Octavia Goredema

I'm often asked what are the keys to living a happy, successful, and flourishing life. As Martin Seligman has taught us, they are found in a simple acronym: PERMA. (P): Positive Emotions, or reframing the stories we tell ourselves so that we can maximize the positive emotions we feel on a consistent basis. This is, by the way, the basis of modern cognitive behavioral therapy; (E): Engagement, or becoming totally absorbed in the things that we're doing (and not fretting about the past or worrying about the future), the same state athletes are in when they get "in the zone" or a great artist is in when they are completely immersed in a creation; (R): Relationships, or having meaningful connections with others in our personal and professional lives that are positive, uplifting, and life giving; (M): Meaning, or finding our Massively Transformative Purpose so that we start doing things for the sake of doing them - because we love them - and not as a means to some sort of end, which much of society tries to get us to do in the Keeping up with the Joneses sense; and (A): Accomplishment, or being able to achieve the goals we set for ourselves in a progressive way so that we're serving others, adding value, and growing in the gifts and talents we have to our fullest extent possible  If we intentionally commitment to working on all of these things on a regular basis we can live amazing, flourishing lives.

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As I perused the latest executive compensation packages, I couldn’t help but feel like I needed to dust off my old textbooks and head back to school. You see, David Zaslav, the president and CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery, has been raking in quite the fortune. Let’s break it down, shall we? 📚💰 David pulled in a staggering $49.7 million in 2023 ($136k per day 🤑). Meanwhile, the company’s performance? Not so stellar. Linear TV and advertising shrank, studio revenue dropped, and streaming barely eked out a profit, net loss -$3bn and revenue YoY -4%. And the stock? Down 29% in 2024 and down 66% since merger. Maybe Zaslav needs a refresher on shareholder value, or perhaps I should head back to school to learn the new industry metrics of value creation. There’s only one truth: they win, we lose. 📈 📉 . #executivepay #backtoschool https://lnkd.in/ds_vK7BM

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In our latest episode of No More Bad Events, I had the pleasure of speaking with the incredible JT Long about the transformative role of AI in the events industry. JT is VP and Content Director for Smart Meetings. And here are three topline (and very smart) takeaways from our convo. We talk about:  -AI's Rising Role in Events: While 50-60% believe in AI's potential, a third are still awaiting clear guidelines from their companies. JT Long discusses how AI can enhance creativity and efficiency in event planning, taking over mundane tasks and allowing planners to focus on personalizing attendee experiences. - Ethical AI Usage: We explored essential ethical considerations when incorporating AI into event strategies, from data use limitations to copyright issues. It's crucial that we use AI thoughtfully to meet individual needs while maintaining trust and transparency. - How the Human Touch Still Matters: Despite AI's capabilities, empathy and human interaction remain irreplaceable. AI can streamline processes, but human traits like empathy and trust are what set us and smart meetings apart. Tune in to this episode to hear JT Long share her experiences, insights, and the fascinating future of AI in event planning! https://lnkd.in/gsTMf574 No More Bad Events is produced and presented by eSpeakers; the premier full-service platform for event organizers.  Thanks to JT Long for joining the conversation. And special thanks to Nick Borelli for the #AI wisdom you bestowed upon JT.  #Events #chatgpt #AI #smartmeetings @SmartMeetings #MarinBright #digital #speakers #keynote #keynotespeakers #Podcasting #ScottBloom #JTLong #NoMoreBadEvents #EventProfessionals #podcaster #meetingprofs #eventprofs Julius Solaris  

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"Ticket prices are just astronomical right now," said David "5-1" Norman, an industry veteran who has toured with Prince, Green Day, and Alicia Keys. Why? Artists have lost their main revenue stream. Music and album sales Platforms like Spotify and Apple Music don't paint the full picture. No one knows what a certain amount of streams equates to. It's not an accurate depiction of what an artist is actually making. So where has the artist turned to to make up for this loss in revenue? Live Events. They have lifestyles to upkeep, and albums to produce and so they've got to make it back somehow. But who bears the cost? The event promoters and the fans do. Promoters are taking on even more financial risk to front these artist requests and simply to break even they have to charge the fans extortionate amounts of money. I mean the average ticket price for a Taylor Swift concert is over $1000. It becomes a financial planning decision to watch your favorite artist live. The current model is broken. How can we change this? By ensuring that everyone wins. That's what we're doing at AAA. https://lnkd.in/gZ29wVuA

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I've learned quite a few lessons over the 30+ years I have spent in the Live Event Industry. One of them is that growth does not come without discomfort, struggle and pain. Don't shy away from it, endure it, learn from it, overcome it. Discomfort, struggle and pain are temporary, but the lessons you can learn from them can be permanent if you are deliberate about learning and growing. Here are a few painful lessons I have learned that were worth the struggle. Mistakes and Patience. You're going to make mistakes, don't beat yourself up over them, learn from them. I had a job year ago that others had struggled with prior to my arrival and there was a lot of year over year turnover. I ended up in the role for several years and I kept learning and improving. Someone asked me in my 3rd year how I got to be so good at it. I told them that it was because I had spent the previous 2 years screwing it up in every possible way I could, but that I kept learning and growing. All of those screw ups made me better in the long run, don't be afraid to make mistakes and be patient while you learn. Focus on the success of the team. Years ago I ended up taking over a job that was under the bigger oversight of someone who I did not get along with, at all. Before I took over, the department head completely undermined me to the entire team and told them outright lies about who I was and what I was all about. Nothing like walking into a team full of people who already hate you. But it's cool, I met with the team on day one, told them whatever had happened in the past was history and this was a fresh new day. I would be fair with them if there were fair and did the job well. A month later, that same team had become supporters of mine, and the department head had lost all credibility with that entire crew. Tell the truth, be fair, and you'll do great. You can ALWAYS get better. Earlier in my career I spent two years in an Ops role and thought I had it all figured out going into year 3. Turns out that in the 3rd year, I was still finding ways to improve. Same in year 4, and again in year 5. I spent 5 full years in the same role and I was still getting better and learning. I thought I had conquered it after 2 years. Lesson learned, you never have it all figured out, keep listening, learning and growing. The best thing you, and any organization has going for it is the team. The people. When you need things done, it's not going to be a piece of equipment that will get it done, or some other asset, it's the people. Always remember it is the people that matter, everything else is a disposable asset, people and friends are entirely indispensable. Treat them this way and you will never lack when you are in need. People = joy and success. #aegsev #empirepoloclub #aeg #aegpresents #goldenvoice #liveevents #specialevents #venues #lessonslearned #growth #sales #dmc #dmo #bookings #generalmanager #operationsmanager #accountingmanager #productionmanager

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