Meetings Blog Nov 05, 2019
Put a group of five-year olds into a room with only a cardboard box, pillowcase and a stick. Wait a few minutes, then watch and listen as the children battle pirates on the high seas, take a rocket ship into space, or crown a king or queen to the throne. Their unequivocal belief in the reality that they have created comes from the innocence of their imagination. What a wonderful gift we are born with, and as Albert Einstein once said: “imagination is everything; it is the preview for life’s coming attractions.”
The Nobel Prize winning scientist went so far as to say that what we know as unconstrained imagination is actually more important than knowledge, which is ‘limited’. His belief was that although the logic behind science is about results, empirical studies and undisputed facts, where would we be if there wasn’t an initial hypothesis about what was happening in the experiments or real-life situation? That, in essence, shows that human imagination is the driving force behind pretty much everything.
And this powerful neurological tool of ‘mental synthesis’ is fundamental in event planning.
At times it may feel as though you spend the bulk of your time ticking boxes: venue, F&B, speaker, legalities, entertainment, décor, technical requirements… The list, understandably, can appear endless. But step back from it for a moment, and open up your mind to how you are going to make this occasion stand out from the rest. Close your eyes, go to a secluded park, ponder while lying in the bath… wherever your imagination most comes alive, that is where you want to be as you look to add the magic.
A key skill to making this happen is to visualize the final outcome. With so much to get done, often with a number of unconfirmed elements, this is not always easy. From that vision, however, you can then focus each effort towards it, and steadily you will begin to see the dots connect. It may be that you go down the innovative route of concise presentations, or possibly surprise everyone with a secret event, where your attendees find out key details at the last moment. Another area to consider is how to get the most out of your seating arrangements – potentially incorporating a fishbowl discussion – and when it comes to F&B, hanging snacks on string is just one of a myriad of inventive choices. Nothing is beyond the realms of your imagination.
So, although our brain’s analytical left hemisphere will be calling many of the shots throughout the planning phase for the next meeting or event, don’t forget to tap into what the creative right side has to offer. Your attendees will not be able to imagine how good it’s going to be…
