Be a Connoisseur not a Critic

As a curator of program content for IMEX I have the joy and wonder of meeting people from across the event industry and around the world at our events and theirs and to listen and understand what our industry needs and then to bring together a compelling grouping of content that leaves people feeling… something! It also means I have the joy and wonder of attending a wide variety of events. People often ask me, especially if an event is not particularly well (intentionally!) designed, what do I think. Often, they are expecting critical comments. I try to remember that everything at events (and in life) happens for a reason. When it is my event to design or when I am teaching, I can focus on intentional design for events. Below is a one-page snapshot from my most recent book on my thinking.

Excerpt from Our KPI is Joy: How live events catalyze happiness, productivity and trust.

Connoisseurs are curious experts able to judge and appreciate quality. It is very easy to enter an event, notice what is not working and become a critic. From the first pages of this book, I share examples of what has not worked as lessons to grow from. What I prefer to do at events is note the elements that stand out and make a difference to the experience or create wonder. Be inspired and consider how to bring more of the exceptional forward in your own events, both large and small elements to create memorable moments throughout.

Set your happiness frame

• Create regions of interest within your event flow
• Compose your frame using event design principles 
• Curate your content and the setting(s) with care
• Lure people to the frame, tease out anticipation

They are in!

• Activate the audience, sculpting a journey and flow
• Attention and engagement are high—measure!
• Acceptance, the feeling I belong in this place with these people and can learn what I need to
• Affection for the event is felt by the participants

The exit.

• I want to stay connected to the people I met
• Artifacts support my memories
• I want to stay connected to this event; I will return!

Events are a meeting point for people from across a nation or the globe to spend quality time together in both planned and serendipitous meetings. The opportunity to build connections that move ideas forward can happen in formal meeting rooms, but it can and does happen frequently in the open spaces around the meetings. This is true for associations and corporations, and it is certainly true on incentive trips where your highest achievers are brought together, often with your most senior leadership. Key design elements remain in play and touchpoints can be elevated in many ways. We will explore a few next.