Meetings Blog May 20, 2019
Physiology. Molecular biology. Anatomy. Psychology. These are likely not words you would expect to begin an article to do with meeting and event planning. However, take each of the disciplines together, add in some cytology and mathematical modeling, and we arrive at neuroscience, the study of the nervous system and, in particular, the brain. Having an understanding of this can really help you as you attempt to, for example, apply some subtle influence or decide the ideal timings of your sessions. So, let’s get our neurons engaged and have a look at how the brain functions.
‘The human brain has 100 billion neurons, each neuron connected to 10 thousand other neurons. Sitting on your shoulders is the most complicated object in the known universe’ Michio Kaku
Neuroscientists discovered that the hippocampus and the prefrontal cortex regions of the brain help us to plan our path from A to B. And studies have confirmed that by drawing on information we have about the past, we then make decisions about the present and future. This is fairly simple to understand, but how can we turn that human behavioral knowledge to our advantage in Meetings and Events? Firstly, this is science reminding us that having a comprehensive knowledge of any new venue is crucial. Visit them ahead of time, investigate all the areas that could be used, and consider the routes you can lay out to ensure that the space is best managed: avoiding bottlenecks, timely arrivals, session order, etc. Your attendees are unlikely to realize that you are using their subconscious brain activity, but they’ll appreciate it nonetheless.
There is no doubt that getting your attendees involved in the sessions can stimulate different behaviors that can prove beneficial for them, as well as for the event. Taking part in discussions (often better in small groups) can help with retention of information, so look at ways to give individuals roles to take on across the day. Also, having them physically active can motivate them to participate more, giving an extra drive to the proceedings, and avoiding any potential lethargy. Then there are the studies that have shown that partakers in tasks perform better when others are watching. Surprised? Despite many people dreading the thought of having an audience, brain scans have shown that there is increased activity in the ventral striatum – the area that controls motor skills and drives action – when compared to doing it alone. Contemplate that when preparing the sessions.
The deeper science has delved into the human brain, the more it has revealed. People’s brains work differently throughout the day, for example, and this can be taken advantage of when planning your meetings. Mornings are the best time for higher pressured situations, thanks to our good stress-busting friend, cortisol. Afternoons are better for cognitive challenges, with our cerebral cortex warming up its metabolic activity around then, while the drop-in energy immediately after eating should always be taken into consideration.
Another variation is related to age. While the older attendees may have unwittingly seen their hippocampus shrink and their neurons begin to communicate slower than before with each other, this can reduce their ability to take on new information or retrieve stored memories as well as their 20-something colleagues. However, we now know that the more mature brains, thanks to increased dendrite branching, have the edge when it comes to seeing the bigger picture. It’s maybe worth scanning the birth dates to see how best you can tap into their nature-giving strengths.
You don’t want your inviting call to action to sound like an off-putting hard sell and so deploying softer techniques can be beneficial to your goals. We know from multiple studies that people are often influenced by what their respected peer group is doing, so sharing this information can prove rather effective. ‘Four other prospective attendees are also considering booking’ can aid with the ticket purchasing decision. ‘89% of our attendees contribute to post-event feedback’ can encourage participation. Clearly you’ll want to pick and choose the behaviors that best help your cause, while avoiding any messages that could be misleading.
As writer and neuroscientist Sam Harris aptly proposes, our well-being could depend upon the interaction between events in our brains and events in the real world. So, while you may not have a doctorate in the subject, grasping some of the general aspects of what neuroscientists have taught us can help you across the planning and execution of your next convention.
It’s worth remembering, of course, that another aspect of being human is our uniqueness so, despite these being handy rules of thumb, individual knowledge of your attendees is always extremely valuable. Go, explore the minds of others and look to click the switches for success.
