Back to Basics

There was an opportunity this past weekend to get back to basics.  It was the annual Iowa Broadcast News Association Convention.  It provides a chance to get reacquainted with fellow journalists from across the state, attend relevant seminars, see some of the work that is being done in other newsrooms around the state during the annual awards banquet.  This year the accolades were handed out over a period of 73 minutes.

While I was unable to attend most of the seminars because of an agenda on the home front that needed to be tended to, in retrospect I wish I could have done so.  The benefits of annual conferences such as the one put on by IBNA affords journalists several opportunities.  See what was happening at #ibna2015.  It provides a learning environment of course for those who are just beginning or looking to begin a career and it gives the seasoned journalist an opportunity to sharpen skills.  There is also the camaraderie factor that comes into play whether someone has been plying their trade for decades, like me, or establishing relationships that can last a lot longer than a sixty second newscast.

So something needs to be said no matter what profession you are in and there are actually three points that need to be heard so we all can become better people. 1

1.  If your occupation has professional development groups then by all means become a member. 

2.  Make it a point to attend a quarterly, semi annual or annual conference.  The networking potential is off the charts and you just might learn something.  (both of those happened when during the brief time I was at this past weekend's conference)

3.  Have some fun.  It will do you some good.

After 35 years in the profession it was good to get back to the basics.  I'm looking forward to the 2016 Iowa Broadcast New Association Annual Convention in Waterloo next spring

The 7 to 9 Rule

One of the difficulties of any public speaking appearance is keeping your audience engaged with you and your presentation.  No matter whether it’s a 10-15 minute speech at a dinner, a 30 minute keynote address or a two hour seminar, you have to keep the presentation fresh.   This is where the “seven to nine” rule comes into play.

The “seven to nine” simply states that every seven to nine minutes of your presentation you change it up a bit.  This does not involve a change in tempo, inflection or strength of your voice.  It does call for a video or audio clip, use of a prop to make your point or the telling of a story to set up the next key portion of your speech that you want to drive home.

It was at a county conservation banquet several months ago that I told the story of the salamander.  The succinct version recalls a time when this little boy growing up in western Pennsylvania went to a nearby creek to look for salamanders.  The point was the creek was clean enough support life because local residents did not pollute the land.  It helped make a connection with people who were working the land with someone who did not.  A woman came up after the remarks to say that the story reminded her of the time when she went to the creek near her house to look for frogs.  A connection was made through the story that remained through the presentation.  And the story was presented seven minutes into the speech.

People will listen to a speaker if the person is engaging, well prepared and if they are made to keep guessing a little bit about what may be coming next.  It’s the edge of the seat scenario for some because the speaker has captured their attention.   The seven to nine rule helps in that regard.  I have seen this is action several times by a couple of pastors who have to keep congregants engaged throughout sermons. Mike and Jeremy have been using the tactic for years with great success.   It’s worked time and time again for them and it’s been a part of my presentations from day one.  It should work for you too. 

All it takes is a little practice and soon people will be looking forward to your presentations and what you will be doing next.

Mentoring Young People

I started a volunteer effort a couple of months ago that I felt compelled to share and maybe encourage you to give something like this a try.

I had a friend tell me they were in need of volunteers at a program at my church that had kicked off earlier in the fall that mentored at risk teenagers.  These 13-18 year old young people had seen it all in their young lives, in fact, a lot more than I had ever experienced in my teen years or since then.  Drug use, suicidal tendencies, lack of self worth, feeling unwanted or unloved are just some of the issues that have surfaced over the first two months of my participation in "The Journey."

There are a couple of dozen young people on any given night and they all come on their own accord.  The program grows  by students telling other students of the benefits of the mentoring relationship. 

This is a rewarding experience to say the least maybe in part because I still enjoy working with young people. But investing in a young person's life goes beyond what you get in return.  This program allows adults to help young people in their journey by walking side by side with them.  If affords them a second opinion from the adult world that all is not hopeless and they don't have to turn to drugs or other dangerous behavioral  patterns to cope. Over time, we can to see minor breakthroughs or perhaps one of those cautions "ah-ha" moments when you see in their eyes or body language that a concept or idea for going forward has registered with them.

My sense is there are many more young people in the Des Moines area and in Iowa who need a positive adult mentor to help guide them through the teenage years.  A suggested resource might be http://www.iowamentoring.org..  There is also abundant research available http://bit.ly/1BuFtpx. that just might convince you to seek out a mentoring opportunity.

Your services are desperately needed.

Worry is Killing Me

Picture this for a moment.  Something happens to you that is not up there on the top ten thing you were hoping would happen.  You make a mistake, you say a hurtful statement to a friend, colleague or even a stranger.  The event begins to eat away at you to the point that you worry about it almost daily.  The process consumes you.  It becomes something that always seems to be on your mind and you can't get rid of it.

I used to be like that.  The incident caused restless nights, an inability to concentrate on what the day has put on my plate, and would make my mind race with possible outcomes that turned out to be far fetched and not even close to the resolution.  I was becoming a nervous wreck.

It was a hard lesson to learn but it finally clicked.  I could, and you can, do nothing about the past.  What happened...happened.  We cannot go back.  It seems so simple yet it is a lesson often unlearned until someone else says just that, "we cannot go back."  We can try to make amends for what happened if it hurt another person.    There is also a five step process that could help get over the issue of worrying.  

But what I found best and it has worked for others too is a simple statement found in the "Optimist Creed." The tenants of the creed are normally said at meetings of Optimist Clubs all over the globe and this tenant's  succinct nature really helped me.  Maybe it will help you.

"Promise yourself.......To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future."  We cannot do anything about what happened yesterday but we can influence what is happening now and to a certain degree what will happen tomorrow.  

Here's to your greater achievements going forward!

Balancing Professional and Personal Life

Many of us tend to feel the need to have more than 24 hours in a day .There just doesn't seem to be enough time to get everything done.    Maybe that's because we have too many things on our plate.  Maybe its time to think about getting rid of some of them, prioritizing others and coming up with ways to de-stress and find the way to reduce the clutter in our head.

I spoke on this topic just this past weekend (May 3) at the Iowa Broadcast News Association annual convention.  It dealt with identifying why we are so busy (see this great piece on You tube for the truncated explanation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43noE0QS1IQ  ) But it also covered ways to to take the business out of life in an effort to find some balance as well as how to manage change when it hit us square in the face.

The bottom line for the latter is to recognize the aspects of change after it takes place.  We resist it...we are then indifferent to it...we have to go through its implementation and eventually, comes acceptance.  Recognizing those four steps then next time you get a phone call or an email or a person to person message that upsets the apple cart we should remember those four phases.

In the end doing so will make the process of going through change a little less daunting and fearful.  You will spend less time fretting about it so you can use your energy for more positive endeavors.

Rock Ballad Heaven

I'll admit to a little bias up front today.  I enjoyed the music of the 70's and 80's.  It's why I looked forward with anticipation to opening night of the production called Power Balladz at the Temple for the Performing Arts in Des Moines.

 I was not disappointed.

The idea of the production is pretty straight forward.  It's about the rise and fall of the guitar laden, big hair type of music of the era through the performances of an eight piece ensemble (five musicians and three singers, "Dieter, Scott and Mary)  From the opening cover of Night Ranger's "Sister Christian" to the finale of Queen's "We Are the Champions,"  the production keeps the audience engaged and allows it to participate at just about anytime it wants to.   (Could be why its labeled the "Ultimate Sing-A-Long.)

This is not just two hours of music and head for the exits.  The comedic element is evident right from the start and segments include involving  members of the audience on stage in an effort to test their knowledge of rock trivia .  The prize...shooting off  the "Frickin T-Shirt Cannon."   You can even find the cast and band interacting with the patrons in the lobby during the intermission

The musicians on keyboards, drums, bass, and a couple of mean guitars are a tightly  knit band.  You  would be hard pressed,  if you closed your eyes,  to distinguish whether you were hearing sounds from Whitesnake, Journey, Poison or Bon Jovi, or from five guys who came together for an off Broadway production. They rarely missed a beat and even on this particular night when I did notice one, the expression from the band seemed to convey, 'Where did that come from?"

The Temple for the Performing Arts is the perfect venue for this type of production.  The intimate setting allows for a number of opportunities for audience interaction.  Yes, the music is loud, but its not overbearing.  You have to remember this is about Power Rock Ballads with killer guitar licks and sometimes screeching vocals. All of that is present in Power Balladz but never once did I reach for the ear plugs in my pocket, brought just in case they were needed.

The only downside to all of this...is that Power Balladz is only at the Temple through Saturday, April 12.  We can only "Dream On' that the powers-that-be at Des Moines Performing Arts seriously consider bringing this production back to Des Moines.   The "Winds of Change" in the music industry have put the power ballad into the history books but it was nice for at least one night to "Come Sail Away" with the music that so many people "Faithfully" sing a long with anytime they have the opportunity.

Impressive Night at the Playhouse

I attended opening night of Les Miserables at the Des Moines Community Playhouse recently.  I am not a professional theatrical reviewer by any stretch of the imagination.   I attend because I like "live" theatre and I am compelled to write today because of the level of professionalism demonstrated that evening on the Playhouse stage.  Steve Barry as Jean Valjean, Maxwell Schaeffer as Javert and Katy Merriman in the role of Cosette provided what can only be described as tier one performances.  And this is not meant as a means to take away anything from the 46 other members of the cast who provided a truly enjoyable and spot on production.

And this was opening night.

There were of course a couple of technical issues that normally crop up for the first time the curtain rises and since this review is coming a week into the run of the show they have certainly been addressed.  But even with those shortcomings, Les Miz at the Playhouse was an outstanding production.  Barry's and Merriman's solo vocal performances on stage were of the caliber that made you close your eyes and just revel in the beauty of their voices.  Dani Boal also scored big time in the roll of Eponine when she commanded center stage herself n the second act.

 Les Miserables is a major undertaking for any theatre company but  the Playhouse cast and crew were up to the challenge.  It appears a lot of other people have felt the same way.

 https://www.facebook.com/DMPlayhouse 

 The final scenes will give you pause and a moment to reflect which is what good dramatic theatre is supposed to do.  It might also make you leave the building checking your calendar to see if you can squeeze in another performance before the show's run concludes Thursday April 13.