Let’s Change the World in Salt Lake
World Education Congress
By Vicki Hawarden
One of the best pieces of advice anyone ever gave me was to always know the difference between what was urgent and what was important. It’s so easy to have every moment sucked up by what’s urgent, since urgent matters tend to jump up and down and scream in our faces, while the more quiet-spoken important issues of our lives get perpetually put on tomorrow’s “to do” list.
Attendance at MPI’s World Education Congress (WEC) in Salt Lake City, Utah, is important, to your success and to the recovery of our industry. We’ve all taken quite a beating—in the media, from our politicians and from the understandable reactions of corporate executives in cancelling meetings. Your job may be in danger, or you may be working 80 hours a week to make up for the colleagues who were laid off. Or you may just be too nervous to take time off. Whatever the urgent issues compelling you to stay at your desk, consider the importance of WEC.
However good your ability to show ROI on your events, you are likely to be expected to become even more sophisticated in your data collection and interpretation. However compelling your content or experiential your learning program, your attendees will be expecting you to raise the bar next time. No matter how strategically you manage your spend, your boss is likely to want even more cost reductions or strategic approaches from you.
It’s all a lot to figure out on your own. But using your precious time and money to connect with experts who have tried something new, with partners who have solutions to share and with colleagues who have walked a mile in your shoes can change your world. And that’s what meetings are all about.
We also need to keep telling our stories, so corporate America will once again feel safe to hold the meetings that drive their business results. We’ve made a lot of progress, but it didn’t happen by accident. People have written letters, called their newspapers and shared the ROI of their meetings with their bosses. We need to keep the momentum going, and that doesn’t happen without your help.
For any of you out there who would attend, but the registration fee is the only barrier, call me and tell me what you can pay. I don’t want anyone to miss this meeting that will change our world just because of a registration fee. My direct line is (972) 702-3039. And for those of you with stories to tell about how a meeting you were involved with changed the world, send me an e-mail with your story, or attach a video of you telling your story, to vhawarden@mpiweb.org. We’ll weave these powerful testaments into the WEC experience, so you’ll be reminded, in a personal way, that what we do matters. Meetings really do change the world.
VICKI HAWARDEN is MPI’s vice president of knowledge management and events. She can be reached at vhawarden@mpiweb.org.