Last week, I spoke at ACCA’s IE3 Show in Washington DC. My scheduled speech time was 2:00pm, which is the dreaded after-lunch slot. Speeches delivered immediately after lunch must be energetic, lively and engaging.

The IE3 lunch break was from 12:00pm until 2:00pm, so I went into the room where I’d be speaking at 1:00pm to connect my laptop. Then a few folks arrived early and after greeting them, and with ample time, I took a risk.

There’s a Customer Service Jeopardy PowerPoint file on my laptop and I figured that playing an engaging game would be better than small talk. The early arrivals jumped right in and played Jeopardy with gusto. It got loud. Our laughter was heard from other rooms and folks came into my room to see what the ruckus was about.

The new arrivals joined the Jeopardy game too.

Sebastian and Adam from Jackson & Sons

Before long, the room was full and at 2:00pm I switched back to the speech PowerPoint file and started the session. By then, the ice was broken and the session took on an energy of its own.

Many of my clients attended. Adam Thompson, from Jackson & Sons, in Dudley, NC, added value to the speech by sharing how his company keeps the bar high, in terms of service quality. Adam shared an innovative strategy about the “Coscia Stick” at Jackson & Sons. The “Coscia Stick” is pure innovation.

If you want to learn more about the “Coscia Stick”, ask me.

This blog’s header photo is special. On my right is Roland Perez, from Global Air Conditioning and Heating, in McAllen, TX. The two gentlemen on my left are both named John. Roland took it upon himself to grab both Johns from other speaker rooms and urged them to attend my session.

It never ceases to amaze me that opportunity abounds almost everywhere.

The Jeopardy game could have remained latent and unused on my laptop. But, using it resulted in exponential benefits.

The below map indicates my treks for the coming weeks. See my website’s calendar for long term treks into the spring, summer and fall.