humanly possible.

They should be done always with an eye to how to innovate to make them even better. We also get better at it the more we do it. And the way to get better at it is to talk to people to find out how they do it. So it fits into my premise as to why I started BizBash. This is an industry that it is not easy to peak over the fence to see what other people are doing.

Look Outside the best event planners I’ve ever seen are people that are not from the industry. They are the architects, the decorators, the product designers, the furniture designers, and others who have a knack for understanding how things should fit together the best possible way. I say read read read watch watch watch talk talk talk be interested in everything. We are programmers of human interaction and most of all have to be observant.

Also it’s important to get technical.  During every holiday one thing that I like to do is learn a new program so I can really understand it. For example learning WordPress gave me a complete sense of how the world is going in terms of communicating online and integrating the past that can be done so that I can now communicate fast via video words and photographs and can edit down things on YouTube.

I use a program called Nova for mind mapping which has helped me tremendously in thinking out a project and seeing that it may be so big that it’ s not worth doing.

I am using Merlin to do project management. It integrates directly from the Nova mind mapping software to figure out projects and to actually plan the more effectively.

Listening is the skill that needs to be strengthened in all of us. With all the collaboration tools out there many times we just don’ t listen. The strength of group ideas empowers everyone.