iLife: How Technology Brings Us Closer

With the announcement of Steve Jobs' passing yesterday, I looked immediately to Twitter with a cynical eye. I knew my Twitter stream would be throttled with news, links to blogs, tribute messages, and most likely spam following Jobs' death. All of these suspicions were confirmed to be true and yet, I smiled.

My cynicism turned on its head and I felt joyful so many people were touched by one man's efforts. Everyone knows it took a wildly creative team to create what Apple did. But Steve Jobs represented something special for people all around the world and it was inspiring to see so many tributes being shared.

Today's death notices, as morbid as it sounds, supply a way to share with others no matter what your connection with the deceased. Because one of my dearest friends died before the age of Twitter, Facebook, and smartphones; I remember him in my mind's eye. I have no pictures, no posts, nothing to remember Jim by outside of my memories. He had no online memorial and I have no way to share with others who loved him, too. Today that makes me feel like he was buried without a tombstone. I have no virtual place to visit and feel connected.

Here in the world of the living, I've witnessed the healing power of community via technology on my own. For a little while I've been living through my own personal Mystery Diagnosis episode and because of my communication online, I've been able to keep up with my friends in spite of having to miss lovely events and conferences that I'd prefer to have attended. Facebook messages, Beluga messages, tweets, and all manner of online notes greet me almost daily with positive thinking and messages to get better. What would I do without today's technology, social media to be exact?

I've been able to learn from community sites with people going through similar medical issues and they have helped me to hone the questions I ask doctors to save time. I've read up on studies and research to help me with symptoms in the meantime.

Ironically, Steve Jobs enabled us to better grieve his passing with his guiding hand on communication's tools. He's enabled me to "be there" faster (faster than I could be physically) as my family has experienced deaths, disaster, and illnesses this year.

Blog posts that assume technology makes us colder make me angry. My connections through Twitter and Facebook have allowed me to heal old wounds with friends, connect with relatives I'd lost track of, and lead members of my home town (Joplin, Missouri) to areas of safety after an EF-5 tornado when calls weren't going through.

I posit technology brings us closer together, helping us to unite in ways never seen before. Pollyanna viewpoint? Perhaps. But I'll stick with it and run. How about you?

New Ideas in Texas and Beyond

I am sitting at the Hartfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport with about two hours left of my three-hour layover on my way to the Texas Society of Association Executives' (TSAE) New Ideas 2011 Conference in Houston (September 11-13) and I'm excited.

The words, "I have a great idea," are among some of my favorite in this world. My friend, Adele Cehrs of Epic Media, said these to me recently and my heart felt a little more charged. Same feelings occur whenever I think about the conference I am about to attend. I hope New Ideas 2011 is ready for me, because I am super excited.

[I'll be there to do a live DelCor Social Media Sweet Spot from Houston with a debriefing later courtesy of the fantastically talented Jeff Hurt to cover the ins and outs of doing a live weekly web show. Please tune in to the show on UStream on Tuesday 8:15 AM ET and be a part of this special episode!]

Shouldn't we all feel this way regularly? I know it can seem useless to have ideas when your organization does not appear have the basic mechanisms in place to make them effective, but without the ideas in the first place, an organization will grow stagnant and lose its relevance in time.

As association professionals (and as human beings who are, in essence, designed to find joy in problem solving), we should seek out every opportunity we can to expand our knowledge and create or improve ourselves and our organizations as we progress through our careers.

In the next few days/weeks/months look for the following:

• TSAE New Ideas Conference


• WSAE Innovation Summit for Associations


• ASAE Innovation Talks


• Planner Tech


• ASAE Great Ideas Conference


• Event Camp Vancouver

What are your thoughts on creativity and innovation in associations? Are there more events or meetings I should add to this list? Do you see things another way? How have you supported innovation in your own organizations or professional life?

Galatea 2.2: A Short Review

In 1999 I cracked open the book Galatea 2.2 by Richard Powers, wrote my name and the year in the upper righthand corner of the book and then never read another page. For years the book has followed me through moves, a marriage, a baby, the demolition of my hometown courtesy of a monster tornado, and here I am in 2011 - the year it finally felt right to start reading the book suggested to me by my favorite college professor, now deceased.

The story mixes science, computers, and the frailty and imagination of the human spirit with masterful language that reminds one of the power writers have over us in their possession of words and how to use them. Galatea 2.2 haunts, inspires, and mourns with us... or even through us.

Galatea 2.2 is perfect for me right now - a tale of a man broken down to the point of existential nihilism who finds stirrings of emotion and meaning within the AI and circuitry of a companion in the ether. The irony - that the intelligence in the computer might finally be more human that the protagonist - is not lost on me when I find myself struggling with spending more time with the people in my life than all my devices and gadgets.

Read this book if:

• You love language
• You are immersed in computers all day
• You occasionally feel unnecessary in life
• You really, really, really need a non-working vacation

RATING: 5 out of 5

Blog Controversy? Honey Badger Don't Care

ASAE Annual Meeting Hits a Home Run

Every year that I attend the American Society of Association Executives' Annual Meeting it takes me a little while to let the experience settle into my pores before I can write up something about it. It's like writing a diary entry about camp when you know someone may read it...it is critical to prioritize the biggest, most important pieces of the experience lest anyone get the wrong idea.

That said, abandon all hope ye who enter here. I'm still trying to pull my thoughts together, but I didn't want to wait any longer to start sharing some of the lessons I took away from the meeting.

Attending ASAE Annual is a big deal for me. ASAE is my professional home and I have made many wonderful friends through ASAE, many friends whom I meet up with at Annual. Sure, sure...now that I work as a consultant for DelCor, there is some awareness of meeting potential clients at Annual, but let's be clear. I attended Annual before I "went to the dark side" and the meeting is always going to be more like a summer camp for association folks like me.

This year it was an even bigger deal because we were in my home state of Missouri for Annual. My hometown of Joplin, Missouri was destroyed by an EF-5 Tornado earlier this year, so all of the work that various CVBs, vendors, ASAE, and especially YAP did for Joplin meant a lot to me.

This year I approached Annual with some goals based on previous experiences with the conference:

1. To work out every morning of the meeting, no matter what - past experiences with post-reception hangovers and walking pneumonia have made this goal especially important

Workout Day #1

2. To eat healthier foods during the meeting - not only does it fuel my brain, but it keeps me from post-conference regrets

3. To focus more on my own presentations and less on attending others - this is not my preference, but a necessary requirement because I stress out over any criticism I receive from speaking evaluations

4. To identify new ideas I can use for my work with associations

YAPstars UNITE for the YAP Party raising funds for Joplin!

5. To keep a better record of my expenses and receipts

 The conference was amazing for many reasons:

Kylee Coffman, my sister and RILA social media hottie, showing her ASAE Classic pose

• The city of St. Louis put on a fabulous show of hospitality city-wide for us
• The content of the sessions seemed to ring people's bells - mine included
• The network of people in the association world is more like a family than some families I know
• The ASAE staff were smart, fun, and helpful
• The layout of the conference hall, events, and hotels made it easy to network nonstop
• Twitter coverage of the conference was robust
• The backchannels on G+ and Beluga that many of us were using for coordinating meeting areas and making inside jokes made for a fun way to stay involved while not cluttering up the conference Twitter feed
• I was able to hang out with my sister, Kylee Coffman, a social media rockstar working for RILA more than I had in the previous 6 months

Workout - Day #3

 If I had to quibble about anything, it would be about these things: 

• There was no room at the stable when a group of us tried to find any seats at the closing keynote lunch - too bad, too...I heard it was really good.
• The mobile app needed help - working across platforms, including other important agenda events, etc...
• Any small kind of - even free - effort to reach out to an audience virtually would have been great...something to help those who couldn't be there to see what they were missing

All-in-all, I thought ASAE showed they had listened to comments made by bloggers and attendees in the past. They did a phenomenal job and I enthusiastically approve of the way they handled things on site.

Many thanks to everyone who made this ASAE Annual Meeting phenomenal. I will definitely see all of you next year!

Workout - Day #2

Someone graffiti'd our session sign - cool, no? ;-)

Social Media Sweet Spot Recap

Every week I host the DelCor Social Media Sweet Spot where I like to share my favorite blog posts, articles, and news about upcoming association events. Interviews and my Follow Friday choices for association types. 

This week I had a few technical difficulties, although I finally managed to record using my iPhone. Because everything was thrown off schedule I wanted to recap some key blog posts, thoughts, and fun stuff from the show.

Meeting "Del Corian"

Maybe you are friends with Del on Facebook. Maybe you've seen his photos on one of our promotions for social media or witnessed his slick moves at Trans Am shows around the world. I finally had the chance to catch up with this international playboy about his thoughts on social media and he answered questions we received from his many fans.

You can watch the interview here:

Even MeetMeme staff were excited with Del

\

Conferences and Events

• Recap of Florida Society of Associations Annual Meeting

Presented at FSAE for the 1st time ever!

• American Society of Association Executives Annual - August 6-9, 2011 (#ASAE11)

The YAP Party is always a blast...this year is no different. Dress (or accessorize) in red and meet the phenomenal Young Association Professionals in their natural habitat...the club. ;-)

• EventCamp Twin Cities - August 25-26, 2011

Event Camp Twin Cities is where I first saw the power of the hybrid meeting when it really works. Last year I attended virtually. This year I will be there in person to learn how they do it behind-the-scenes with my own eyes. I'll be speaking there and I am looking forward to meeting with other members of the #eventprofs community. Follow #ECTC11 for more details.

• National Summit on Innovation for Associations (WSAE)

The work that Eric Lanke and his colleagues involved with the innovation team for the Wisconsin Society of Association Executives not only inspires me, but also intrigues. Eric and his cohorts have been working on this project for a couple years now and this innovation summit is bound to stir the pot. We can follow along

• Texas Society of Association Executives New Ideas Conference

Dancing with a minimally dressed person in Miami for FSAE

Call for Session Proposals

• California Society of Association Executives ELEVATE Conference
• Association Forum of Chicagoland's Holiday Showcase
• NTEN's Nonprofit Technology Conference

Blogs and Stuff 

• Jeffrey Cufaude discusses the value of the conference
• John Ricco discusses stepping away from technology to prioritize

• Betsy Boyd Flynn shares her most difficult year in associations with us

• Shonali Burke tells us about the amazing Facebook Post app

• Checking out the ASAE Collaborate Beta Site looks good

• Jeff Hurt 's motivational post on Facebook

• Check out how you can Twitterize yourself...fun infographics we can all use!

• Twitter gives us new ways we can expect spam in our Twitter feeds

• Maddie shares a nifty social media job on Twitter  

Follow Friday for the Week: @socialmediabutt

         

Looking Forward to ASAE Annual Meeting: Creative Collage, Part 1

Culture eats strategy and processes for lunch - My interview with Avinash Chandarana - The DelCor Connection Blog

This post goes along nicely with my recent video interview with the same speaker!

Culture eats strategy and processes for lunch - My interview with Avinash Chandarana - The DelCor Connection Blog

YAP Nation Bands Together in St. Louis to Help Joplin (and Party!)

[Reposted from YAPSTAR! http://yapstar.org/group/tech/calendar/event/2011/8/8/286305]

Description:

Join the YAP NATION for a night that will surely live in infamy - YAP presents: network-FEST. This guaranteed good time will kick off with cocktails and conversations followed by exciting and interactive entertainment from Jive and Wail's infamous dueling pianos.

By attending network-FEST you will be helping to support the families devastated by the tornado in Joplin. Participate in our 5-10 program by dropping a $5 or $10 bill in the Joplin Box. YAP will match all contributions dollar for dollar up to $1K. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Joplin Area Habitat for Humanity and their efforts to rebuild homes in Joplin. YAPstar DC Metro Region residents and former "Joplinites," KiKi L'Italien and Kylee Coffman, will be onsite to share their story.

Dress RED to impress...and in support of the cause! For this red hot affair, wear anything red. All shades of red will be accepted. And per the usual YAPstar occasion, BLING will be provided. Not going to St. Louis? You can make a donation here.

CHEERS, SUPER STAR SPONSORS AMR Management Services andAvectra! The first 125 YAPstars will receive two complimentary drink tickets.

THE RULES of network-FEST? A YAPstar party is fun, but it's also a sport with a strict code of YAP honor. Study THE RULES of network-FEST, and when you arrive, you'll play like champion!

• RULE #45: Be the life of the party! Say HELLO to everyone. (Lauren Wolfe)
• RULE #82: Have a perfect balance of Smart as Hell and Live in the Moment.
  (Tom Morrison)

Submit your RULE and follow the tweets to collect all of THE RULES.

PROMO VIDEO: Watch and RSVP today! 

SHOUT: Event questions, please contact me. Sponsorship inquires, email Tom Morrison.

TWEEPS: @YAPstar, #asae11, #asaeyp

Bad Idea Jeans for Associations

"Bad Idea Jeans" - photo from NBC.com

So much has been made of finding good ideas for associations lately. I like focusing on the positive and opening up to allow for recognition of ways to grow. However, with everything there should be a balance.

Years ago, there was a Saturday Night Live skit called "Bad Idea Jeans" that burned itself into my brain. To this day, whenever someone says something that hits me as a particularly unwise idea, I say "that's bad idea jeans" and most people then stare at me blankly and move on to the next thought. [Feel free to check out the skit and share in my reference for future conversations.]

Here is my list of "Bad Idea Jeans" for associations - what's on your list?

1. Creating new programs without proper preparation

This is like Real Housewife Michaele Salahi striking out with a singing career without taking singing lessons.  If your association has never offered programs like online education or hybrid meetings before, recognize that there is a learning curve and it is wise to have a plan before announcing to the world that you are revolutionizing the industry. Talk to people who have done what you are trying to do well and ask them what their process is to learn from the pros fast.

2. Creating a social media plan without considering customer service

Customer service is mission critical for every organization, especially associations. If you are already thinking about your social media presence, you can't forget how your current members are being treated when they go to your website or call your organization on the phone. We always remember when we've received poor customer service and now we have a way to vent about it to everyone we know online.

MacGyver Lego 

3. Not providing enough resources to help a new program to succeed

If your organization has made a decision to create a new program, you must back it up with an appropriate level of resources. Saying you want to create a new podcast for the association, but without providing any funding for equipment or time will not necessarily mean the podcast won't be successful, but it won't make success any easier.

Your staff may not be keen to play association MacGyvers in order to make a new project a hit. Furthermore, if those people assigned to an underfunded project manage to make it work in spite of lack of resources, it will look bad for management that no one provided them with what most people would view as necessary tools. You don't want martyrs in your staff.

Ultimately, ideas can be golden, but sometimes they are just "bad idea jeans"-- please share what your own organization's bad idea jeans have been and when and how you realized it!