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CMP SERIES CERTIFICATION MADE POSSIBLE
made. Even something simple — the sound of a phone ringing at the same time that a photo of a phone appears on a slide — can cement learning. Sullivan said: “That is so much more powerful than either one alone.” Similarly, irrelevant or competing sounds
can decrease learning, such as noise from other rooms and hallways. Some people are so sensitive to sound, Sullivan said, that even the hum from a fluorescent light distracts their attention.
Greg Van Dyke
“The larger the image, the more powerful the emotional response.”
3 The music should count. One form of audio sensory input, according to Sullivan, is so powerful that it activates nearly every region of the brain: music. Depending on the rhythm and tone, it can energize or relax us, boost intelligence, engage the emotions, and support memory. You can use music at your meetings to create
moods, aid in transitions between spaces, and gen- erate emotions targeted to what you want people to feel at specific times; a recurring musical theme can help attendees recall targeted moments. If you doubt the power of music to create emotionally charged memories, Van Dyke told the Conven- ing Leaders audience, just think of the theme
song to the movie “Jaws.” Yet despite the power of music to engage attendees, planners often fail to use it strategically. Van Dyke said: “They’ll tell us,
‘Just throw in a little walk-in music.’” Much of the buzz at Microsoft’s annual global
sales meeting is given over to wondering what song CEO Steve Ballmer will choose to accom- pany his talk, Quigley added. Ballmer chooses the music himself, and it always fits his message. “To have someone at that level … know that [music] is important,” Quigley said, “is pretty cool.”
4 Color influences our mood — and our thinking. Although meeting rooms are often neutral, with white and gray walls and artificial lighting, that kind of “sensory poverty” creates environments where the brain is not stimulated enough and leads to less engagement and learning, Sullivan said. But adding color without considering the effect
Be Your Meeting’s Maestro Given that music has a huge potential for emotionally engaging attendees and reinforcing meeting content, it’s surprising that such a small number of event organizers invest much energy in hitting the right notes, according to PSAV Presentation Services’ Greg Van Dyke.
Van Dyke asked PSAV’s producers for ideas on where meeting planners can find musical resources, and got the following feedback: First off, don’t give up on pop music. If you find the right combination of sound and lyrics that is relevant to your message, you’ll have hit a home run. However, as some popular music clearly carries some risk with their lyrics, here are some other options.
› First Com (firstcom.com) is inexpensive relative to the value. A blanket annual license for unlimited downloads costs $1,200 and offers excellent quality and diversity of music with a huge catalogue.
› Royalty Free Music (royaltyfreemusic.com) provides inexpensive licenses per download with good quality and a modest catalogue size.
› American Music Company (americanmusicco.com) is available for a $30 annual registration and then requires a license per use. The music is safe, with a neutral tone selection.
› Freeplay Music (freeplaymusic.com) is a relatively inexpensive site with licenses available per download, but has a smaller catalogue of music.
46 PCMA CONVENE MARCH 2013
it will have on attendees can backfire. “We seem to have a species-wide response to certain stimuli, including physiological responses to certain colors,” Sullivan said. For example, warm colors, such as reds and oranges, produce animated states, while blue creates a quiet, inward focus. In one study, students tested in a room with red walls scored better on tests that required attention to detail and accuracy. Subjects in a room with blue walls did worse on those tasks, but were twice as imaginative and creative as students in the red room. “If I am doing brainstorming or strategic plan-
ning, I will definitely bring in blue in one form or another,” Sullivan said. “I do project management trainings, and when we are working on risk man- agement and budgets and all that detailed stuff, I will use red in one form or another. Either I will have it in my PowerPoint slides or I will use red paper.” Quigley has used a strategic combination of the
two schemes at a Microsoft event, bringing jolts of bright, hot color into an environment bathed mostly in cooler colors. The spots of color “bring energy,” Quigley said, and reset how attendees are thinking about things. “They are fun flashes that make [attendees] energized and ready to go.”
Putting It Into Practice Sullivan’s research on biology and learning has changed how she approaches the way she herself