Heartland Chapter Spotlight! Congratulations to our very own Communications committee member, Brad Plumb, CMP from the Overland Park Convention and Visitors Bureau whose recent article from the Spring Issue of The Heartland Beat was featured in the April issue of Convene Magazine! Great representation from the Heartland Chapter! Way to go Brad!
PCMA has published Convene magazine since 1986. Convene is one of the meeting industry’s premier monthly magazines and provides in-depth information on all aspects of meeting management to more than 30,000 subscribers.
The ‘Nice Bike’ Philosophy Making Purposeful Connections By Maria Arnone, Vice President Media Development – Ascend Integrated Media I recently attended the annual PCMA Education Conference in San Antonio. The conference was filled, as usual, with networking, top-flight education and fabulous food. (PCMA knows how to host their meeting planner constituency!) It also offered some excellent general session speakers who knew how to inspire. One of these was Mark Scharenbroich, a National Speakers Hall of Fame member and Emmy Award winner. When Mark first started speaking, no one at my table was sure what to think of his blend of selfdeprecating Minnesotan humor and comic physicality. It could have gone entirely wrong, to be sure, in front of this discerning group of meeting professionals. He even admitted — onstage — that for him, this was a big-time engagement, and that he was more than a little nervous to be presenting. But soon after, he drew us in with his authentic stories of average people deepening their human connections. And really, isn’t that what we all want? Because when we connect with others, it makes us feel more connected and valued. Mark formulated his “nice bike” principal when, quite by accident in August 2003, he drove by the HarleyDavidson 100th anniversary in Milwaukee. From his totally unhip beige rental car, he observed the interactions between bikers. He noticed that two words really connected rider to rider that day: “Nice bike.” More than flattery, he believed that this simple phrase was emblematic of something deeper: an authentic and validating human connection. Throughout his
presentation, and in his book, Nice Bike, he gives example after example of people doing simple acts of kindness or service for one another that acknowledges the other person, honors them and connects with them. From teachers showing little kindnesses to students to CEOs knowing something about every team member in their company to veterans sharing an amazing positive attitude in the face of terrible injury, the Nice Bike principal inspired listeners to make purposeful connections in an isolating and technology-driven world. He reminded attendees to start with your oldest friendships and reclaim them through reconnection. How many of us get so bogged down with living our day-to-day life that we neglect what is oldest, truest and most important to us — our longtime friendships and family relationships? He told a wonderful story of reconnecting with his father, a crusty war veteran who never said “I love you” when Mark was growing up. Through asking questions to learn more about his father’s life, Mark was able to understand him better in his later years. And Mark was able to witness his father’s authentic connection with a group of Vietnam vets during a special trip to D.C. together. Mark got to see his father put into practice — naturally and beautifully — the “Nice Bike” philosophy in a meaningful way. All of us wish for authentic, meaningful connections with our family and friends, peers, customers and employees. Nice Bike is a way to consciously work to acknowledge, honor and connect with others around us. You can find out more about Mark Scharenbroich at www.nicebike.com
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