SKO Day 0: Seeing People in 3D
Day 0 of this sales kickoff (SKO) went pretty easy. I landed in Las Vegas after 2pm, got to my hotel by 3pm, and largely took it easy until just after 6. Then there was a reception at 6:30 on one of the decks outside.
Doing a meet-and-greet with people in person was like exercising and old muscle that hasn't been used much lately. In fact basically not in... 2 years, 2 weeks, and 2 days. In that time a lot of new people have joined my company. And I've seen many of them... but only in 2D. In 3D some of them look different!
For example, my boss is 6'5". He does not look that tall on camera. He positions his camera in his home office in such a way that it makes him look of average height, about 5'11".
Meanwhile one of the VPs in our organization positions his camera in the opposite fashion, making him look an imposing 6'2"... with a haughty and abrasive communication style. He's actually about 5'5". Seeing him in person, in 3D, totally changed my perspective on him. Now I see him as a yappy little dog, a person who projects his insecurity by barking constantly. I noticed a lot of other people recalibrating around him, too. He grabbed a microphone to speak and couldn't even project his voice with the help of a microphone. People ignored him instead of kow-towing to him. I wonder if he'll even last 6 more months now.
Our reception wound down at 9pm. In 24/7 Las Vegas that seems lame but it's actually a good thing. Some people see these SKO events as boondoggles, opportunities to live it up with drinking, gambling, dancing, etc. to all hours of the morning. But the fact, is they're more like timed rallies.
With 12+ hours a day of training and other events that you have to be "on" for, there isn't room for dragging yourself back to the hotel in the not-so-wee hours of the morning and then working through a raging hangover the next day. It's better you get yourself to bed before midnight each night- and not stinking drunk- so you can be ready for a full workday the next morning beginning at 7am.
Next: Mostly Maskless in Las Vegas
Doing a meet-and-greet with people in person was like exercising and old muscle that hasn't been used much lately. In fact basically not in... 2 years, 2 weeks, and 2 days. In that time a lot of new people have joined my company. And I've seen many of them... but only in 2D. In 3D some of them look different!
For example, my boss is 6'5". He does not look that tall on camera. He positions his camera in his home office in such a way that it makes him look of average height, about 5'11".
Meanwhile one of the VPs in our organization positions his camera in the opposite fashion, making him look an imposing 6'2"... with a haughty and abrasive communication style. He's actually about 5'5". Seeing him in person, in 3D, totally changed my perspective on him. Now I see him as a yappy little dog, a person who projects his insecurity by barking constantly. I noticed a lot of other people recalibrating around him, too. He grabbed a microphone to speak and couldn't even project his voice with the help of a microphone. People ignored him instead of kow-towing to him. I wonder if he'll even last 6 more months now.
Our reception wound down at 9pm. In 24/7 Las Vegas that seems lame but it's actually a good thing. Some people see these SKO events as boondoggles, opportunities to live it up with drinking, gambling, dancing, etc. to all hours of the morning. But the fact, is they're more like timed rallies.
With 12+ hours a day of training and other events that you have to be "on" for, there isn't room for dragging yourself back to the hotel in the not-so-wee hours of the morning and then working through a raging hangover the next day. It's better you get yourself to bed before midnight each night- and not stinking drunk- so you can be ready for a full workday the next morning beginning at 7am.
Next: Mostly Maskless in Las Vegas