
In 1999 I won what felt like a lot of money at the time by acting on a superstition.
I was walking along the street, just about to pass a betting shop, when a bird flew overhead and deposited the contents of its breakfast/lunch or dinner (maybe all three) on my head.
I stopped dead in my tracks.
Once my friends had stopped laughing like a pack of hyenas, they reminded me of the superstition that if this happens it is meant to bring good luck.
I was stood outside a betting office.
So I thought why not try it out.
In the window was a sign - ‘England to beat Scotland 2-0 and Paul Scholes to score anytime, 27/1’
I put £10 on it.
Four hours later I went back to collect £280.
Thank you superstition, luck, skill, fate or whatever it might have been.
Now would this have happened if I took the time to look up and see what was happening around me?
Would I have swerved and avoided the mishap or just carried on regardless?
I don’t know.
And why am I using this story at the start of my blog?
I recently asked a client to ‘look up’ in a planning meeting.
What does this mean?
The client was keen to make their event programme innovative, exciting and forward thinking.
But they were so busy being involved in the event, the detail, the processes, the attendees, inhabiting the event completely.
They were unable to see outside of the operational elements and consequently felt the event was lacking a direction.
They were looking down.
Into the event.
When planning an event, you can look in two directions: down, or up.
Looking down will create a smooth-running event, it will be produced excellently and it will serve the audience.
But it will lack innovation, imagination, brilliance and direction.
What the client needed to do was ‘look up’.
Lifting your head out of the detail allows you to look at trends, observe competitors, observe your industry and imagine.
It will provide you with a direction with which to base your programme and all activities around.
It’s the difference between operating and leading the event.
The clients job wasn’t to make the event run smoothly.
It was to create an event vision. A direction to inspire the audience.
Focusing on the event is a downward-looking operational activity. You’re operating in the bubble of your event. There is little or no context of the wider business or industry you’re working in.
Looking up demands that you look beyond your event at your competitors, trends and innovations that will provide you with the inspiration to build a forward-thinking programme and event.
When you do this your event can achieve whatever your key objective is; competitive advantage, inspiration for employees or overwhelming return on reputation.
Turns out all our client needed to do was take themselves away from the desk, the details and the problems (looking down) and allow themselves the time to ‘look up’ - be this walking, chatting, thinking, observing or speculating.
And if you’re not sure where to start, hire an agency to ‘look-up’ for you.
Or if you need to release time to do the ‘looking-up’, hire an agency to do the ‘looking-down’ (I know a good one that does both, just message me).
Remember, when you struggle for ideas or inspiration, ‘look up’ more often.
Especially when you are walking around outside.
You can only be lucky so many times.
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If you want to switch up your event programme, or do something different, not just at the event, but longer term, we should have a chat.
Our mission is to make the most of your event investment.
Send me an email to martin@tenthousandhours.agency and I’ll do my best to give you some ideas and direction.