Tuesday Buzz: Is Your Event Transformative?

Attendees are looking to get more out of their meetings—not just a couple of days away from the office, but something that changes their lives for the better.

Sound like a bold goal? It may be, but it’s a goal that’s possible to reach, according to Event Manager Blog contributor Cathy Key  (opens in a new tab).

“This new kind of attendee is looking for an experience that somehow leaves them a better person, more connected, more engaged, and better equipped not just for their jobs but for their life,” she writes. “They want to attend meetings with meaning.”

In her post, she suggests broad ideas for boosting event experiences—such as authenticity, participant-driven sessions, and event elements that push attendees beyond their comfort zones.

“We can’t afford to be complacent,” she adds. “Attendees are growing more sophisticated and a new generation of millennials are demanding events that are provocative, inspiring, and make a difference.”

Think you can keep up with the demand?

Passwords That Don’t Work

Does your org have a culture of security? MT @mashable  (opens in a new tab): Leaked passwords of 2014. Have we learned nothing? http://t.co/zTytXRw5Q6  (opens in a new tab) #assnchat  (opens in a new tab)

— David Coriale (@dcoriale) January 20, 2015  (opens in a new tab)

What’s the worst password you can think of? There’s a good chance it’s on this list  (opens in a new tab).

The 2014 edition of SplashData’s annual list of the worst passwords, based on the 3 million passwords that leaked online last year, noted that “123456” remains the most popular (and easiest to crack) password in use, followed by “password.” Also on the list: lots of variations on numbers, words tied to sports and famous athletic teams, popular comic book characters like “superman” and “batman,” and common sayings that might be too common using as a password. If “letmein” or “trustno1” is your password, it’s like you’re leaving your door open.

Mashable warns that it might be time to throw out a common password-writing strategy.

“This year’s worst passwords are painfully weak, but what were once considered clever password strategies—using symbols, capitalizations, the number 3 in place of the letter ‘e’—are old tricks,” the website’s Samantha Murphy Kelly writes  (opens in a new tab).

Instead, she says, you might be better off coming up with a different password for every account you have. (ht @dcoriale  (opens in a new tab))

Other Links of Note

Having stepped down from his role as board chair of the Wisconsin Society of Association Executives, National Fluid Power Association CEO Eric Lanke takes a look back  (opens in a new tab) at the lessons he learned.

Have a lot of random files you need to convert into different formats? The new online service CloudConvert  (opens in a new tab) might be a godsend. It can convert more than 200 types of files  (opens in a new tab) and put the results in your Dropbox folder.

It’s a fresh year, and there are lots of things to do to keep your online community in tip-top shape. Joshua Paul, senior director of marketing and strategy for Socious, has a few ideas to get you moving  (opens in a new tab).

(iStock/Thinkstock)