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12 Top Rinks To Visit in 4 AMA Center Cities This December

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All work and no play…well, you know how that works. With the holiday month upon us, we would like to shift our attention away from business and focus on having fun and relaxing. After all, knowing how to relax is an integral part of any route to success.

We’ve chosen top ice-skating rinks in each of our AMA Executive Conference Center cities to help you take full advantage of the next visit. You can always find an hour or two to do some ice-skating, can’t you?

Conquering the Rinks in Atlanta:

  • Skate The Station – largest open-air ice skating rink in Atlanta. The mind-boggling 10,000 square foot area is already decorated for the exciting holiday season
  • Ice Rink at Sugar Hill – experience an old tradition of skating on natural ice. It’s a small rink with a family atmosphere.
  • Avalon on Ice – another nice outdoor ice-skating rink to help you relax after a tough day. You can even take private lessons.
  • Olde Town On Ice – the oldest outdoor rink in Georgia creates a perfect holiday ambiance as it celebrates its 10th anniversary.

Breaking the Ice in San Francisco:

  • Union Square Rink – located in downtown, it’s a perfect place to enjoy the city and ice skate at the same time.
  • Holiday Ice Rink – the largest outdoor ice rink in San Francisco is an excellent place for fulfilling holiday fun.
  • Walnut Creek on Ice – it’s a nice small ice-skating rink where you can show off your skills or take skating lessons.
  • San Mateo on Ice – a sizeable outdoor skating rink located in the Central Park of San Mateo (a short drive from Frisco).

Sliding and Pirouetting in Washington DC:

  • National Gallery of Art Ice Rink – skate with an excellent view of the Sculpture Garden!
  • Canal Park Ice Rink – a great place to skate with family, friends, and coworkers. The design is fantastic.
  • Wharf Ice Rink – it’s a wonderful opportunity to skate, shop, and have a hot cup of coffee. Skate while enjoying an amazing view of the water.
  • Rockville Outdoor Rink– located in nearby Maryland, the rink is beautifully decorated for the holidays and open every day regardless of the weather.

Making Memories in New York City:

  • Bank of America Winter Village at Bryant Park – surrounded by a holiday bazaar, this ice-skating rink is a double relaxation experience.
  • Rockefeller Center Rink – this rink doesn’t need an introduction. If you have an opportunity, you should definitely visit it. Consider coming in the morning or you may be struggling through a crowd.
  • Wollman Skating Rink – if you want to skate in the very heart of Manhattan while enjoying an amazing view, this is the right rink to choose.
  • Brookfield Place Rink – a huge outdoor rink with a great view is what you need after a tough day at work.

Make your next visit to each one of our AMA Executive Conference Centers memorable. For information about AMA’s centers, please contact us today.

Making The Task of Decision-Making Easier

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As soon as we’re old enough to understand what options are, we’re faced with the tasks of making decisions. Whether the decision is what flavor ice cream to pick or what major to choose in college, at any age decisions can seem like the most daunting exercise. Here are three education areas that can help you to make the task of decision-making easier:

#1: Make Hard Choices

Making decisions can be very difficult because we always want to make the “better” decision. Ruth Chang, a philosopher, shares in her TED Talk why there is no “better” option when making a decision. She goes on to explain why both choices are on a level playing fields and how this can help you choose what you truly want inside.

#2: Three Lessons on Decision-Making

Have you ever daydreamed about being the best poker player in the world? Turns out, decisions made by the best involve a lot more work than people-reading and bluffing. World Champion poker player Liv Boeree explains that there are 3 things she’s learned about decision-making. She states that the lessons include luck, quantification, and intuition – and these three factors can be used to make decisions in our daily life. Luck and intuition can play a major role in what outcome each decision brings, and quantification is crucial to estimating the odds of something good or bad happening.

#3: Think Like a Computer

Computers always know what to do and they have no understanding of how hard it can be to make a decision. That’s because computers were made to generate the best decision based on numbers and formulas. Humans don’t do that. Tom Griffiths, a psychologist and cognitive scientist, share in his TED Talk that the ways to make better decisions are by thinking like a computer.

 

Meeting Planning Tips To Lower Your Stress Level In 2020

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Meeting planning is so much more difficult than many people think, and if you don’t keep on top of every detail, you can easily become overwhelmed and wind up in a time crunch. Thankfully, there are ways to avoid this going into a new year of meetings to be planned. Follow the simple guidelines below and never dread your deadlines in 2020!

Start Early

This can’t be emphasized enough: you need to begin planning as soon as possible, ideally NOW for a year or more of meetings and events to come. Everything – finding a meeting center, hiring staff, hiring speakers – everything will be more expensive, more difficult, and more time-consuming the longer you wait. Give yourself and your clients a break and give yourself plenty of time to set up a checklist of things to do and put that checklist in the form of a timeline that you share. That way, everybody is on the same page and knows what needs to be taken care of and when.

Use Technology

Let technology do the heavy lifting for you. Nowadays there are numerous ways in which the herculean task of event planning can be made easier by utilizing the proper software, project management apps, and marketing automation tools. On average, companies that use event planning software save themselves a whopping 223 hours per year! Technology and software in these three areas are key: registration, communication and collaboration of content and surveys and reporting. There are many applications on the market or each of these vital planning areas.

Focus

You may think you’re great at multi-tasking and that in fact, you’re being more efficient by doing so. However, recent research conducted by Stanford University refutes that notion. According to the study, high multi-taskers were more prone to distraction and had less retention than low multi-taskers. Distraction is one of the primary time-wasters, so it’s clear that an ability to focus rather than to spread yourself too thin trying to do many things at once will be far more efficient. If necessary, delegate tasks so you can keep laser-focused.

If you take these tips onboard, you’ll find the days transitioning into a new decade will go more smoothly and deadlines won’t loom over you. To ease your burden even more, connect with AMA Executive Conference Centers and we will help with planning your next executive meeting, team training or conference event!

TED Talks on Success for Meeting and Event Professionals

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Success can mean different things to different people. What remains the same is the desire for success as a meeting and event professional.  Let these three TED talks inspire and encourage you to greater heights in your profession!

Embrace The Near Win

Success is a journey. It does not happen overnight. What we can do is recognize the adventure for what it is and enjoy it. Sarah Lewis, an art historian and critic, explains how the almost failure and the near win can be just as important in our lives as the successes. This TED talk will inspire you to celebrate and embrace the near wins in your life.

The Difference Between Winning and Succeeding

Coach John Wooden led his team at UCLA to record wins in the world of basketball. He opens up in this TED talk about many things regarding winning, succeeding and the profound difference. Coach shares his father’s wisdom regarding success with us, as well as how he encouraged and inspired his players to monumental accomplishments. You’ll also enjoy the moments he quotes poetry. Coach John Wooden will deeply inspire you to embrace success, not just the win.

8 Secrets of Success

This power-packed,  three minute clip, brought to you by Richard St. John, will change your life forever. In under four minutes, Richard St. John an analyst and author, manages to explain in plain language (with humor) the 8 key points to success. He condensed his two hour, high school presentation down to a precise and power-filled slideshow. One that anyone, of any age and occupation, can implement immediately. This is a must-watch for everyone! He effectively breaks down the basic keys to success in life. They’re easy to follow, easy to understand and will change your outlook and aid in your success.

Success is desirable in all professions. These TED talks will encourage the event professional or meeting specialist to seek greater heights and bigger accomplishments. They will inspire you to learn, reflect and grow in your profession.

AMA Executive Conference Centers are focused on creating environments that will help your meeting and conference goals to be achieved. To learn more about our Centers in Atlanta, New York, Washington DC and San Francisco, click here to contact us.

How to Make Effective Use Of Your Time

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Time is the most precious resource we have, but too many distractions threaten to slow down progress and steal time. If you want to make the most effective use of your time, you’ll have to learn how to avoid distractions and maintain momentum.

Identify and Remove Distractions

Covey’s Time Management Grid is a four quadrant grid that divides the things that take up your time based on their urgency and importance.
Click here to view grid: https://www2.usgs.gov/humancapital/documents/TimeManagementGrid.pdf

  • Quadrant 1: Urgent and important (like an approaching deadline or family emergency.)
  • Quadrant 2: Not urgent but important (like a long-term professional or personal goal.)
  • Quadrant 3: Urgent but not important (favors or tasks other people want you to do urgently.)
  • Quadrant 4: Not urgent and not important (like watching television or browsing social media.)

It is ideal to remain in quadrant 2 as much as possible. The more Q3 and Q4 activities you can avoid, the less time you’ll spend scrambling in Q1. Remove unimportant distractions by:

Build and Maintain Your Momentum

One of the best ways to make the most of your time is to not procrastinate in the beginning waiting on perfect circumstances. According to Business Insider, it’s better to get working in the beginning, and worry about quality later. Once you get the ball rolling, it’s important to keep it rolling. A few things you can do to maintain your momentum are:

  • Keep your mind on the task at hand and worry about your long-term strategies later.
  • Split your project into smaller tasks to build momentum and progression.
  • Your mind can wander when you are tired, so be sure to start the day with your biggest tasks.

Keep It Simple

Making things simple is a great way to progress and keep your momentum going. AMA’s Executive Conference Centers have Centers in a variety of cities, and each with flexible meeting configurations uniquely tailored for training sessions, meetings, conferences and more. Click here to contact with us to learn more our Centers in Atlanta, New York, Washington D.C. and San Francisco.

Top 4 TED Talks on Collaboration for the Meeting & Event Professionals

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There is strength in numbers. Amazing things happen when we work together and this is especially true with meeting and event professionals. The following TED Talks are some of the best conversations on the topic of collaboration – enjoy!

How to Manage for Collective Creativity

Linda Hill, the co-author of “Collective Genius” and a Harvard professor, discusses the tactics used by very successful companies in this TED talk on collaboration. She  opens up about her research into how these businesses tapped their own resources to benefit the most from collaboration and everyone’s input, not just the designated creative ones of the company.

What Happened When I Open-Sourced My Brain Cancer

This TED talk really spotlights the power of collaboration. When faced with a very difficult medical situation, Salvatore Iaconesi made the decision not to stand by and watch. He would not allow himself to be passive, but instead turned to the world and the power of people to overcome a dismal diagnosis.

The Case For Collaborative Consumption

A recognized expert and researcher of collaborative behaviors and trust-mechanics, Rachel Botsman explains that humans are wired to share. The way we live, work and play are changing. These once crazy ideas of sharing and collaborating are now gaining momentum. Enjoy watching Rachel’s TED talk on technology-enabled collaboration and their effect on us.

A Conservative’s Plea: Let’s Work Together

This TED talk discusses ways we can make a difference in a segregated world. It goes into detail on what each of us can do individually to make an impact together. Arthur Brooks breaks down the walls between liberals and conservatives. He shares his ideas that will stop the battle of the sides and usher in the collaboration. Arthur Brooks is the President of the American Enterprise Institute, and an active social scientist.

Meeting planners and professionals have the opportunity to work collaboratively each day. This includes working alongside other professionals as they are planning a big meeting or brainstorming with their own clients. These TED talks share incredible ideas on how to improve this partnership and how to tap this underrated resource. Remember: there is strength in numbers!

Managing Team Members With Bad Attitudes

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Working with a team has many benefits: different team members bring new ideas to the table, brainstorming together can lead to creative problem-solving, and work moves forward even if one team member is unavailable. But inevitably you’ll end up on a team with someone who brings a bad attitude to the table.

Maybe your problem team member takes credit for all of the team’s work. They might refuse to listen to others’ ideas, belittle other people on the team, or walk away in a huff every time there’s a disagreement. Whatever kind of bad attitude they have, it can bring down the whole team and drain everyone else’s motivation.

What can you do when one member of a team threatens to get in the way of everyone’s hard work? Here are a few tips on how to manage a team member with a bad attitude:

Empathize

It might seem counterintuitive (you definitely don’t agree with this person!) but expressing some empathy for their point of view might change your problem colleague’s outlook. For example, if they shoot down someone else’s idea, you can say, “You’re really worried that this idea won’t work. What do you suggest instead?” When someone feels like they’re being listened to, they might be more likely to listen to others.

Set Expectations

Rather than single out the one team member with a bad attitude (which can just make them feel hurt and resentful), get the whole team talking about expectations and ideal behavior when working together. Make a list at the beginning of every project; expectations could include things like “we listen to everyone’s ideas” or “we wait until a person is done before talking.”

Find Their Strength

Some people just aren’t cut out for teamwork. You can try to force your colleague into having a better attitude, but at some point, it might make more sense to let them do their own thing. Depending on their specific talents, you could assign them some important research or ask them to draft the team’s final report.

You might have a difficult team member but finding the right venue for your next executive meeting doesn’t have to be difficult. To book meetings, conferences, and other corporate events  contact AMA Conference Centers today.

Semicon West 2019 Returns to San Francisco’s Moscone Center

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SemiCon West 2019 will be held in San Francisco beginning July 9th at the Moscone Center on Howard Street. With over 550 exhibitors and 80+ hours of business and technical programming, the 3-day convention promises a glimpse of what’s next in a field that is rapidly moving BEYOND SMART.

SMART Pavilions

On the expo floor attendees will find pavilions where the latest in transportation, design, workforce, medical technology, and manufacturing are showcased. Attendees will also have the opportunity to “meet the experts” and watch informational presentations.

TechTALKS

Hear about everything from “Reducing Risks for Customers” in materials manufacturing to “New Architectures” to “Enable the Intelligent Future.” Several keynote speakers, including Jeffrey Welser, PhD. with IBM Research, are also on the agenda to speak and share.

Wearable Technologies Conference Series

On July 9th and 10th, attendees can learn about the current status of the wearable market through an extensive conference exhibition. This is a great opportunity to network with the “Who’s Who” of the entire WT ecosystem.

AMA San Francisco Executive Conference Center

Located only minutes away from the Moscone Center and a mere 15 minutes from the airport is AMA’s San Francisco Executive Conference Center. Based on location and value, AMA San Francisco is the perfect venue to host your SemiCon West 2019-related event.  Hold your breakfast meetings, product demonstrations, or networking receptions during the convention for up to 100 guests in one of 13 well-appointed meeting rooms or reception spaces.  Each room includes audio-visual equipment, adjustable lighting, complimentary WIFI, executive seating, complimentary beverage service, and professional service staff.  A variety of floor plan options ensure the most comfortable arrangement for any need. On-site catering is easily available for breakfasts, luncheons, meeting breaks or any service need during rental.

Click here to contact the AMA team  today to discuss your tailored convention meeting package.  Our experienced event managers will make planning your company activity simple and successful – while keeping it productive and enjoyable!

Three Fun Ways to Recognize & Reward Your Team

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If you’re a manager or team leader, then you need to know how important it is to recognize your team’s efforts. If you make it clear that sweat equity gets noticed and appreciated, then everyone is more likely to go that extra mile. However, while it’s important to get into the habit of seeing and pointing out when people are doing something right, it’s equally important to offer some kind of tangible reward.

For those looking for ideas, you might want to try these:

Reward #1: Points

While it might seem like something out of Harry Potter, rewarding points to teams and individuals who do good work provides a tangible number to represent how well they did. However, as Snack Nation points out, these points should also be used as a kind of reward currency that can be redeemed for actual items (gift cards, prizes, gadgets, etc.). This makes them functional rewards, instead of just a numerical mood booster.

Reward #2: Company Apparel

There’s a reason promotional items tend to be clothing; it’s useful, it’s comfortable, and when you get something for free you make a connection between the brand on your shirt or ball cap with that nice feeling. Insperity suggests that when someone is doing a notable job, you should give them a reward. A free tee shirt, a hat, a sling bag; something that’s useful, that shows your appreciation, and that reminds the employee that their company and team appreciates all their hard work.

Reward #3: Something Small, But Unique

If you want your employee recognition to be really unusual, then make sure it’s something unique. Whether it’s a commemorative coin, a custom action figure, a small print or painting…the sky is the limit. But if you want your recognition to feel really unique, make the reward an “experience!” Maybe “hard to get tickets to” a concert or special event. Experiences over items really helps to set your reward and recognition of your team apart!

AMA Executive Conference Centers offer some of the industry’s best executive meeting and conference venues. We work to help companies and corporate planners across the U.S. facilitate meetings with the best possible outcomes. Click here to contact us today to see how we can help in planning your next meeting in Atlanta, New York, Washington DC or San Francisco.

Streamline Your Workflow and Planning Projects With Trello

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The devil is in the details when it comes to meeting and event planning. No matter the size of your event, everyone involved needs to be on the same page at all times. Trello is the web-based tool we think is a hidden gem in our industry – one that you need to keep projects organized and on schedule.

How Trello Works

Trello functions like a digital whiteboard to share lists and tasks with your team members. Create a board for each project, then populate it with lists to complete each step of your workflow. The tasks on each list are called cards.  Your collaborators can add comments, checklists, due dates, files, weblinks, or more to these cards. Through labels and color coding, your lists will create clear and straight forward steps to achieve project goals.

By using Trello, all your notes, versions, and attachments are centralized in one place for easy access. Trello works with multiple operating systems and seamlessly transitions across devices through the app. Trello even integrates tools you might already be using, like Dropbox and Google Docs.

Latest Features

Trello Team Playbooks
Team Playbooks are ‘ready to go’ board templates. Whether you are marketing an event, planning a wedding, or tracking your personal productivity, Trello has a helpful board set up for you. Use Team Playbooks to take the guess work out of creating your first project with the program.

Power-Ups
Get the most out of Trello by integrating with Slack, Google Drive, and much more. Unleash the power of custom fields, calendars, or even BlueJeans Meetings by customizing the Trello with Power-Ups.

Trello Users

While many large companies – including Google and National Geographic – use Trello, the application is scalable to any size event or team. Whether you’re planning a major corporate convention or the regular weekly team meeting, jump into using Trello to organize your workflow. Contact us to learn more about how you can use Trello to plan your next event.

At AMA Executive Conference Centers, we are passionate about helping event and meeting planners maximize their time and improve their work-life harmony. Click here for more information about our executive meeting services and conference centers in Atlanta, New York City, San Francisco and Washington DC.