Knowledge is no longer a scarcity. Focused time with people who challenge and support our work is scarce.
Our events should provide us this time and space to create our best work.
Why We Attend Events
From business retreats to industry conferences, we attend live events to learn something we couldn’t learn by ourselves.
For years, this meant finding leaders in an industry to share their knowledge with attendees. We couldn’t keep up with trends and best practices, so professionals would gather to share tips and stay up-to-date.
Too often, these events were accompanied by large expo floors with vendors, watery green beans and mass produced sandwiches and parties that pull attendees away from the conference content.
We no longer need to attend conferences to learn because:
- The speakers in the front of the room give a talk they already uploaded on YouTube.
- The industry knowledge shared at an event can be found quickly on Twitter.
- The vendors with new products are easy to find on Google.
The reason we host and attend events is to get something we couldn’t get on our own. This is still true, but the format has to change.
Knowledge is not what we lack. Instead, it is time offline to work creatively.
Surrounding ourselves with hundreds of industry colleagues is not the connection we seek. Instead, it is the social connection and support from a few key individuals that will help us continue our work.
Re-imagined Events
Social Tilt
Last weekend, I attended the best conference you’ve never heard of: Social Tilt.
It wasn’t the speakers, the cocktail hour or the entertainment. All of that fluff was wiped away.
Instead, it was two days in a remote cabin with 20 inspiring, innovative community-builders. We shared a vision of improving our communities in myraid ways, from healthcare to entrepreneurship.
Without our cell phones, without social media and without interruptions, we connected, learned and laid the groundwork for social change. There were no speakers and as much focus on quiet and introspection as connecting and planning. We cooked, played games and traveled together. By the end of 48 hours, you couldn’t help but connect with the other attendees.
There were no need for name badges at Social Tilt because meaningful conversations were shared with every attendee. In every way, it forced us to step out of the noise of our 8-5 lives and focus on thinking big.
TEDx Midwest Summit
Yesterday, I had the chance to work with fellow TEDx organizers from throughout the Midwest.
On a century old farm in rural North Dakota, we spent the afternoon eating chili, sharing what works at our local TEDx events and brainstorming ways to help one another.
Again, it was a low-tech affair. There was little set program. Instead, attendees who had experience in a certain aspect of organizing an event volunteered to lead small group discussions. With 25 attendees, we could quickly move from conversation to conversation.
It was apparent that this event was the beginning. We all knew we could stay connected with a plethora of media options, but we needed that initial meeting without the use of technology to create empathy for one another.
We now have a roster of TEDx enthusiasts who will support, attend and help us make unique events that build our communities. The shared vision and unstructured format gave us space to share, learn and connect.
Company Retreat
A few months ago, we hosted our 9 Clouds company retreat.
Following the theme of this article, we headed to a nearby lake cabin where we could not only plan the vision and future for the upcoming year, but also cook, mix drinks and truly get to know our colleagues.
We had blocks when we disconnected from the internet, we had a period of time with planned content and we left time for serendipity.
At the end of the 24 hour retreat, we had a shared vision, closer relationship and a feeling of team leadership. It was the most valuable exercise we did all year.
5 Keys for a Successful Event
These events share five key elements that set them apart from typical gatherings:
1. Unscheduled time
Providing space allows attendees to connect and have discussions with the people who will help them most. It also gives much needed time for pause, something that most of us struggle to do in our daily lives. At a typical conference, the best moments are meeting people in the lecture hall or at a party. Unstructured time allows this to happen more frequently.
2. Curated audience
It’s not about having as many people as possible. Instead, having the right people in the audience is essential. The three events I have recently attended were all small with attendees sharing a core mission. Even at larger events such as MisfitCon, the same rules apply: connect people who believe the same thing.
As organizers, if you can get the right people in the room, the learning and connecting takes care of itself.
3. Handcrafted location and food
Our health is an aspect of life that is often over looked. If we want to think great thoughts, we need to feed our mind. Use an event to help attendees be healthy. Instead of mass produced, look for opportunities to celebrate the local place through food.
Provide options for food allergies and vegetarians to make those attendees feel welcomed. Nothing is worse than trying to sneak food or eating around what was given to you.
Support entrepreneurs and people in your “tribe.” If the conference is about building community, purchase food from people in the community. Sharing food with the leaders at your event is a powerful way to spread the word about food vendors who are trying to change the paradigm on eating just like your event is trying to change the paradigm on your topic.
4. Communal experiences
Communal experiences create instant connection. Whether it is traveling together, cooking together or staying together in a nice AirBnB, these shared experiences knit the group together and eliminate the need for ice breakers and name games.
In our own company retreat, the communal experiences were the best chance to have casual conversation and really get to know our team.
5. Disconnection
We are addicted to connection. What you seek in your event is true social connection. By forcing (or encouraging) attendees to disconnect, you set the tone that people in the room are the most important focus for during the event.
Many of us long for quiet and disconnection, that’s why we love when the airplane takes off. Disconnection or at least ignoring technology deepens conversations and shows attendees that it is possible to disconnect.
Show What is Possible
What’s funny is most of this we could do on our own.
We could cook meals with friends, shut our phones off on the weekends and create blocks of unscheduled time…but we don’t.
We could do push-ups in our room….but we don’t. We go to the gym to workout because it forces us to actually work out.
The same is true at your events. We are inundated with information, lectures, best practices and to-do’s. We don’t need to travel somewhere else for more of that. Instead, we long for meaningful connection and time for quite, creative thought.
Create an event that provides time and space to create amazing work.
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