Will YOU be in San Diego?

by Eliz Greene

Spring is here and the NSA convention is just around the corner. Are you planning to attend? Take the advice of last year’s attendees and make plans for a trip to San Diego this July.

Why should I attend?

• It’s an opportunity to rejuvenate your business and yourself. –Mike McKinley, CSP, CPEA

• You really don’t know NSA until you have attended a convention. –Victor Gray

• It’s worth the money. Get there, even if you have do it like National Lampoon’s Vacation. –Mike Domitrz

• This business can be pretty lonely at times, and you wonder if anyone else out there can relate to the things you deal with as a speaker. It was just nice to be around people who experience the same things I’ve experienced. –Jason Kotecki

I’m just starting out, won’t I be overwhelmed?

• Have a plan. Have a learning goal – what do you need to get out of the convention. Focus on your goal when choosing workshops and making actions items. –Chris Clarke-Epstein, CSP

• Go there with a focus. Don’t get caught up trying to learn everything about everything. –Jason Kotecki

• Don’t be intimidated. Don’t think that you are less than anyone there – everyone is approachable and so willing to share. Newcomers were treated like those who’ve been coming for years – better, in fact. We had First Timers badges and people went out of the way to talk with us. –Jill Fleming

• Attend the first timers’ meeting. I thought it was nice how they had a newcomers welcome. This was an opportunity to be welcomed by many of the leaders in NSA and to get some tips for a successful experience. It was a chance to talk with others who were also experiencing the convention for the first time. Jason and I also received very warm welcomes from our WI colleagues. –Kim Kotecki

• Share the load: Last year Jill Fleming and I roomed together. Not only did it cut our expenses, but we were able to divide up some of the sessions and get more benefit. Just having someone to help sort through all the information at the end of the day was extraordinarily helpful. We didn’t know each other very well at the beginning of the convention – now we’re roomies for the long haul. –Eliz Greene

How can I get the most out of my convention?

Attend the ROA sessions and beat the “Do Nothing Syndrome.” –Chris Clarke-Epstein, CSP

• By concentrating on one or two areas of focus, you’re more likely to bring something back that you’ll actually implement before you get back into the swing of things. –Jason Kotecki

• I came home with five things I wanted to do and a fire to do them. The ROA sessions helped me winnow down all of the great ideas into a few I could actually do. I pull out that piece of paper regularly and check how I’m doing. Three down – two to go! –Eliz Greene

Involve the family and staff:

• Being a staff person and spouse who specializes in marketing, I enjoyed attending the marketing and sales sessions. –Kim Kotecki

• It is great to make friends with people in the same business. Talking to other spouses and partners allows me to connect with Mike’s side of the business and understand why he is making changes. –Karen Domitrz

• Camp NSA is the highlight of the summer for our kids. –Mike Domitrz

Don’t wait to hear it on stage, hear it at lunch! –Karen Domitrz

• Prior to my first convention, I noted the industry experts I wanted to talk with. I communicated with them in advance, and scheduled a brief appointment. One expert sat with me during one of the luncheons. It was hard to talk during an awards luncheon, but in about 10 minutes, he completely changed the direction of my business. That brief conversation allowed me to focus on my niche and brand.

• Another speaker in my market contacted me before the convention and set a time to get together. This led to the three female heart disease survivor NSA members cooperatively marketing. –Eliz Greene

• Don’t just have a learning goal – have a people goal as well. –Chris Clarke-Epstein, CSP

Go prepared to network:

• Have your elevator speech ready. You will be explaining your business in 15 seconds or less dozens of times a day. It really forced me to polish my spiel and to choose my works carefully. –Kim Kotecki

• Let your NSA buddies from around the country know that you will be in attendance, and emphasize your desire to connect. One of the best pieces of advice came from an NSA buddy over lunch. My entire pricing strategy evolved over the lunch table. –Victor Gray

• One of my biggest take-aways last year was a comment made by a member after dinner the first evening. Sit down with people and share. –Eliz Greene

I haven’t been to convention in a while, isn’t it just the same?

• You don’t know what you are missing. Anyone who has been for awhile will say, “Why did I stay away?” –Mike McKinley, CSP, CPEA

• I have missed one convention since 1985. Over years I’ve gotten to know a lot of people and made good friends, I welcome the chance to re-connect face-to-face – we can’t get just together for coffee anytime. –Chris Clarke-Epstein, CSP

• There are always new faces, on the platform and at lunch. –Mike Domitrz