GCSAA President Ricky D. Heine, CGCS, invites you to attend

How do you communicate to others the value of attending Conference and Show?

It wasn’t until a peer of mine put it in simple terms that I clearly understood the importance of conference and show—not only for me, but for my facility as well.

He told me that even though his facility was closed for the winter and his staff was not conditioning the course, he had a pit in his stomach. He was missing his first conference and show in some time. He had a feeling of emptiness. He knew there was networking going on without him. He knew there were new technologies he was not experiencing. He knew there was education that was vital to his career and facility success. In an industry where change is constant, he was standing still or even worse, falling behind.

He had boiled it down into succinct terms. I had become so accustomed to attending the event that I had taken it for granted. But thinking about it for a brief moment quickly reinforces its value. I shudder to think at the expenses my facility would have incurred, the revenues it would have missed and the knowledge I would not have gained if I did not attend. Every day is an opportunity to advance and no opportunity matches that of Conference and Show.

Have you ever used the term “keep sawing wood” to express your dedication or focus on your career? At some point, the saw becomes dull. No matter how hard you work, you just don’t cut as much wood as you did in the past. You need to sharpen your saw regularly to be successful. I look at Conference and Show as the means to “sharpen my saw.” It is the best opportunity to enhance your skills and ultimately become a more productive member of your facility’s leadership team. For those of you who have read Stephen Covey’s works, as I have for numerous years, sharpening the saw or “Renewal” is the seventh habit Covey has identified of highly successful people.

After all, it is Your Business, Your Industry, Your Show.

GCSAA President