The glass is full for me, not just half full. I’m an optimist. I can’t say that life doesn’t throw curves more often than I’d like, but I’m not one to dwell on those moments.
So when I read our report on Michelle Gielan, one of the keynote speakers at IMEX America in Las Vegas in September, I could relate to her message of how positive psychology brings tangible success.
“Optimism is the expectation of good things to happen and the belief that our behavior matters,” she says. “We can train our brain to be more optimistic at any point in our lives through positive habits that get our mind focused on the things we are grateful for and the ways in which we can control our happiness.”
There’s a ripple effect, Gielan says, that starts with how the words we use influence people and that increasing individual wellbeing will ultimately increase the wellbeing of a company.
Gielan says that success also comes from acknowledging the importance of focusing on solutions, not just problems.
“The opposite of happiness is not unhappiness, it’s apathy,” she says. “Unhappiness can spur positive change. Focusing on the problem is not a problem in and of itself—it’s when we stop there. Resilience, and therefore success, is predicted by our focus on solutions.”
Her message, I believe, will resonate with attendees at IMEX America, the annual mega-gathering of meeting industry professionals. MPI will be providing educational opportunities during the show, beginning with Smart Monday, powered by MPI on Sept. 9 and continuing at the MPI booth on the show floor. Other keynote presentations will include Phil Hansen on transforming limitations into opportunities, Four Day Weekend on using improv in the workplace and Jessie States, director of the MPI Academy, on outside-the-box learning experiences and fun ways for attendees to connect.
Our report on Gielan was co-written by our intern MiKayla Milburn, who has been an excellent addition to our publishing team this summer, and Rowland Stiteler, our veteran editor who passed away suddenly in June. This is the last story he worked on for The Meeting Professional.
His contributions are reflected as I proudly inform you that your member magazine has been recognized for national awards for overall excellence and for its coverage of human trafficking in 2018.
The American Society of Business Publication Editors awarded the publication a National AZBEE honorable mention for Magazine of the Year for Overall Excellence, the highest-ever placement for the magazine. The magazine has been a National Top 10 finalist three of the last four years, but this was the first time the magazine placed among the top three in the nation in its category.
The magazine committed to coverage of human trafficking and its impact on the meeting and event industry in each monthly issue in 2018, receiving two national honors. ASBPE awarded the magazine a National Gold AZBEE Award for Feature Series, while Association Media & Publishing awarded the magazine a Gold EXCEL for Feature Article Design.
The magazine’s creative team also received a National Bronze AZBEE for design excellence.
AZBEE awards are presented by the American Society of Business Publication Editors, and there were more than 1,000 entries overall in 68 categories this year.
The EXCEL Awards are the largest and most prestigious award program that exclusively recognizes excellence and leadership in nonprofit and association media and publications. There were nearly 800 entries this year, with only 71 receiving a Gold EXCEL.
We don’t publish to win awards. The honors are certainly appreciated, and deserving for every member of the team who contributed, but our commitment is to being an authoritative source for news information for you, our members.
So to you, we raise a full glass. Cheers!
Until next time…
Rich Luna
Editor in Chief
rluna@mpiweb.org
Visit mpiweb.org/mpitv to watch our MPItv videos. MPItv in August is sponsored by Caesars Entertainment.
