The Importance of Attending Education Sessions at NASC Symposium

 Posted on: February 19 2018
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I often think about the phrase “learn something new every day”. I think about it because I realize I don’t commit enough time to learning or growing professionally. If you think about it, learning is really unavoidable. I mean, every encounter, interaction and experience has a takeaway, but how often do we take time to reflect and realize the lesson learned? I’d like to say I do so every time, but let’s be real! My life, like I imagine most, feels like one distraction after another. This is not a complaint. I love my life, personally and professionally. But I really wish I was better about taking the time to learn and advance my professional skill set. I imagine others feel this way as well.

Every spring I attend the NASC Symposium and while I enjoy interacting with clients at appointments, that is actually near the bottom of my satisfaction list. I have just as meaningful interactions outside the appointments as I do during. I understand many people attend Symposium because they must generate business leads, I’m certainly not naive. But I hope people attend for much more than that.

I enjoy Symposium because I feel like I go home overflowing with new ideas and challenged to incorporate what I’ve learned. This comes from peer-to-peer interaction and the fact NASC carves out the time for me to learn. Let me state it nice and simply; I just show up in Minneapolis, find something I want to know more about, sit in a room and absorb. This is my one week where I am excuse free and that I can immerse myself in learning.

Of course I sit in educational sessions where discussion topics are items I need to learn more about. As we all know this helps expand our scope of knowledge, I want to be challenged and grow. But that can also occur in a session that I feel like the “expert” in. My most thought-provoking moments often occur when those in attendance ask questions during or after the session. I’ve been doing this for a little while now and I can sometimes think I know the best ways to do it. But in that moment, when someone asks a simple question in a way that I never even considered doing it, whoa!

The NASC makes it easy to learn, or in my case, continue learning. It’s an excuse free week where I can take the time to invest in me and my professional education and growth. All I have to do is show up, allow myself to be present in the moment and absorb. There is one week a year when learning really is unavoidable. See you in Minneapolis!

 

Mike Price, CSEE

Executive Director/Greater Lansing Sports Authority

Comments

Mary Lee Malmberg
Well said, Mike. I couldn't agree more! I have become so much better in my job and have grown professionally because of the opportunities presented in education sessions and through the other activities at Symposium!

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