Whenever I run an event for clients with my team, once the venue has been set up I like to take my team outside.
After a minute or two, I tell them it’s time to walk back into the venue. Oh, and don’t forget to:
OPEN YOUR CHILD EYES
New team members look at me quizzically. To which I respond:
Ever seen a child walk into somewhere they’ve never been before? They do so with a sense of awe and wonder. With a sense of excitement. Their curious eyes dart everywhere: up, down, left, right. They take it all in. They see everything. Every last detail.
And that’s the point, right? We need to do that too. As adults we lose this spark, this enthusiasm, this beautiful innocence. “Been there, done that – the room looks fine” breeds laziness, sloppiness. We take things for granted. As the manager, you need to lift the bar. Raise the standards. ‘Fine’ doesn’t cut it. Not in your team.
For client events in particular, I want the venue and set-up to be spot on: from the layout of the entrance, to the welcoming registration desk, to the main area … the works. Not just everything laid out professionally, spick and span, but deeper than that: to ask ourselves, who in the team is doing what, exactly? Who will welcome clients? Who will take them from registration to the main area? Who will walk around introducing clients to one another? Who will ensure anyone standing alone is looked after and brought into the mix? Who is giving the welcome and thank you speech*? What do we all need to look out for, during the event? How will we close and say farewell to our lovely guests? And so on. Every last detail thought of. Every last detail seen.
* Give everyone an opportunity to taste the limelight – not just you each time.
What’s this really about? It’s about building great managers. Who in turn build great teams. It’s about instilling pride, effort and the highest of standards. Child Eyes sends a message to your people: we don’t do so-so events. We care. We want to be the best. But we can only achieve that if we bring our best, right? Not merely to events; apply this technique to work more broadly. Approaching work with child eyes fosters creativity. It’s how we tap into the limitless imagination we had when we were young. It encourages a fresh perspective, leads to innovative problem-solving, is playful and adventurous, will deliver happiness and laughter to your team. Child eyes breaks down those silly rigid barriers we often put up, giving your staff the opportunity to let their minds have fun. After all, that’s when our best ideas flourish.
So, the next time you run an event, step outside for a moment. Think of me, waving and smiling at you like an excited kid from afar. Then walk back in, and open your child eyes.
You’ll be amazed at what you see.
