Month: September 2015

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How I Added An Extra Hour To Every Day, And How You Can Too

Wouldn’t it be great if you had an extra hour every day?

What would you do with that extra time?

A few years back I used to get up at 5.30am every morning (even weekends) to read business books for 90 minutes before I started to get ready for work.

I got through 1.5 books a week that way. Here are the summaries of my favourite 81 business books.

But then I had my first kid. And then another. And then another.

kids

And the best I could do was get up at 7am. And even then I was bleary eyed and grumpy.

I’ve only been able to get back into that pattern for brief periods of time. (That sweet spot when all the kids are not sick and none of them walk into our room in the middle of the night).

But I think I might have just cracked the recipe.

Even with 1 sick kid who wakes us up a few times every night this week, my eyes have popped open at 5.00am or 5.30am and I’m feeling good! I’ve been able to start reading business books again with consistency.

It’s been 6 mornings in a row now.

Want to know how I’ve been able to add an extra hour to every morning?

Continue reading “How I Added An Extra Hour To Every Day, And How You Can Too”

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12 Questions To Help You Organise Your Next Event

We live in a digital age.

There are more ways to communicate than ever before, but perhaps we are in danger of shallowing out our relationships with people if we rely on digital tools to replace our face-to-face interactions.

That’s why I love organising events.

Bringing people together in the same room, helping strangers meet each other and become friends, that’s one of the reasons I’m here on this earth.

1010 people enjoying TEDxTauranga on 25 July 2015

If you’d like to organise a gathering for 10 people, you probably won’t need this checklist.

But if it’s for 100 people, or 1000, then this checklist is a great starting point.

Rather than answer these questions solo, it’s better to get 1 or 2 others who are keen to run the event with you.

Have a sit down for a couple of hours and work through this list.

I hope it helps.

12 Questions To Help You Organise Your Next Event

  1. On what date/time will the event be?
    • You can change this later, but it needs to be the very first decision you make. It gets everything moving
  2. What’s the purpose of the event?
    • To create relationships?
    • To inform?
    • To ensure we all share the same vision of the future?
  3. What does success look like?
    • It’s about making memorable moments
    • How are you going to measure success?
      • General vibe on the day?
      • Short online survey?
      • Gather testimonials?
      • Monitor how long people talk about it in the weeks/months that follow?
  4. What’s your budget?
    • For how many people?
    • Selling tickets?
    • Taking donations?
    • Finding sponsors?
    • What’s the $$ value of a successful event and the flow-on effects?
      • Staff retention?
      • Client loyalty?
      • Stakeholders with a deeper understanding of the organisations purpose and long-term objectives?
  5. How will you structure the content?
    • Blocks
    • Breaks
    • Fluff
    • Memorable bits
  6. Have you built in moments for appreciation for honouring individuals for their contribution?
    • Might some of those moments cause a tear or 2 to be shed?
  7. What will the attendees remember about your venue?
    • How do you make an impact when they first walk in?
    • Or when they walk out at the end?
    • Other considerations:
      • Size
      • Atmosphere
      • Seated/Standing
  8. What will the attendees remember about your catering?
    • Have you chosen quality beverages and catering that add to the mood?
    • How often will we hear “Mmmm this is nice”?
  9. How can you make it memorable?
    • Are there elements of emotional connection?
    • Have you allowed room for semi-structured spontaneity?
    • Who’s taking photos/videos?
    • How will we report on the event afterward?
      • Report/Newsletter/Email?
      • Facebook photo album?
  10. Who’s running the show?
    • An internal or external MC?
  11. What would you improve next time?
    • Schedule in a debrief just a few days after the event
    • Collect ideas for improvement for next time
    • Create a wrap-up to-do list
  12. How will you report on the event?
    • Doing so, makes “selling” future events so much easier
    • Collect written testimonials & video testimonials on the day (or shortly after)
    • Include lots of photos of people having a great time
    • Send it out 1 or 2 weeks later to everyone who came (so they can re-live their favourite moments)

Your Thoughts?

What do you think?

Have your say in the comments below.

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The 6 Steps in The Creative Process: This will be awesome, This is hard, This is shit, I’m shit, This might be ok, This is awesome!

An artist friend of mine Murray Clode told me about the “The Creative Process” this morning at the Breakfast Club that I run.

The 6 Steps in The Creative Process

  1. This will be awesome
  2. This is hard
  3. This is shit
  4. I’m shit
  5. This might be ok!
  6. This is awesome!

This doesn’t just apply to creating art, it’s when we create anything:

  • You might have an idea for a new start-up business
  • You might launch into a d-i-y project at home
  • You might decide to learn a new language
  • You might decide to read a challenging book
  • You might decide to write a blog article like this one

Can you recognise yourself working through this process when you are doing something worthwhile?

For me, one of the most interesting parts of this list is how many opportunities there are to quit before you get something done!

Continue reading “The 6 Steps in The Creative Process: This will be awesome, This is hard, This is shit, I’m shit, This might be ok, This is awesome!”