I am always searching for ideas in interactive conference design. Two experiences at thinkAbout stand out. At the inaugural thinkAbout, participants got to know each other in an opening exercise akin to “speed dating.” Moving in two rows of facing chairs, we answered a series of questions posed by Pine & Gilmore with a different partner each round. The buzz got everyone quickly engaged. I have since used this activity to jumpstart many events that I design. Then just last year, Pine & Gilmore gave us a signature moment to remember at the end of their opening act in the Acuff Theatre. They rolled out a “just arrived” delivery cart containing their new book, Authenticity. Joe and Jim then took time to sign everyone’s copy. Bob Dean
Chief Learning Officer &
V P, Learning & Talent Development
Heidrick & Struggles
Certified Experience Economy Expert #002
Leadership that Leads
The 2005 thinkAbout greatly impacted me both personally and professionally. In a bit on leadership, participants were asked to split into two groups, depending on one’s willingness to walk across the Snake River. Most went to the “Yes, I would” side. The other, saner group said “No.” Then the challenge came to those of us who said Yes. “We will meet at 5:45 a.m. in the morning to walk across the river, barefooted.” That next morning, of over fifty people who said they would, a mere ten or so came to cross the river. We took off our shoes, walked across the wooden bridge and through the freezing water back to our shoes on the bank. My feet have never hurt so badly in my life! Later that morning, we debriefed the previous day’s learning, splitting again into the “Yes” and “No” groups we formed the previous afternoon. We were asked to step forward if we indeed did what we said we were going to do. For a moment, I couldn’t have been happier that I went across that river that morning (even though my feet still hurt). Then I heard the words: “Good leaders do what they say they are going to do.” That moment has stayed with me for the past three years. I believe I am a better leader and better person because of it today.
Amy Sanders
AVP, Customer Experience Program Manager
American National Bank of Texas
“Pine and Gilmore’s thinking has been foundational to our eight year journey to transform the health care experience for our team members and our patients. Since 2000, Sharp HealthCare has sent 12 different team members to thinkAbout, totaling 27 event participants over the years. Our immersion into and focus on the experience has been key to our recent recognition as a 2007 National Malcolm Baldrige Quality Award recipient.”
Sonia Rhodes, Vice President,
Customer Strategy and The Sharp Experience
Sharp HealthCare |
 |
Ten Great Ways to Leave Your Cover
Your first thinkAbout is a bit like your first date. There will be times when you’re clueless about what’s going on and you desperately hope no one is noticing. But take heart and know that others have survived their first thinkAbout. And here’s some advice: (1) You’re not an observer. Forget your prior notions of how to behave at a conference. This is not a typical conference. (2) Throw the dice. The event is a stage for taking risks. (3) Be yourself, but don’t be yourself! Be anyone you want to be. (4) Be unfaithful. Dump the colleagues you came with and find some new partners. Find others outside your industry and seek them out a couple of times a day during the event. (5) Assume everyone here is a superstar, for many are. But don’t waste time trying to impress anyone. These superstars came to trade ideas just like you. (6) Pay attention, for not everything is obvious. Don’t miss the subtle stuff that Pine & Gilmore put careful thought into. (7) Look for the basics. Experience ideas are evident in the design of the event itself. (8) Question the “big shots.” If something doesn’t make sense, say so. Questions are expected and encouraged. (9) Take reality breaks. Ask: What just happened? How could I use this in my own work? (10) Steal everything but the towels. “Creative borrowing” is encouraged this week. This is all about finding ideas that will work for you. thinkAbout doesn’t end with the trip to the chapel, followed by a quick divorce. The mementoes and follow-up correspondence are the most important part of thinkAbout. It lasts a full year, not a couple of days! Chances are good that thinkAbout will ruin you for all future business conferences. That’s OK. There is always the next thinkAbout!
Kathy Macdonald
President
The Macdonald Group
Certified Experience Economy Expert #009
Post-event Time
The thinkAbout post-event is my time to unwind from an intellectually rewarding couple of days. And it’s a time to expect the unexpected. One of my favorite post-event moments involved unleashing my inner rock star on Guitar Hero in Nashville. I became a character of Aerosmith showing off legendary moves! Okay, okay. . . . But it was real to me!
Renée Malone
CXO
Kick The Moon, LLC
Certified Experience Economy Expert #005
