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"SOME ASSEMBLY REQUIRED" - 5 new articles
- Tech Conferences Are NOT Destroying The World. That Is Just Some Dude Looking For A Catchy Headline!
- Car Trouble When Traveling. Yuck.
- Cool Things My Friends Do - Rico Reyes for State Representative
- National Speakers Association Convention - I Would Not Miss It
- Happy Mother's Day
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Tech Conferences Are NOT Destroying The World. That Is Just Some Dude Looking For A Catchy Headline!LinkedIn is promoting a blog post that unfairly points to the Meetings Industry as the root of Global Warming. Hunter Walk writes "Tech Conferences Are Destroying The World. I Have A Solution" in which he points to live meetings (actually, live technology focused meetings...which makes me wonder if non-tech meetings cause the same issue or if he just wanted a powerful headline?) as a major cause of climate change, and he wants the conferences themselves to charge an extra fee to buy Carbon Credits to offset the air travel pollution caused by attendees.
Ummmm... this blog post has over 16,000 views as of my writing this here... but it only has 54 likes and 85 comments (because it is ridiculously off base). Nowhere does he point out that most meetings are local and regional anyway. Plus, the big national and international conferences draw heavily from their own area, so it is not clear if all attendees should pay for air travel related pollution, or just those who fly to the event. While the industry is working hard to implement many more "green" policies and procedures, Mr. Walks solution is really about something the airline industry should do (adding $100 per ticket for carbon offsets). While I am not sure either way if this is really a solution, it is not on the back of the meeting to charge this fee. Mr. Walk fails to give any credit to the positive impact that the meetings industry has on the economy. The Economic Significance of Meetings to the U.S. Economy Study reveals that the U.S. meetings industry directly supports 1.7 million jobs, $263 billion in spending, a $106 billion contribution to GDP, $60 billion in labor revenue, $14.3 billion in federal tax revenue and $11.3 billion in state and local tax revenue. Yep, those are some big numbers.... but people who pick on the events business never show the value they create, as that takes away the power of a one-sided argument It is easy to grab headlines when you pretend that meetings are just about the happy hours and beer, but the reality around the value of meetings (to the attendees and the economy) are powerful when you look at the whole picture. I am surprised to see LinkedIn promoting an article that wrongly pins the meetings industry as so evil. While this online networking site is about virtual links, the real value in LinkedIn comes through the live connections that people make and cultivate. Connections are more than "links", "likes", "shares" and "follows". (Also, the comments on Mr. Walk's post that encourage only online meetings are silly, too). Seems I blog often in support of the Meetings Industry, but that is because I am proud to be part of this business. When people come together (and yes, that can happen online, but this should not discredit live) it is amazing what can happen. Conferences, trade shows, conventions, and seminars are more likely to spur conversations, connections, ideas, and actions that will save the world (rather than destroy it). Just saying! Have A Great Day. thom singer
    
Car Trouble When Traveling. Yuck. Nobody looks forward to spending a Saturday getting their car fixed. It is worse when you are 500 miles away from home and have an something go wrong with your family's transportation. Yep, it happens. This is when you hope for a run in with above average customer service!!! The A/C in our Honda Odyssey stopped blowing cold air once we arrived in New Orleans for an impromptu family vacation. While the temperature was warm and just starting to show signs of humidity, the weather had not yet reached the heat of the summer (I cannot imagine no A/C in a car in the summertime in the south!). However, the nine hour drive back to Texas in 90 degree heat was not going to be fun. I try to teach the kids that every problem has a solution. While they are not always easy or inexpensive.... you need to seek out options rather than sulking about the problem itself. Thus, dad would skip the morning activities in the French Quarter and going to the Aquarium and see if I could get the car fixed while still in Louisiana. Thank goodness for the internet, within minutes I had the address of a local Honda dealer only a few miles from downtown NOLA. I showed up the next morning at Royal Honda in Metairie, Louisiana at 7:30 AM (They opened at 8:00). I knew from their website that they did not accept cars without an appointment on Saturday, but I was hopeful they would fit me into their schedule. Honda has always shown superior customer service and I just knew they would try to help... if they could. (I cannot say that as easily about the service for other brands of car I have owned..... but this Odyssey is our third Honda). The team at the Royal Honda Service Department was great. They agreed to take a look at the car, and fortunately the problem was a simple fix (a fuse relay had failed... not the whole A/C). I was in and out in less than three hours and the cost was minimal. Our road trip was not impacted by this small mishap and by lunchtime we were back to our regularly scheduled family fun (which meant driving an hour out of town for the Honey Island Swamp Tour!! The highlight of the whole weekend!!!). But better yet, our drive home on Sunday was cool as a cucumber. Thanks to everyone at Royal Honda.... This was a "Customer Service Victory". Have A Great Day. thom singer  Cool Things My Friends Do - Rico Reyes for State RepresentativeEach Friday on this blog I enjoy highlighting some of the cool things my friends do in their work and professional lives.
 My friend Rico Reyes is running for State Representative in the 50th District in Texas. How cool is that! Rico and I met when we were both in the 2008 Leadership Austin Essentials Class. He is one of those people whose authenticity comes across instantly and his smile puts everyone at ease. He has always taken a strong interest in serving the community, and it does not surprise me to see him make a run for the State House. He is destine to make the people of Central Texas proud of their native son. Rico Reyes is a former Marine and a graduate of both Harvard and the University of Texas School of Law. Regardless of your politics (he is a democrat), he is the type of person we all want in public service. He cares deeply about helping others, and wants to make a difference. He comes from humble roots (his grandfather was a school janitor) and has worked hard to achieve all that is the American Dream. Texas politics can be crazy, but I believe that Rico is going to make a big impact on the future. If you live in District 50 (or beyond), take a minute to look at his website and "like" his Facebook page. If you are so moved, make a donation to his campaign. Running for public office has become expensive, and quality candidates need our support. I will update you on this blog when my friend Rico Reyes is elected to the State House of Representatives!!! Stay tuned. Have A Great Day. thom singer 
National Speakers Association Convention - I Would Not Miss It Often people wonder why I am active in the National Speakers Association. I have had several speakers tell me they would not invest their time and money in this organization because they only go to events that have potential clients present. Since other speakers do not hire them, they cannot see a reason to spend four days at this annual event (or be part of their local chapter). I can't see a reason to miss it the annual event (or local meetings). I block the dates in my calendar a year in advance. Do I get business from being an NSA member? Nope, not directly.... but I doubt I would be in business if I had not joined NSA five years ago. The business of professional speaking looks one way from the outside, but is very different once you are in the trenches. Having regular exposure to others who are walking the same path is like having a "Fast Pass" to get on the good rides at Disneyland. Plus, many of my friends and I have created referral relationships where we introduce each other to potential clients, so indirectly I have had bottom line impact. For me, the NSA Annual Convention is a "must attend" event. Over the past few years I have made friendships with other speakers who have become my peers, advisers and my cheerleaders. While NSA prides itself on being very "welcoming" to all who are at their events, I am not fully sure that it is any different from other organizations. There are the same issues with cliques that exist at all conferences, but once you find your own warm nest of friends, there is no replacement for being surrounded by people who get the quirky nature of this industry. My oldest daughter is also active in the annual Youth Program. For decades NSA has had a youth leadership conference connected to their annual gathering. It exposes the 100 plus teens to some of the best speakers in the world who share their messages to educate and inspire the children of the speakers in attendance. The bonus to this is that she has grown to understand what I do for a living. If you are a speaker and have never attended an NSA Convention.... this summer in Philadelphia will be a great time to come experience what so many others know about the power of NSA. 7 tips to get the most from attending the NSA Convention
1. Come to learn. There are so many great speakers who will cover countless topics that will have an impact on your business. Platform skills, marketing, travel tips, etc.... and the added bonus of the "hallway conversations" with others. The nuggets of valuable information will be plentiful. 2. Meet new people. Do not sit with your local chapter friends. NSA has attendees from all over the world, and the interesting speakers who you will meet will open your eyes to many different ways to grow your business. If you can make one or two new friends each year who you keep in contact with all year, you will over time build up an amazing list of speaker buddies. 3. Do not stalk the celebrities. There are some uber-successful speakers who are part of NSA. Some are there speaking, others are in the audience. The mistake many new speakers make is they hope to find a mentor who will discover them. While this does happen, it is rare. You are best served by making friends with people at or about your same level, and then growing up in the business together. 4. Vote with your feet. If you are in a breakout session that is not meeting your needs, stand up and go to another session. Not every breakout session is going to be fantastic or live up to your expectations. Do not waste your time, move on and find a session that is best suited to your needs. 5. Visit the Learning Lounge. Last year NSA introduced an alternative program that ran concurrently to the breakout sessions. In the Learning Lounge there are always several small group discussions or TED Style talks happening at once. Some of these were lead by industry legends and only five or six people were present. Many did not want to miss a breakout so they sat in a room with hundreds while others received customized education from amazing experts. 6. Attend the Foundation Dinner and the Cigar PEG. Both of these events benefit the NSA Foundation, but also give you a chance to share more experiences with others at the conference. Last year's convention chair, Patrick Henry, is in charge of the Foundation Dinner. Get ready for it to be very fun! 7. Belly up to the bar. You do not need to be a drinker to spend a little time in the hotel bar late at night. It is in this causal social setting where I have met some of the people who have helped me the most in my career. There is more to a conference that the formal agenda.... it is often the informal times that bring the biggest value. If you read this, and plan to be at the NSA Conference, reach out to me and introduce yourself. I look forward to meeting you. Have A Great Day. thom singer  Happy Mother's Day The day also reminds me of my my own mom who passed away 29 years ago. She was cool, loving, funny, and died way too young. When your mom is gone, Mother's Day is bitter sweet. I smile thinking about all the things she did to make life more fun, but I am sad she never met her daughter-in-laws or her grandchildren. In college I spent several mother's days with my friend Jay, who had also lost his mom too early. I have great memories of us having a few beers at the San Diego Padres game and toasting to the "Betty's" (they were both named Betty) or going out for dinner while most of our other friends were home visiting their families. However, it is See's Candy that most often makes me think about my mother. She had a bit of a sweet tooth, and every time we would walk into a See's store the people who worked there knew her by name and they knew what she wanted to taste as a sample. Apparently she often went in just to buy one or two pieces.... like an addict sneaking a fix. She once hid a box of the special candy in the dishwasher, then told my older brothers if they helped around the house, she had some candy as a reward. Yes, my oldest brother ran the dishwasher as a way to be helpful. Oops. Another time she hid a box in the linen closet, and forgot it was there. Several months later there were thousands of ants in the sheets. YIKES. When I travel to California I often go to a See's Candy store and have a few pieces of her favorite candy (the Bordeaux), and maybe a few of my own favorites (Dark Chocolate Molasses Chips). Yep, I inherited that sweet tooth. I can't say no to a piece of See's. Happy Mother's Day to all the mom's out there!!! Have A Great Day thom singer 
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