Today I had a big event at work...The "Super Bowl" of events at one of my radio stations as my GM likes to put it. For the first time the details and planning of this event fell squarely and solely on my shoulders. Have you ever been in one of those situations where if it goes well it is a win for the whole group but if it goes badly it is your fault and only your fault? That is this event...
There were other people involved with various aspect of selling sponsorships into the event and another person in charge of sending out invitations and getting people TO the event and my job was the make the event happen.
So the big day comes, I am awake at 4:45am...I think I jumped out of bed the second I heard my alarm go off...I was just waiting for it. I rushed through my morning prep, grabbed my coffee and flew out the door. As I entered my event room I was struck by the eerie silence that signaled I was the first to arrive...I knew I would be, but I had hoped I would be wrong and another co-worker would meet me there and offer support...That was just the beginning of a series of views I took from the wrong perspective today.
As people began to arrive, co-workers, sponsors and our guests of honor, our Pastors, I was rushing around answering questions, putting out "fires" finishing off last minute details, it seemed to me that every person in the room was incompetent except me...wp(wrong perspective)
The clock was creeping near 8am and our seats were not as full as I would have liked them...where were all the people? I looked around at our sponsors...a few had frowns on their faces, which immediately screamed to me that they were PISSED and obviously I was to blame...I saw our corporate representative whispering in the corner with our General Manager, obviously they were talking about when to fire me and hire in my replacement...WP
Finally the program starts and I can take a reprieve from my idiotic thoughts, sit down and survey the scene for real.
- Our seats were nearly full
- Our sponsors (by the way, there were more sponsors than EVER at this event) had nice looking displays and good information to offer people
- The food was being distributed on time and quickly
- Our entertainment was preforming in the background and created a nice ambiance
- Our Pastors were chatting with their table mates, drinking coffee, eating food and smiling
- There didn't appear to be a fire in sight....
As our event progressed and wrapped up and I once again sprang into action I was stopped again and again by co-workers, Pastors and sponsors who complimented me, our event and said they would see us next year...so why was I so negative? If I had been a casual observer, say, a Pastor who attended our event, everything was P-E-R-F-E-C-T...no problems and not a hitch in the program. They got a goodie bag, a free breakfast, a good teaching, a chance to meet and greet fellow Pastors and, if they wanted, an opportunity to expose themselves to the useful resources that our sponsors were offering.
So I examined myself and asked, "If the people who this event is intended for are happy, content and taken care of, why am I so intent on finding fault around every corner?" I determined that I was viewing our event from the wrong perspective, as the "event planner", which is, of course, what I do but doesn't give me an excuse to tear down the good in our event.
First of all, immediately getting bummed that no one was there when I arrived was irrational. I arrived 45 minutes before I had asked my staff to arrive, what did I expect? Pre-determining that every person in the room was incompetent because they needed to ask me questions...slightly over the top. If you recall, I am the EVENT PLANNER...I had all the details, all the answers and all the specifics...I suppose it was only natural that people were going to ask me questions if I expected them to help me do ANYTHING. Also, I am pretty sure our GM and Corporate Rep were NOT planning my demise as I had envisioned...
Anyone who attended our event today will remember the event as a well put together, relaxing and rejuvenating time.
I already mentioned that the event turned out great and I am vastly relieved...but at the same time, it reveled a lot to me about myself and a bit about what I need to change in my life. I don't need to turn into Polly Sunshine and only view life through rose-colored glasses, but I do need to realize that not everyone is stupid, not everything is against me, I am not ALWAYS working alone, sometimes things do turn out OK and if I let things play out, typically they work out alright...
Goodbye Debby Downer, you are not welcome here anymore
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