A view through the looking glass reveals the future of your events: energized, gamified, localized and personalized.
When you think about the future of meetings, what word or emotion comes to mind? I, for one, am energized. In fact, that’s the first of four trends I see on the meeting horizon.
Energized. Brain science and meeting design are finally catching up with each other. In short: We learn less when we sit, and more when we move. The meme in social media: Sitting is the new smoking. Yet, most meeting rooms (and classrooms) are designed for sedentary meeting attendees, not active participants. This is changing as we learn that exercise brings more blood flow to the hippocampus, leading to more brain cell growth. When we move our bodies, our brains move new information from short- to long-term memory, and we absorb more in less time.
Another reason to move while you think: The body produces more protein as a result of exercise, which doesn’t just build muscle. Movement is also thought to produce new cell growth as our brains get more of what they need to function effectively. I wish I had known that when cramming in college—hitting the gym sure beats trying to sit still for hours in the library.
Gamified. A Web search for “gamification” these days delivers more than 2.7 million results. Games pack coolness, learning, engagement, healthy competition and measurable ROI, and adding them to the meeting mix is a trend with staying power. Still not getting your game on? Your competition is.
Localized. We know the benefits of eating local. We’re also catching on to the power of hyper-localized events. The desire to boost registration, sponsorship dollars, event buzz and takeaways is leading planners to intensify a host city’s local flavors. Participants then have experiences they can enjoy only by registering for the event. Try an exclusive tour of a car factory in the Motor City, a behind-the-scenes look at how event organizers execute Austin’s SXSW or intimate socializing with top business leaders in Beijing.
Personalized. Have you caught wind of Google Glass, the about-to-be-everywhere eyewear accessory? This technology could border on boring if used in isolation. But when we wear and share the experience of our Google Glasses—when we connect with others, especially in person—the possibilities expand exponentially. I expect Google Glass will amplify our expectations of staging more personalized—and shareable—meetings. They’ll also forge more meaningful conversations and catalyze deeper, participant-led programming. Attendees themselves will co-create more meeting content so that they attain the outcomes they want, not the results others think they need.
After all, since relationships are built on trust—and these days many relationships begin in social media—intimate, in-person meetings that augment our somewhat-anonymous online lives are all the more crucial.
Gazing through the looking glass, I’m mesmerized by the possibilities of the future. One+
Andrea Driessen
Andrea Driessen is chief boredom buster for No More Boring Meetings based in Seattle, Washington. Driessen has been busting boredom and building engagement in events for more than 20 years. Visit www.NoMoreBoringMeetings.com and follow her on Twitter at @nomoreboring.
