Affordable Ways to Encourage Attendee Participation

See One. Do One. Teach One. I was watching Grey’s Anatomy (don't judge) when a line jumped out at me: “See one. Do one. Teach one.” It was Dr. Webber's mantra for medical training: observe a skill, try it yourself, then pass it on. It's also the perfect blueprint for event engagement. Most events get stuck at “see one.” Attendees listen to keynotes, sit through panels, watch demos. They see a lot, but if that’s where it ends, the knowledge fades almost instantly. The next level is “do one.” Give attendees space to try what they’ve learned, through hands-on workshops, scenario labs, role plays, or even a 10-minute exercise in the room. This helps the ideas move from theory into muscle memory. But then there's “teach one.” Create moments for attendees to share their perspective. Whether it’s a micro-discussion at their table, a peer-to-peer breakout, or a post-session “lightning share” where they explain what they learned to someone else. When people teach, they anchor the learning in their own words, and engagement skyrockets. What if designing events around this mantra could transform attendees into contributors? They stop being passive listeners and start being co-creators of the experience. Maybe that's what engagement is meant to be, after all. 

What to keep people engaged at your event?  Use story loops wisely. Here’s how: A story loop is when you open a story but you don’t immediately resolve it. Our brain CRAVES resolution, so we stay engaged to figure it out. Problem is some event planners do it wrong. They either: ❌ Say something vague like “stay around, there will be a surprise at the end”  ❌ Don’t even mention anything and leave people confused. Here’s how to fix that: 1. Be specific Mention a clear result or outcome, but have them wait for the “how.” For example “During the event we’ll giveaway $1000 to 3 people in the audience. We’ll explain how you can participate after lunch.” Being specific gives your audience autonomy to decide if they engage and how they could do it. 2. Show an outcome If you tell people “the artist will be drawing the ideas of today’s sessions and you can see them at the end” some people may not get it. To solve this, show examples of a visual note so they can understand what they will expect at the end. Then, the loop will be “Those notes look really cool, I want to see how they turn out.” 3. Communicate proactively You hired an a visual note taker to create an interactive wall with your audience’s thoughts and ideas. But you forgot to tell them about it. As a result, they don’t even come close to the artist because they don’t want to disturb him. Fail! Don’t assume people will get it just because they can see it.  Say it! And give them instructions, so that they can know what to expect. Remember, the magic of story loops is not in the surprise. People actually avoid surprises. What they want is a clear and appealing expectation. Give them that, and they will engage.

Designing a conference? Please rethink the traditional format where attendees passively sit through hours of expert panels and fireside chats. There is a better way and it doesn't take much effort or thought. A few things you might consider: + Every 30-60 minutes, pause to encourage attendees to introduce themselves to someone new and discuss a key takeaway from the latest session. + Place Q&A cards on tables for participants to submit questions throughout the session. Invite those who submit questions to share their context, creating a richer dialogue. + Don't just celebrate the sponsors — celebrate the people in the room. Study the list of attendees and find interesting facts about who's joining. Highlight the range of backgrounds, demographics, etc. + During breaks, set up zones for different affinity groups, helping people connect with others who share their interests and expertise. You'll probably think of even better things. But you get the picture. It's nice to hear how a few experts are thinking about current issues — but it's transformative if you can foster connections that go far beyond your event. #learning #development #workplace #growth