The ladies of TeamBonding jumped right into Smart Monday at IMEX 2015 where it was very clear that the way to be “smart” in business and in life is to practice mindfulness, have gratitude, and to project positive energy. Keynote Speaker Lee Papa kicked off the day encouraging the idea of “Cancel/Clear”—starting over immediately in the moment when negative talk creeps into your mind or comes out of your mouth. Being mindful of less optimal emotions like anger, worry and resentment changes:
“this client is driving me nuts” to “I’m so happy to have this client’s business”
“I just received 40 new emails in the last ten minutes” to “I’m so happy to be so popular and in-demand”
Then it was off to the Play Room with Samuel Smith who is an expert on attendee engagement. Smith encourages elimination of the typical chairs in rows for large meetings—couches and levels are great! As is more time for discussion and collaboration—especially since people stop paying attention on average 10 minutes into any lecture or meeting! We also need to appeal to different attendee behavior types for maximum engagement. Do know what type you are? There are several!
- Creator
- Critiquer
- Collector
- Sharer
- Joiner
Then those that just wish to be spectators or inactive. We must make it as easy as possible for all these folks to participate.
Bob Kulhan lead an incredible Business Improv workshop in the afternoon that had everyone up and out of their chairs and using the signature “Yes And” tactic of improvisers. We learned so much about reacting, adapting and communicating. At the core, people want to be heard and supported so being intentional about creating a positive work environment goes a long way.
Day 1 of IMEX had many highlights including the Meditation Room, the opportunities for creativity in the Play Room and so many wonderful sessions. Can’t wait for the Trade Show to open tomorrow! We are looking forward to meeting everyone and seeing the best of the best in cutting edge meeting planning! So glad to see that the experts all agree—getting your colleagues to stop and be in the moment and to have positive energy is so important. Teambuilding plays such an important role in that process!
