In this special student created podcast, Sarah Iverson explains how different people have different experiences at the events they attend. Sarah holds insightful interviews with her friend and mom, getting their input on different events they've attended, explains how events have been impacted due to Covid-19, and things event planners can do to make events memorable for all event attendees.
If you want to come to Level Up Your Event Game, send an email to theeventsinitiative@gmail.com and I will send you your own coupon code with money off of the event at registration!
If you are interested in learning more about Level Up Your Event Game, please visit our website at levelupyoureventgame.com
In this special student created podcast, Sarah Iverson explains how different people have different experiences at the events they attend. Sarah holds insightful interviews with her friend and mom, getting their input on different events they've attended, explains how events have been impacted due to Covid-19, and things event planners can do to make events memorable for all event attendees.
If you want to come to Level Up Your Event Game, send an email to theeventsinitiative@gmail.com and I will send you your own coupon code with money off of the event at registration!
If you are interested in learning more about Level Up Your Event Game, please visit our website at levelupyoureventgame.com
Dr. K: In the Intro to Events class, students have to show mastery of the design thinking process. Students are able to show this mastery in a variety of different ways, such as designing a training video, a game, or even a podcast. They are able to choose any topic and organize their activity in any way they want, as long as they follow this design process. These student created podcasts have offered so many insights into what students are thinking and experiencing that I have decided to take two Thursday’s a month to feature these works of art. I hope you enjoy today’s student created podcast!
Sarah: Hello, my name is Sarah Iverson, and you are listening to my event design podcast. On this week's episode, we are diving into a few of the hundreds of kinds of events that go on throughout the world, and how different types of people experience them and their thoughts on the ones that have stood out to them the most, whether that is good or bad or both. I want to understand what about the event, no matter what kind makes it fun and enjoyable for those attending. Before we get right into it, I thought I would share a little about myself and my background with events and the different ones that I have attended or assisted in executing.
I am currently a sophomore at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, and I'm studying Hospitality in hopes of pursuing a career in human resources for a large hospitality corporation. Throughout my high school career, I was very involved in student council. With that, I assisted in creating and executing events for a school of thirty six hundred students, whether it was homecoming, prom, pet fest, there was always an event going on and student council was the heart of it. One question I have been asking people lately is, “What is the most memorable event that you have ever been a part of and what made it so memorable?? My answer is a no brainer for me. The summer going into my senior year, my high school had the opportunity of hosting the twenty eighteen National Student Council conference. Eight hundred plus students and advisors from around the world attended Wayzata, Minnesota for four days, and it was our student council's job to make it memorable for them. I was also given the most amazing opportunity of being the MC for the week.
With being the MC, I had a large part in planning the event in considering all of the small details, and I was also the student to go up on stage in front of the conference each morning and night. With that, I would introduce the keynote speakers, I would explain the plan for the day and at the night general session, we would debrief together. What made it so memorable was the aspect of seeing so many students with the same interests come together and feel as though they have all known each other their whole lives. Since I am studying human relations and how interactions affect the lives of others, that is the aspect of events that I find so interesting and appealing. And that's what makes it so memorable for me. The thought of not knowing someone prior to attending an event and leaving feeling as though you've known each other forever, all because of a shared interest. With that, I have also been asking those around me what they feel their most memorable event would look like or how their experience would have been different if it were to have occurred during our current times with covid-19.
For my response, I would say that it would not have been as effective or memorable in the human connection since. Just this last summer they still held a National Student Council conference, however, it was all virtual. They still had the same effective speakers and the students still gained knowledge and experience and leadership. But it was not the same in the sense that they got to hang out and get to know students with similar interests from around the world.
I am now joined by my friend Olivia Domen, who is going to tell me about her experience with the different types of events that she has attended in her life. To start. Olivia, I would like you to tell me the most memorable event that you've ever attended.
Olivia: I would probably have to say that the 2019 state DECA competition is one of my most memorable events that I've attended.
Sarah: That's awesome. So before we dive into why it was so memorable, do you mind taking a second to explain what DECA is and what it entails?
Olivia: Yeah, so DECA is an organization in my high school and many other schools throughout the United States that focuses on teaching students about marketing and different types of business and just different aspects of that. But after creating a promotion plan for a specific business, we then present it to the judges and hopefully make it past districts onto state and then state finals and then onto internationals.
Sarah: Ok, cool, so a lot of different steps in place. Thank you for explaining that. My high school also had DECA and while I didn't participate in it, I know a lot of my peers had great experiences and have lots of memories from it.
Olivia: Yeah, it was for sure. A lot of fun and a great experience.
Sarah: Good. So do you mind telling me what made the state competition so memorable for you?
Olivia: I honestly just learned so much from being part of that competition, from work ethic to public speaking, to working on a team and many other things. I think that part of what makes an event so memorable to me is the knowledge that I gained from it along the way. And no matter how much or how little, I just wanted to gain something from it.
Sarah: Yeah, and that's a really good way to look at it. Is there anything that you would have changed about it at all?
Olivia: I don't really think so. I was very satisfied toward the end of it. But I also ended with second place in the state and had the opportunity to compete at internationals. So my experience may have been a little bit different than others.
Sarah: Oh, congrats on that! Now, let's say that the state DECA competition was to take place now in 2020, with everything going on with Covid-19, how do you figure it would have been different for you?
Olivia: I know that the international competition for this past year was completely cancelled, so I'm not sure if I would have even been able to have the chance to go to internationals and gain that experience that I did. And I just feel horrible for the seniors because they didn't get this amazing experience and the chance to learn all the things that I did, because it's for sure things that I will take with me for the rest of my life. And I always come back to that, especially during job interviews and different things like that. I always bring it up.
Sarah: Yeah, that makes sense. And it's very unfortunate how many learning opportunities the DECA students, as well as many other students throughout the world are missing out on due to the current state of our world. Well, thank you so much for talking to me and sharing your stories. I look forward to talking to you again soon.
Olivia: Thank you. You too.
Sarah: After hearing from Olivia and listening to her experience with the DECA competition, I thought I would talk to my mom as well. She was a teacher for 34 years and is also a mother of three. She has attended many different types of events in her life and I wanted to ask her what her most memorable one was and why. Since we live in different states. I talked to her over the phone and wrote down some of the main points that she happened to speak on. She said that the most memorable event that she had ever been a part of was the Minnesota State Dance Convention finals. She quotes, “We knew there was a strong possibility our daughter's team would win. The energy and excitement amongst all the team members and their families was so fun because it was a feat that had not occurred for twenty nine years for our team.” She said that when it comes to making events memorable for her, she pays attention to how others feel around her and how the event makes her feel as well. She remembers the excitement and energy of the dance convention and knows it is a feeling that she will never forget.
When I asked what she thinks would be different in our times with Covid-19, she stated, “There is no way it would happen today as all Minnesota high school competitions have been canceled. It makes me sad to know that there is a possibility that many girls and their families throughout Minnesota will never get to experience the feeling of a packed stadium watching dance.”
After hearing my story and talking to Olivia and my mom, it is apparent that everyone experiences events differently. Whether it's the connections you make, how you feel, or the activities that you complete along the way. There is always a way to make an event memorable, you just have to know your audience. I loved hearing all the perspectives and can't wait to take this information with me into my future with planning events.
Dr. K: Definitely a very interesting and timely student created podcast today, thank you so much to Sarah for this amazing insight. I think it leads a lot to how everybody experiences everything in this world just a little bit differently. Whether that’s events or education or just simply life experiences, we all approach things from our distinct point of view that is based on our past of lived experiences. So I loved this episode, I love all the student created podcasts but thank you so much to Sarah and her guest for shining a little bit of light onto this. Thank you all so much for taking the time to make the time. I’ll talk with you soon!