Posts Tagged ‘events management’
I am choosy about events
Well, I am easy-going in the sense that I will pitch up and help anywhere if I can, but I distinguish in my mind between events where I am just being obliging and events which I really enjoy.
Seeing events from the point of view of a participant
I’ve been asked about why I enjoy some events and I’ve tried to articulate the whole process of event participation – the flip side of events management.
When I am being choosy, I look for three things.
#1 When I look at myself in the mirror of the event, do I feel more vital and more alive? Do my dreams seem more full and more colourful? Do my dreams seem to belong and do I get the feeling that if I choose, I can make my dreams come true? So not all events are for everyone.
#2 Does the location, timing and pace of the event allow me to be relaxed and playful? Do ideas start connecting in unusual ways? Am I likely to end the day having made new connections that I could have made at home or at the office but won’t because it is too busy there? An event that doesn’t allow time to unwind will just be work.
#3 Was I able to be heard at the event? We often don’t know what we think until we hear ourselves aloud. Sometimes the simplest things aren’t getting done because we didn’t label the task out loud. Sometimes priorities have shifted and as soon as we say so out loud, our action plan is startlingly clear. When I hear other people, do their lives provide sufficient insight about my life that I get an “aha” experience. Actually, I am greedy. I want many “aha” experiences. I want to get an inkling that an idea is worth pursuing. And then I will pursue it away from the meetup – much richer for realising there are interesting possibilities in places that I had never thought to look.
What is likely to be part of an event that I really enjoy?
#1 Style. I am sensitive to chi and like to feel it flow.
#2 Good food. I don’t mind the style of cuisine and it can be very simple but I like it to be done well.
#3 Competence. I love listening to competent people and watching them work. I like mixing with competent people. I like admiring competent event managers. I cannot do what they do. But I watch them as happily as I will watch a Wimbledon Tennis Final.
#4 Voice. I want people to be able to speak up and be heard. It is hard to organize an event where everyone is heard. It is a big ask and I think it can only be done when all the other factors are in place.
#5 Connections. Surprising connections bring astonishing futures. The right people, who are interested in meeting each other and helping each other, generate possibilities we couldn’t imagine until we got together. We attend new events hoping this ingredient is there. We go back when it is right.
Creating atmosphere as a competency
Now, none of this is too hard, is it?
I jest. Creating a good atmosphere is the most mysterious of competences. Good Headmasters and Headmistresses do it. Good Presidents and Primeministers do it. And so do event managers.
Maybe this is the age of event management.
Are YOU able to bring 100 interesting people together in a party in London?
Posted on: September 30, 2009
How do Julius and Carmen find these venues?
Last night, Spicy Networking met up at The Livery on Wood Street, just off Cheapside as we exit St Paul’s tube.
To be honest, in the ordinary course of events, I would never have noticed The Livery.
It is on a side street
It is ultra modern with clean strong lines
It is long, with the seating all the way through to the back.
And to be be very honest, had I noticed it, I wouldn’t have even gone in. It wouldn’t look like a place that you just drop in.
As a function venue, The Livery is magnificent.
It is near a major tube (St Paul’s, Central Line). It is on a side street so there are fewer fumes. The ultra clean look is great for a reception where we are moving around the room a lot and shuffling our bags between our feet. The long bar opened up into a wide area at the back that was reserved for us.
There is evidently a ‘mental model’ that the hospitality industry and event managers understand that allows them to spot these things.
And then, of course, they make the event happen. We need more than a good room. We need the right food. And, we need the right people.
The food at events organized by Carmen and Julius is always fantastic.
The people are exceptional. In 18 months or so in the UK, Julius and Carmen have built up a network of business people, entrepreneurs and post-graduate students. Everyone you talk to at these events is interesting. And energetic.
A good event. A sound business. An exciting career. The magic is in getting the right people together.
That is where the real magic lies. Getting the right people together.
I don’t know how to do this. I could coach you but you would be working it out for yourself as you go.
If you need it done for you, you need to speak to Julius and Carmen. They know how to do it. They have done it. They do do it.
And if don’t have time to help you, they may know people who can.
Check our restaurants like The Livery which are on the side streets!
In the meantime, pop in to The Livery for a beer and light meal. And imagine it full with 100 of the most interesting people in London.
I’ll be going back, not to relive a great evening, but to see how it sparks my imagination about the magic of life and work around St Paul’s.
flowing motion 
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