LET’S SHARE A POSITIVE PHOTO FROM THE PANDEMIC. HERE’S MINE

LET’S SHARE A POSITIVE PHOTO FROM THE PANDEMIC. HERE’S MINE

I’m in the throes of putting together a show reel of my Virtual MCing.

Yes, it is a little bit later than ideal … but marketing is not my strong point … which is something with which, sadly, my lecturers and tutors at UNSW seemed to agree when I was undertaking my Marketing degree.

I just seem to always find ways to procrastinate when I’m embarking on a major marketing mission.

But, in the process of creating this reel, I was sifting through footage and photos and came across this one … and it immediately made me feel wonderful and warm:

It is a photo, taken in my home studio, of my laptop screen during an online medical conference I was MCing.

On the screen are myself and four people far more skilled and important-to-society than me … highly-qualified medical people, situated around the world, in Australia, the US and Hong Kong.

But they are doing something you don’t see often at serious conferences like medical symposia: they are smiling. Like, REALLY happy. Even a little excited.

Look at them again, closer up:

This photo makes me feel REALLY good? And I feel a little bit guilty about that, because it is a photo that was only possible because of the tragedy of the coronavirus pandemic.

But it is a photo that will serve as a reminder that:

a) In some ways, the pandemic made people think more positively:

Yes, I realise that in future history text books, in the Chapter on The Great Pandemic of the 2020s, we are more likely to see a photo of people fighting over toilet paper than we are of conference speakers smiling, but I want to remember how, in general, people started to become grateful for things they had always taken for granted.

Like (as this photo shows) simply being together, even if it was only in a virtual way.

I strongly suspect that, if these four presenters had gathered at a real-live conference and been asked to be in a photo, they would have smiled … but the sparkle and enthusiasm would not have been at quite the same level.

The pandemic made us grateful for ANYTHING that brought us together. Even things that we had previously found annoying.

In the future, those people studying The Great Pandemic of the 2020s will be SO used to doing so many things in an on-line format that they won’t be able to appreciate how amazing it was that the world adapted to Zoom (and other online platforms) so quickly and comprehensively.

But, the truth is, prior to 2020, for most of us, the prospect of a virtual meeting or an on-line conference was very-much dreaded.

They were clunky. We were thrown by the occasional sound delays and cuts, and the quality of the vision was so sketchy you couldn’t help thinking you were auditioning someone for the Blair Witch Project (look it up, youngsters!).

But when the pandemic hit, we quickly embraced Zoom and all its relatives. We forgave it its faults and focused instead on its amazingness.

And isn’t THAT the best way to approach anything?

Think of the things we MOST complain about on a day-to-day basis … our internet connection … our mobile phone … our car … even our partners!

Why is it we focus on the things that go wrong with them rather than on the amazing things they do the 98% rest of the time??

During the pandemic, we certainly didn’t become perfect as people, but we did get better at appreciating things for a while. And hopefully this photo will always remind me of that.

b) In some ways, the pandemic made it EASIER for people to get together

Prior to the pandemic, the logistics and cost of getting a speaker from Des Moines, Iowa and another from Hong Kong to share a stage with speakers from Australia would be tremendous. Often prohibitive.

But isolation ironically made it easier for geographically dispersed people to come together.

This photo will always remind me that the pandemic made it easier to tap into an entire planet’s worth of talent and knowledge. And we all benefited from that.

Later this year I will be MCing an event in Canada. From my garage. For a client who is situated in the US and has wanted to use me for years but never had the budget to bring me over from Australia.

Who or what has the pandemic made it more possible for you to do?

c) In some ways, the pandemic made people more open to new ideas

The final reason I love this photo and what it represents (and I’ve written about this in previous articles) is that, without the pandemic, I wouldn’t be in that photo.

Prior to the coronavirus, medical conferences very rarely used an MC … but once COVID hit and changed our worlds, I found myself working at quite a few (because they felt that, being new to a virtual format, they could benefit from having an experienced presenter on hand for proceedings).

How many times during the pandemic did you find yourself doing or trying something for the very first time? What would it have taken for you to do it or try it if there had been no pandemic?

Personally, I have become a more regular blogger and much better at creating videos.

Which reminds me. I still have to finish that show reel!

Curse my procrastination!!!

I WOULD LOVE YOU TO SHARE A PHOTO (WITH A SMALL EXPLANATION) THAT YOU FEEL HIGHLIGHTS A MORE POSITIVE ASPECT OF THE PANDEMIC.

Darren Isenberg is one of Australia’s most booked and re-booked Corporate MC’s and Presenters. He also speaks to groups on how to improve their Positive Influence and the Presentation Skills.

You can learn more about him by heading to www.dipresents.com.au or by asking his kids. But don’t talk to his mother. She still has no idea … but thinks he’s great at what it is anyway.

HOW THE PANDEMIC HELPED MAKE MEDICAL ASSOCIATION CONFERENCES BETTER

I’ve been a professional Master of Ceremonies for over 25 years which means two things:

1. I’m much older than I’m comfortable admitting, and

2. I’ve done lots of events for lots of clients in lots of industries.

Except one.

Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, I had only worked at two medical association events (and one of those was to run a fun quiz over a dinner, rather than MC).

In the past few months, I have added five Medical Associations to my client list.

The message I had repeatedly heard over the years from medical associations was some combination of the following sentiments:

• We have never used an MC before

• We are not interested in using an MC in the future

• The format of our event means there’s really no need.

• Our event is chaired by either the Association President or someone from the organising committee … so they don’t see the need for an MC

• The program is all very technical. An MC wouldn’t be able to add any value

• Our delegates really aren’t the sort of people who would respond well to an MC.

Do you recognise any of these comments from within your association?

I would listen respectfully as I was told these things … and silently think to myself, “But I’ve only MC’d one medical conference … and I saw that almost all those things aren’t true”.

HOW THE PANDEMIC HAS CHANGED THINGS

Then, late last year, I MC’d my first virtual medical conference.

The rise of these (and hybrid) events has seen some associations that would never have considered an MC, are at least realising that it is wise to have an experienced person on board at their event, to engage delegates who, by virtue of their virtual-ness, are surrounded by many distractions.

And an MC is perfectly-placed to play that role (as well as to look after all the live interactions and keep things steady if there are any technical difficulties etc).

As a result, I was engaged as MC for a medical conference, with the specific brief to help keep people engaged while they were going through their very technical and very serious program.

There is great value in providing delegates with a little bit of warmth and personality. With an occasional spot of humour … and an occasional interesting comment as an industry outsider.

If you click on this sentence you can see a brief clip showing how I handed over to the Conference Chair, a highly-esteemed professor after my Conference Welcome.

So, from the get go, everyone was in a more relaxed frame of mind … which is SO much better for learning.

The bottom line is:

Delegates actually enjoy enjoying themselves.

And, as an important flow-on from that:

People who enjoy their learning more, remember their learning more.

SO, WHAT SHOULD ASSOCIATIONS DO?

We need to move past the thinking that says the only enjoyment delegates are allowed at a conference is over a meal.

Given how many more hours they spend in the conference room than they do at their dinners, and how important the information is that they’re wanting to learn whilst they’re in there, surely there should be an emphasis on them enjoying THAT aspect as well?

Our delegates may have the most serious responsibilities, hold the most impressive qualifications, be bound by the most-rigorous standards and have to deal with the most incredible stress … but, in the end, they are all PEOPLE … and people enjoy enjoying themselves …

Even when they’re busy doing serious things like LEARNING.

In fact, ESPECIALLY when they’re doing important things like learning.

Darren Isenberg is one of Australia’s most booked and re-booked Corporate MC’s and Presenters. He also speaks to groups on how to improve their Positive Influence and the Presentation Skills.

 You can learn more about him by heading to www.dipresents.com.au or by asking his kids. But don’t talk to his mother. She still has no idea … but thinks he’s great at what it is anyway.

SMART SEATING PLANS

Live conferences bring people together … in both a physical and emotional sense. That’s why we love them (and have missed them) so much.

But of all the moments that make up a conference, there is none MORE physically together than when the crowds gather at Pre-Dinner Drinks to check the seating list to see who they are going to have to make small-talk with that evening.

Heads are gathered in close proximity and pointed towards the collection of A4 pages that have been stuck to a wall or a board. Necks are craned forward in unison to try decipher the often absurdly small font that has been used.

If ever there is a moment that can turn a super conference into a super spreading event, it is this. So here’s my tip:

For the foreseeable future, print seating plans up in large font and spread them around the Pre-Dinner Drinks area.

Sure, that means people may have to spend much more time walking around to find where they’re going to be sitting … but surely on an evening where you’re going to be eating and drinking more than usual, a little extra light exercise isn’t a bad thing?

And, if you’re looking for some incredibly creative ideas for your future seating plans, I present below some helpful suggestions.

ARRIVALS BOARD

GAME OF THRONES

LEGO THEME

LONDON UNDERGROUND THEME

MONOPOLY THEME

PERIODIC TABLE … OF TABLES

TAKE YOUR SEAT

MR MEN THEME

MATHS THEME

Darren Isenberg is one of Australia’s most booked and re-booked Corporate MC’s and Presenters. He also speaks to groups on how to improve their Positive Influence and the Presentation Skills.

You can learn more about him by heading to www.dipresents.com.au or by asking his kids. But don’t talk to his mother. She still has no idea … but thinks he’s great at what it is anyway.

BEING NOSTALGIC FOR THE OLD NORMAL

Yes … I know that, now that humanity has learned they shouldn’t eat bats, we’re not likely to have the world return to the way it was before, but I’m very excited by two events that are reminders that the New Normal may consist of many things we enjoyed in the past.

Firstly, last week I attended a LIVE networking event … MEA NSW’s 2021 Kick-Off. It was at the Little National Hotel on Clarence Street, which turned out to be an absolute gem of a venue.

But whilst it was great to get out, see a venue and enjoy some very delicious food and drink, it was doubly delightful to be amongst fellow human beings again … just like we used to.

All the wonderful advantages of face-to-face connection came flooding back: the ease of communication, the way it allowed you to cross paths with people you would otherwise not have, the extra depth and dynamism your conversation can be.

Even shaking hands … and looking people in the eye. It really was good for the soul and made me very excited by the fact that more and more live events are being planned.

The other event that has me excited about where we’re at with coronavirus here in Australia is that on Monday, May 10, I’m going to the airport, to catch a plane to Melbourne!

It will be my first flight in about 15 months … my longest stretch of not going to an airport since probably some time in the 1980s!

I’ll have some time for some meetings while I’m there, so will shortly be reaching out to my Melbourne network to see who has time to catch up and talk about how we can make events great again.

But I don’t think I’ve EVER been so excited at the prospect of going through airport security!

I’d love some people to share what evidence THEY’VE seen that makes them smile about our industry’s future.

Darren Isenberg is one of Australia’s most booked and re-booked Corporate MC’s and Presenters. He also speaks to groups on how to improve their Positive Influence and the Presentation Skills.

You can learn more about him by heading to www.dipresents.com.au or by asking his kids. But don’t talk to his mother. She still has no idea … but thinks he’s great at what it is anyway.

A PANDEMIC SILVER LINING

A PANDEMIC SILVER LINING

MY RELATIONSHIP WITH THINK BUSINESS EVENTS

I don’t normally use an entire blog to praise one particular PCO (as I know many worthy of praise), but I truly think there is something important to be learned from my experience with Think Business Events, a PCO that has been responsible for a significant percentage of my work during the pandemic.

Naturally, I am hugely thankful to Denise Broeren and Kim Stevenson for helping me be able to feed my family … but I am ESPECIALLY grateful to them because they have taught me a couple of very important lessons about the event industry.

I think they’re lessons that others would appreciate also, so here they are:

LESSON 1:

MARKETING IS A LOOOOONG GAME

Prior to October last year, I had never worked with Think Business Events.

But, since then, they have been so wonderful to deal with … and given me the right balance of guidance, freedom and trust so that I can deliver to the end client … that we are now heading towards partnering on our fourth event.

Interestingly, they had been on my database for over ten years … and every time I sent them a piece of my marketing, I wondered (like I do with many on my database) whether anyone there ever read what I’d written.

But I persisted because … well … I figured, if they hadn’t asked to unsubscribe, there was always a small chance something might eventuate.

So, when they emailed seemingly out of the blue late last year, it was not only a delightful surprise, but it importantly renewed my faith in the marketing process.

And in being patient!

I don’t want EVERY new relationship to take over a decade to form … but sometimes they do. And when that happens, it is always worth the wait.

LESSON 2:

THE SPEAKERS AND DELEGATES AT MEDICAL CONFERENCES DO APPRECIATE HAVING AN MC AT THEIR EVENTS

I’ve been a corporate MC for over 25 years which means two things:

1. I’m much older than I’m comfortable admitting, and

2. I’ve done lots of events for lots of clients in lots of industries.

Except one.

In all this time I have only worked at two medical association events.

And one of them wasn’t even to act as an MC. It was to design and run a Trivia Quiz for the Urological Society of Australia at a conference dinner.

The other was to MC a conference of Dental Surgeons … an event in which, despite warnings from the Organisers about how boring dental audiences are, I had the delegates laughing and cheering and even one of the international professors who was speaking arrived on stage singing and dancing to the music I had organised to play as their sting.

The photo to the right is me thanking him after his SECOND conference presentation, the next day, in which he was so inspired by the previous day’s reception, he decided to lead us all in a rendition of ‘Waltzing Matilda’ at the end of his presentation!

The message I’ve repeatedly heard over the years from PCOs whose client base is largely medical associations was some combination of the following sentiments:

REASONS PCO’S GIVE FOR NOT CONSIDERING AN MC FOR THEIR MEDICAL ASSOCIATION CLIENTS

• Our clients have never used an MC before

• Our clients are not interested in using an MC in the future

• The format of the event means there’s really no need.

• The event is chaired by either the Association President or someone from the organising committee … so they don’t see the need for an MC

• The program is all very technical. An MC wouldn’t be able to add any value

• (And, most gratingly of all) Our delegates really aren’t the sort of people who would respond well to an MC.

I would listen respectfully as I was told this … and silently think to myself, “But I’ve only MC’d one medical conference … and already I saw that almost all those things aren’t true”.

I have spent decades wondering why many people feel that the only enjoyment delegates in some industries (like medicine, accounting and engineering) are allowed at their conference is over a meal.

Given how many more hours they spend in the conference room than they do at their dinners, and how important the information is that they’re wanting to learn whilst they’re in there, surely there should be an emphasis on them enjoying THAT aspect as well?

Then along came the pandemic and Think Business Events realised that, if their clients were going to confidently navigate their first virtual conference experience, the solution could lay in having an MC involved.

Now, I’m not sure what made them turn to ME, specifically. Perhaps it was the fact that, with my middle name beginning with ‘R’, my name came up in their search as DR ISENBERG.

I’m certainly hoping it’s NOT because the client was the Association for Surgeons who specialise in surgery on the morbidly obese.

But, however, it happened, I was delighted to see there was a recognition of some of the value that an MC can deliver at an event.

Anyway, long story short, here’s what I learned (for the second time):

It turns out that delegates at medical conferences are … wait for it … PEOPLE … and people enjoy enjoying themselves.

Even when they’re busy doing serious things like LEARNING.

In fact, ESPECIALLY when they’re doing important things like learning.

I’m really glad I got another opportunity to see whether an MC could have a place at a medical conference.

I’m also glad that Think Business Events were rewarded for their openness to using an MC. The clients whose events we have worked together on must be thankful Think Business Events were able to go ‘outside the box’ to add in something refreshing and effective. That’s got to help make them more loyal clients … more confident in and trusting of TBE’s ideas and suggestion in the future.

And I hope that one or two people reading this are inspired to pluck up the courage and suggest to their clients (be they medical industry or not) what they know is going to be good for the delegates, even if it goes against what the client is suggesting.

Darren Isenberg is one of Australia’s most booked and re-booked Corporate MC’s and Presenters. He also speaks to groups on how to improve their Positive Influence and the Presentation Skills.

You can learn more about him by heading to www.dipresents.com.au or by asking his kids. But don’t talk to his mother. She still has no idea … but thinks he’s great at what it is anyway.

THE POWER OF SHARING THE POSITIVE

As an MC and speaker, I rely on PCOs kindly recommending me to their clients to get work. Unfortunately, it is rare for it to work the other way around, as the PCO is always appointed to an event before someone like me is brought non board.

As a result, I do feel guilty that I don’t get to be as helpful to others in the industry as they are to me.

However, a couple of weeks ago, I was absolutely thrilled to have potentially played a role in providing work for someone who has been a generous provider of work to me.

I would like to share briefly how it happened … because one of the lessons I think that can be learned from it is that sharing positive news has the potential for wonderful (and sometimes surprising) flow-on effects.

So I wouldn’t be heeding my own lesson if I didn’t share this with you. So … here goes:

GRIN & TONIC REELS 2023: Jul - Dec

When the world turned negative last year, I made a decision to consciously try and promote positive things to the industry. To be a source of a smile now-and-then.

Hence my weekly Grin & Tonic reels (click on the link to the right to gain access to the entire collection) ……

MC'ING IN THE AGE OF SELF-ISOLATION

… the short film I made with my kids about being an MC During Isolation (there’s a link to the right, if you’d like to see that)

… and my Positive Post e-newsletter.

With that in mind, a few weeks’ ago I gave a Shout-Out on LinkedIn to Ruth Hirst and the sensational staff at Synergy Effect, who run a mind-blowingly awesome virtual conference platform called e:volve (to see some of the amazing sets and capabilities, check out the highlights Synergy put together of an event I MC’d for them which used it by clicking here: https://youtu.be/FIkP_RBUmpE ).

I knew about e:volve because Ruth had asked me to MC some of the demonstration reels they were making (and I’m always happy to help PCOs out gratis for projects like that).

Anyway, my Shout-Out was seen by another wonderful PCO, who made contact with Ruth and there is now a strong possibility that they will be collaborating on a future project, using the e:volve system.

It was a wonderfully refreshing feeling to be facilitating a business opportunity for someone else, rather than being the one receiving the benefits.

So, what’s my point?

As I mentioned earlier, the side-effects of speaking positively about people in your network are unknown. They could be anything from inconsequential to quite significant. You NEVER know in advance.

But, if you are NOT spreading good vibes about others, you DEFINITELY know that there are no potential benefits.

So, let’s get to work helping each other get to work. Tell your network about the great services you’ve encountered within your network.

I can tell you from personal experience, it will not only make the people you’re talking about feel good … but you get a quality buzz from playing a role in other people’s successes.

Darren Isenberg is one of Australia’s most booked and re-booked Corporate MC’s and Presenters. He also speaks to groups on how to improve their Positive Influence and the Presentation Skills.

You can learn more about him by heading to www.dipresents.com.au or by asking his kids.

What The Events Industry Could Learn From The Meghan and Harry Interview.

Admit it.

You snuck AT LEAST a peek at Oprah’s interview with Harry and Meghan on Monday night.

It was quite compelling TV and, as always, I was watching it with my Events Industry Hat on to see if there was anything we could learn from it.

I found three lessons that I’d like to share:

1. THE TREMENDOUS POWER OF PRIVATE PEOPLE BEING PUBLIC 

At the beginning of the interview Oprah and Meghan made clear that the former royals had no idea of what the questions were going to be.

Whether you believe that to have been the case is a matter of debate … but it doesn’t change how compelling the interview turned out to be.

And the main reason for this is something we should remember for our corporate events:

IMPORTANT PEOPLE OPENING UP MAKES PEOPLE WANT TO LISTEN.

Now, the chances we would ever have to deal with a royal family when organising our events are slim.

But we do sometimes have to feature in the speaking program someone who is treated as though they are royalty. Usually that would be a CEO, other senior executive, politician or celebrity.

It is to the benefit of our event (and the delegates) to have this person open up to some degree, too.

How effective would it be to have this personinterviewed by someone who asks the occasional question that, if not unexpected by the interviewee, is certainly unexpected by the delegates?

But, alas, what we normally end up with is a presentation comrised almost entirely of a predictable collection of words and messages … so carefully manicured to not reveal anything that it often isn’t even written by the person who delivers it.

It pays to let them off their leash occasionally. Let reality shine on the stage for a moment.

If you think that sounds too risky then let me tell you a quick tale.

A number of years’ ago I was MC an event for the entire staff of a very large insurance company. I was to start proceedings by welcoming everyone then sitting down on some tub chairs away from the lectern to have a chat with the CEO.

We had lined up a few questions in advance that he would address and I thought I would ask him on the day about something a bit more personal he might be comfortable to share.

Well … he was running late … so I didn’t see him until he came to stage for his interview. I asked him what I thought was a safe, almost throw-away, personal question: “Welcome, Tony. How’s your day been so far?” 

He replied, “Well, I had to rush my wife to the hospital this morning because she developed Deep Vein Thrombosis”

There was a shocked silence from the crowd.

He reassured us that all was fine … but the fact that he had shared this information had some significant consequences:

a) It showed the audience their CEO was honest and respected them enough to trust them with this personal news,

b) It enabled the audience to see their leader as HUMAN first and CEO second, and

c) The delegates listened to every word he said after that with a new level of care.

If you’re a PCO reading this … or better still, a CEO … please try this at your next conference.

 

2. YOUR CHOICE OF FACILITATOR REALLY MATTERS

Sure, we’re talking about Oprah, here. One of the best in the world at her craft.

Celebrity interview royalty, you might say … and that’s true.

But … and here’s my point … she’s not ACTUAL royalty. You don’t need your facilitator to come from the same background as the people they are interviewing.

Oprah did a great job as interviewer because, well, she’s a wonderful interviewer. She does thorough research. She brings warmth and personality. She’s a good listener. Not because she’s ever been a princess.

Remember this for the interviews and panels you organise at your events … as on many occasions organisers use someone from within the industry to play the role of interviewer or facilitator … without paying enough attention to their skills in those areas.

That can be unfair to that person … as well as to the delegates.

A professional facilitator can do all the research necessary AND has the added advantage of being an outsider, so can ask things from a fresh perspective … that maybe an insider couldn’t ask … in the same way that Oprah could ask very different questions of, and get very different answers from, Harry and Meghan, compared to what would have happened if a member of the Royal Family had conducted the interview instead.

If there is an insider who you feel could contribute valuable thoughts to a discussion … invite them to be a participant. Just don’t burden someone with a task they may not be equipped to handle well.

It is the external expert that can make your interviews and panels as memorable and productive as they possibly can be.

 

3. MEGHAN WAS A WONDERFUL COMMUNICATOR

“Yes”, you might be thinking, “That’s because she’s a trained actor who had a starring role in an incredibly popular TV Series”.

But it actually doesn’t matter HOW she came to be such a wonderful presenter. The fact that she WAS so easy to listen had an enormous impact on the total quality of the interview.

This begs the important events industry question: How good are you (or your CEO or various executive) at communicating into a microphone? Or, as is more often the case nowadays, a camera?

If you’re spending tens of thousands of dollars on putting an event together … and then spend ZERO on the presentation skills of the speakers … how does that make any sense?

It doesn’t cost much to offer your speakers a one-hour session with a presentation skills coach so they can ask questions, get tips and be made to feel more confident and polished.

 

IN CONCLUSION

So, in summary, the Harry and Meghan interview emphasised three important lessons for us in the corporate events industry:

1. The more you can have your senior speakers appear to the audience as PEOPLE rather than POSITIONS, the LESS PREDICTABLE the content, the better the event will be.

2. Use a skilled facilitator for panels and interviews … one who is not afraid of doing the necessary research , rather than an expert in an issue who might struggle to be an interviewer

3. Invest in your people’s presentation skills.

And, possibly a fourth lesson was imparted, too:

Even if you marry a prince, there’s no guarantee life will be a fairy tale.

 

Darren Isenberg is one of Australia’s most booked and re-booked Corporate MC’s and Presenters. He also speaks to groups on how to improve their Positive Influence and the Presentation Skills. 

You can learn more about him by heading to www.dipresents.com.au or by asking his kids.

 

DON'T BORE YOUR DELEGATES BEFORE YOUR EVENT EVEN BEGINS!

A word of advice for those people who run a series of sponsor and other slides on loop for delegates to view as they are waiting for a conference program to start: 

Don’t. 

Having delegates’ first taste of your conference being a highly repetitive, very low engagement experience like that sends ALL the wrong messages (“Welcome to this special day of very repetitive messaging where, clearly, you’re in the hands of a group of people who haven’t thought about whether what we’re delivering to you is interesting or not”!)

It’s better to have (as an example) a slide with some sponsor logos and a “TEN MINUTES TO GO” message, which is set to transition to the next slide in 60 seconds time that has the sponsor logos and the message “NINE MINUTES TO GO”.

The “ONE MINUTE TO GO” slide should have music on it … something a bit lively … which serves as an alert to the delegates (who’ve probably been busying themselves with other tasks) and they know it’s time to have a look at the screen.

Or, for something a little different, you could try a Grin & Tonic™ Conference Reel (click here for some samples) in that final minute.

I know you can never be sure whether any of your speakers will bore the delegates … but if you’re the organiser, try not to do it before the day has even begun!!

THERE IS HOPE FOR EVENTS IN 2021

So … in a word, how was your year?

Now, answer again … but without the swearing.

For me, whilst words like “tough”, “confronting” and “stressful” came to my mind multiple times throughout the year, I end it with one word very much in its forefront:

“Hopeful”.

Now, I know. “Hopeful”, as a word, isn’t quite as positive as, say, “optimistic”.

It’s not the sort of word that an inspirational leader would choose to use to rally the troops. Who would remember a Churchillian speech that began, “I am hopeful we will fight them on the beaches …”?

But … and here’s my point: ‘hopeful’ is definitely a much better word than I was thinking just two months’ ago.

In recent weeks I have noticed three things that give me hope for a brighter 2021. I’d like to share them with you. Perhaps you’ve seen other signs and you could share them, too.

1. CONFIDENCE IS GROWING

After seven months of no work, the past five weeks have been among my busiest ever.

Clients (existing and new) have finally found the confidence to hold events. Sure they ‘umm-ed’ and ‘aah-ed’ for a long time before making their decision (making for some quite short lead times) but, in the end, they couldn’t help but recognise that events should be held … even if hands couldn’t be.

In a year of separation, events are one of the few things that deliver people a sense of togetherness. Businesses are increasingly acknowledging the importance of that.

It also means clients are beginning to regain some confidence in the ability of their organisation to afford an event.

And it indicates a growing faith in the ability of online technology to deliver the results they seek.

If our nation continues its strong management of the virus, I think we can expect this confidence to continue to grow in the new year. Surely THAT’s hopeful news.

Just be prepared for those relatively short lead times!

2. THE INDUSTRY IS BATTLE-HARDENED AND RESOURCEFUL

Whilst an upsetting number of operators have not been able to see the year out … and my e-newsletters continue to get a disheartening number of bounce-backs from email addresses that no longer exist … for those of us who have made it through, we have fought hard to survive and made the tough changes to get through.

I’ve heard of service providers in the industry who have been VERY creative in adjusting their service offerings to completely new fields.

My favourite is the one who has now added live streaming of funerals as one of their services! Who’d have thought??!!

[Side note: I’m a little jealous. I wonder if there’s an opportunity to MC those events? A Master of Cremation, perhaps?? Mmm …]

But I digress.

The point is, the year has been quite Darwinian, in a way. It has asked us to “vary or vanish”.

And so many of us varied and, with the help of JobKeeper, it turns out that our industry is, and I mean this in the nicest possible way, like the TV Show Full House. And, no Nigel Collin. That does NOT mean you are our industry’s Bob Saget.

Or John Stamos, for that matter. That, clearly, is Ian Whitworth.

What I mean by the comparison is, people have very fond memories of both ‘shows’ … the 1990s TV show AND the shows that were the events our industry organised. 

For the makers of Full House, changes in taste, fashion, and the age of their stars found them without a demand for their output.

For our industry, it was the pandemic.

In the case of the TV show they tweaked their formula (sure, it took 21 years!) and, in 2016, they brought us Fuller House.

As for the events industry, we were able to tweak MUCH more quickly. The shame is we had to title our revamped effort Empty House …

My point is, we have shown flexibility, resilience, resolve … and a really remarkable ability to endure.

And we have been very supportive and encouraging of each other’s effort to get through this.

How can you NOT feel hopeful when you’re in an industry like this?

3. WE ARE INTREPID LEARNERS

The third encouraging thing I have noticed is that we have all learned a lot about ourselves and our businesses this year.

Things like:

• How resilient am I?

• How adaptable am I?

• How do I respond when my calendar suddenly empties?

• Or how do we deliver a completely online event, with speakers and delegates dotted all over the world?

It has been absolutely inspirational to work with PCOs who have learned with incredible speed how to switch from delivering completely live events to running the equivalent of day-long, completely-live TV shows.

Even people who work in in TV don’t do live shows that last all day.

And these skills will stick around for as long as we do.

Not only that, but learning these new skills is a big boost to our confidence.

As is the fact that we’ve survived a very trying time.

If, as you read this article, you are still a part of the events industry, that means you made it through the messiest and most absolutely awful year in living memory.

Whatever 2021 throws at you, you should feel confident that you learned enough lessons and skills this year to get by.

You know, until five weeks’ ago, I’d never performed in front of a bank of cameras, in a studio, doing live interviews with panels of people that weren’t actually there.

I’ve now done it multiple times and feel confident that if someone was to offer me an opportunity to host my own TV show, containing a mix of hard-hitting interviews, satirical current-affairs pieces and even an opening dance-number, I could absolutely do it.

I’ve even got a name for it … based on a very popular TV Show from the 1990s. 

Fool House.

 Wishing everyone who has read this far the most marvelous festive season and a way better 2021.

DARREN ISENBERG IS ONE OF AUSTRALIA'S BEST-LOVED MC'S, CREATOR OF GRIN & TONIC™ REELS AND A SPEAKER ON POSITIVE INFLUENCE. CHECK OUT HIS WEBSITE AT www.dipresents.com.au