After any conference or learning event, I’ve always tried to find at least three important things to take away that I could try to include in my approach to work. Three seems like a reasonable number to achieve, given the typical firehose of information and ideas blasted at you during these events. And as any good experimenter knows, you shouldn’t change too many variables all at once, since you won’t know which changes are having the desired effects.
Earlier this year I had the opportunity to attend (and present at) the VGM Leadership Summit, a two-day learning event hosted by Two Rivers Marketing’s parent company, VGM Group. As with similar conferences and events I’ve attended (and likely ones you have attended, too), it was a mix of education, networking, sharing, and inspiration.
But what did I discover from two days of seminars and discussions? More importantly, how can I apply three things to what I do every day?
Finding Useful Conference Takeaways
For me, there are a few classic categories of conference insights that make spotting the useful nuggets easier. For example:
There’s some sort of tool or framework or other device to apply.
There’s an interesting turn of phrase or story example that makes me go “hmmmmm …”
There’s a list.
There’s a reminder of a behavior I need to be more diligent about.
There’s something that reinforces or confirms my beliefs.
There’s a connection to another person who might be helpful.
Based on my reflections and my notes, three things really stuck with me after my recent conference experience. Again, I limit my action items to a manageable number because trying to change too many things at once or focus on too many “priorities” is a sure recipe for getting nothing accomplished. Here are my three key takeaways and how I plan to apply them:
1. Providing regular feedback.
This is a classic management topic, with many different approaches depending on who is speaking about it. Its popularity as a topic is also evidence, I think, of how many people struggle with feedback. But this presentation left me with two concepts that I found helpful.
First is the idea of scheduling and expecting regular feedback, both for you to provide and to request from others. Build feedback into your routine on a regular basis, not just in an annual performance review or if things are going wrong.
Second is categorizing the different kinds of feedback. Framing up feedback and putting it in context can help put it into perspective, particularly if the feedback could be critical.
- Appreciation feedback is about recognition and celebration, and it’s something almost everyone enjoys and craves more of; it should be the easiest to give and receive.
- Evaluation feedback provides commentary on how someone is performing against expectations, which hopefully all parties are aware of.
- Finally, coaching feedback can help expand someone’s abilities or provide course corrections as they grow in their profession.
All three kinds of feedback should provide value to the recipient and help them improve.
How to apply this takeaway: Make feedback a regular part of standing meetings. During these one-on-one sessions, work on providing feedback that falls into the three categories outlined above.
2. Telling stories.
The idea of storytelling is central to our work in marketing and of course powers much of human history. But why are many of us so bad at it — rambling on and on with no end in sight or not clearly articulating an idea or point of view? There’s a craft to telling a good story, hooking your audience in and holding their attention, and we all can develop better skills around that.
One helpful tool was a list of simple story prompts to help you identify good stories that you can use in a variety of occasions, whether networking, interviewing, delivering a presentation, or chatting with a new colleague. Having an inventory of stories that you know, that you’ve practiced, and that you can call on when the situation is right (or when you want to change the subject or make a different point) is a very useful skill. Good politicians are (sadly) masterful at not answering questions, deflecting to a different story, and sticking to their talking points. Perhaps you, too, can use that skill in an interview if you are prepared. Some potential story prompts are:
Your most significant work accomplishment
Something important you’ve learned from your favorite performer, athlete, teacher, or mentor
Something you’ve tried, learned, or mastered that took much effort
A time a customer or client was appreciative of your work
How to apply this takeaway: Come up with your own arsenal of stories to have on hand that fall into one or two of the suggested categories above. That way you’ll be confidently prepared for a variety of situations.
3. Ropes and snakes
This simple idea was perhaps the most powerful, told via a story about hiking. In essence, when you’re in unfamiliar territory and you see something up ahead and you can’t tell if it is a rope or a snake, don’t panic.
We often work ourselves up over situations where we don’t know all the facts. We let our imaginations run wild assuming it’s a snake, instilling chaos in others and ourselves. But it’s only when you move closer, and things get clearer, that you should react accordingly. To me, this wasn’t a lesson in being ignorant of potential dangers, but rather one in not overreacting. It’s a helpful tool in conversations as you consider options and work together as a team or help colleagues deal with perceived challenges they are facing: Is it a rope or a snake, or is it too soon to tell?
How to apply this takeaway: Think about the rope vs. snake analogy the next time a crisis or challenge arises at work. Calmly assess what needs to be done about it now versus what can be handled later once more information is known.
Putting Conference Knowledge To Work
Whether it’s through an event, webinar, formal training session, or blog like this, as we grow in our careers it’s helpful to keep looking for new solutions to old challenges or to try a different approach. And when there’s a torrent of advice and new information coming at you, it’s important to find a few ideas that resonate and may have the chance of sticking. Less is more.
Check out some other blogs on our site that might help you to look at a situation differently and give you a new technique to experiment with, including this one about building on associates’ strengths in the workplace.
By Two Rivers Marketing
