Follow the Leaders
Sights and Sounds of 2016 VACEOs Retreat
We had more than 180 CEOs and Sponsors join us for the 2016 Retreat – record attendance! If you’re a member you know there’s no better event to connect, learn, and grow. Here’s a few of our favorite moments.
Not a VACEOs member? We often hear that the Annual Retreat alone is well worth the cost of membership. We invite you to contact us when you’re ready to learn more about our amazing think tank of CEOs.
2016 VACEOs Retreat CliffsNotes
This year’s CEO Retreat was a huge success! “CEO Essentials” was the theme, and we’ve got a few short and sweet nuggets here to jog your memory, should you find yourself lost in (ahem) “urgent” matters. Bookmark this page and return to it often. If you care to relive some of the fun, take a look at our Retreat Sights and Sounds video.
BRIAN MORAN: “The 12 Week Year”
When you think of Brian’s presentation, think blue poker chips. He gave us tools to develop clarity and focus – and a healthy sense of urgency. When you shift to a 12-week year, everything changes. And you’re sure to discover what matters most.
Nuggets from this presentation:
• Develop a repertoire of “gracious no’s” for non-essential requests.
• The moment you decide what matters most (i.e., what you need to do) will be one of your Greatest Moments.
• Move through the plan one week at a time. Peer support is important. You will quickly succeed or fail. Refine your plan. Repeat.
• Learn more here.
ROBERTA OSTER SACHS: “Enhance Your Executive Presence: Tools to Fuel Your Confidence and Impact”
When you’re getting ready for a big sales pitch, think about Roberta’s presentation. This Emmy Award-winning journalist and leadership trainer taught us about the science behind “Power Posing” and gave us mindfulness tools to enhance our productivity and health.
Nuggets from this presentation:
• Executive Presence Pillars:
1. Gravitas (ability to recognize others’ emotions)
2. Communication (*listening* skills)
3. Appearance (physical health)
• Feeling stressed or not confident. Practice your best power pose!
• Meditation matters. And mindfulness makes you smarter.
• Learn more here.
GREG MCKEOWN: “Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less”
Need inspiration to de-clutter your life? Think about Greg. This superbly hilarious professional from across the pond is a New York Times and Wall Street Journal best-selling author and founder and CEO of THIS Inc. He gave us the inspiration to pursue less to reclaim control of our own choices about where to spend our precious time and energy. Or said another way, to pursue a closet filled only with joy. “Can we get a snap?!”
Nuggets from this presentation:
• Your job as CEO is to protect your ability to prioritize.
• Become more of who you REALLY are. Eliminate the non-essentials.
• Remember: It’s either “HELL, YES!” or “No.”
• Becoming an Essentialist begins with small wins.
• Learn more here.
JONAH BERGER: “Crafting Contagious”
This fast-talking New York Times best-selling author and Wharton professor showed us the science behind content that goes viral. He shared just enough data and secrets to entice us to devour his book. Genius approach, wouldn’t you say?
Nuggets from this presentation:
• Remember these three stories:
1. Secret entrance into bar / social currency
2. Blender video / inner remarkability
3. “Never say no to a panda” / story content that carries a message
• There’s power behind peanut butter and jelly. Find your trigger.
• Your homework: Read your free copy of Contagious by Jonah Berger.
2016 CEO Retreat
This year’s CEO Retreat program highlights what every CEO needs the most – focus. As CEOs we are constantly pulled in many directions, stretched too thin, overworked and not as productive as we want to be. Our world-class presenters bring experience and expertise on the topic of finding ways to focus on what matters for the CEO. And, you will have lots of ways to connect with the other experts – your peers. Come connect, learn and grow!
The 2016 VACEOs CEO Retreat takes place April 27-29. Register today or download the 2016 Retreat PDF. The Retreat is for members and sponsors only. Contact us to find out how to get connected with our community of nearly 200 small business CEOs.
The 12 Week Year
Brian Moran has over thirty years of expertise as a CEO, corporate executive, entrepreneur, consultant, and coach. His background as a corporate executive combined with his experience as an entrepreneur positions him with a unique skill set to help individuals and organizations grow and prosper.
Brian will introduce the key concepts in his book The 12 Week Year which will help you discover how to develop clarity and focus on what matters most, and a healthy sense of urgency to get it done! Learn more here or download 2016 Retreat Brochure.
Crafting Contagious
Why do some things catch on while others fail? What makes online content go viral? And why do some products, ideas, and behaviors get more word of mouth than others? Professor Jonah Berger examines the behavioral science that underlies these questions. He examines how consumers make decisions, how ideas diffuse, and how social influence leads people to imitate (or avoid) what others are doing.
Berger is a Marketing professor at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a visiting professor at Cornell Tech. He has published dozens of articles in top-tier academic journals, and popular accounts of his work frequently appear in popular outlets like the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, NPR, Science, Harvard Business Review. Learn more here or download 2016 Retreat Brochure.
Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less
Greg McKeown is emerging as one of the most refreshing and transformative thought leaders and speakers on leadership, peak performance, and business growth. He is a NYT and WSJ best-selling author, founder and CEO of THIS Inc.—a leadership and strategy design agency in Silicon Valley—and one of the most popular bloggers for Harvard Business Review and LinkedIn’s Influencer Group.
Greg will help you apply more selective criteria for what is Essential, the disciplined pursuit of less empowers us to reclaim control of our own choices about where to spend our precious time and energy. Learn more here or download 2016 Retreat Brochure.
Enhance Your Executive Presence: Tools to Fuel Your Confidence and Impact with Roberta Oster Sachs
In this interactive workshop, Roberta will share best practices to enhance your executive presence. We will discuss Harvard Business School Professor Amy Cuddy’s work on “Power Posing” and the latest research in neuroscience and human behavior. In this era of a multi- tasking, leaders are overwhelmed by the 24/7-work culture and it’s impact on business and relationships. We will learn mindfulness tools to address these issues and enhance your productivity and health.
Roberta is an Emmy Award-winning journalist, leadership trainer, and a passionate and energetic communications professional. With two decades of experience as a producer at NBC, CBS, and ABC Network News in New York, she traveled the world reporting on business, politics, and social justice issues.
In 2011, Roberta founded Oster Sachs Communications, a Richmond-based leadership and media consulting firm. OSC offers training and coaching for public and private sector clients. OSC workshops help to develop clients’ communication and collaboration skills, build self-confidence, and create their own brand of executive presence. Participants become clear, confident, and credible leaders and communicators. Roberta’s programs include: Executive Presence, Women’s Leadership, Power and Influence, Lead with Mindfulness, Networking Skills, Discover the Power of Your Voice, and Calm in a Crisis.
To learn more at www.ostersachs.com.
Day 1: VACEOs 2015 Retreat Highlights
Want more 2015 information? View Day 2 highlights.
2015 VACEOs ANNUAL RETREAT DAY ONE HIGHLIGHTS
Opening Keynote Speaker: Shawn Achor, “The Happiness Advantage”
Shawn Achor, New York Times bestselling author of The Happiness Advantage and Before Happiness, guided us through his research and showed us how we can increase productivity and decrease the incidence of health problems by changing our mindset.
Here’s what we know:
1. Happiness is a choice
2. You can easily cultivate happiness in the workplace
3. Happiness spreads
4. Happiness = an advantage
Greatest predictors of success:
1. Optimism
2. Strong social connection
3. Perceiving stress as a challenge
>> YOUR ASSIGNMENT<<
A. Ask yourself: How do I perceive my work? As a career? A job? A calling? Remember, the view you see through your lens profoundly shapes the reality of your company.
B. Do these 5 things to create sustainable, positive change in your culture:
1) Three Gratitudes: Write down three NEW things you’re grateful for each day. Rewire your brain for greater optimism.
2) The Doubler: Spend two minutes describing a meaningful experience from the past 24 hours. Double the meaning in your life.
3) Fun 15: Add 15 minutes of fun, active cardio to your routine. Create a cascade of success.
4) Meditation: Invest two minutes to train your brain to just notice your breath. Undo the negative effects of multitasking.
5) Conscious Act of Kindness: Take two minutes to write an email thanking one person in your social support network. Increase the greatest happiness predictor.
Learning Labs: You Choose!
The second half of Day One was full of well-attended one-hour Learning Labs – on topics ranging from leadership to law to speaking candidly. Here’s a lesson and a few comments we heard from those in attendance.
Learning Lab: Uncommon Candor, A Leader’s Guide to Straight Talk,
by Nancy Eberhardt, Pathwise Partners
5 Ways to Lead a Culture of Candor:
1) Be vulnerable.
2) Tell people what the real deal is.
3) Go for the facts … like Colin Powell.
4) Get feedback and listen.
5) It’s okay to say you don’t know and to get more brains in the game.
>> YOUR ASSIGNMENT<<
Read The Lost Art of Candor.
Day 2: VACEOs 2015 Retreat Highlights
2015 VACEOs RETREAT DAY TWO HIGHLIGHTS
Keynote Speaker: Cameron Herold, “Zero to Good”
Cameron Herold may be best known as a driving force behind 1-800-GOT-JUNK?’s spectacular growth from $2 million to $106 million in revenue in just six years. During our time together, he was very candid with us, and we liked that! (See First Day Highlights.) The audience was engaged and presented him with lots of thoughtful questions, including, “How do I find the right people?”, “How do you budget for a culture-perfect space?” and, “I’m not a people person, so how do I rally the troops?”
How to Build a Culture of Success:
1) Start with a VIVID vision. Write down your three-to-five-year goal. Key: Be able to express your vision in vivid detail. Hire a writer to create a statement that describes things like what your customers will be saying about you, what operations will look like, what the energy of the company is, etc. Once it’s crafted, keep repeating it over and over (and soon you’ll find others joining your “dance”).
2) Transition out people who don’t share your vision. Your goal is to attract and hunt for only the best. Hire for attitude, skill and core values. Raise the bar on your next hire.
3) Train every employee on how to run a meeting. A culture based on respect and effective communication skills is key. Hint: Each meeting should have a purpose, three goals and an agenda.
4) Provide an attractive office space for your employees. Ask yourself, “Is my personal office space sending the right message?”
5) Understand communication is a two-way street. Review how you’re speaking to the outside world. Does it attract or repel the right people? For example, how are your job descriptions written? Or the copy on your website? It may be time to shake it up a bit. Also, are you really listening to your employees? Do you really know what their dreams and aspirations are? If you genuinely connect with them, you’ll gain their loyalty.
>> YOUR ASSIGNMENT>>
A. Start with Step #1 from above!
Doug Tatum, “No Man’s Land / Your Company’s Worth and Why”
Doug Tatum is a repeat Retreat presenter and a recognized expert on the capital markets and the entrepreneurial growth economy; in fact, a number of VACEOs members have cited Doug’s ideas as the catalyst for change and growth in their companies.
We appreciated the fact that he was quick to say it’s completely legal, ethical and appropriate to stay small, but we were there to think BIG – to make our way through No Man’s Land.
Systems that Need to Be in Place to Meet the Growth:
1) Market. Determine exactly what you’re good at. Is it a personal or company trait? (If it’s personal and it can be transferred to your business, then you can scale; if not, stay small.)
2) Management Culture. Your inner circle will change if you trek through No Man’s Land, and so will your ability to give one-off customer experience.
3) Model. Know the size of your industry and how your business compares. Is there room for you if you scale?
4) Money. Capital is king, and you’ll need easy access to lots of it for expensive, top-notch employees, infrastructure changes, etc., to navigate your way through No Man’s Land. (Good news: Tatum suggests there is a trend toward investors backing add-on acquisitions.)
<< YOUR ASSIGNMENT>>
A. Ask yourself: Does it make sense for me to remain a small giant, or should I try to scale?
Want more? Revisit Day 1 Highlights.
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