Lmst
Login

#EventDesign

Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-05

If you want to make conference socials a maximally effective opportunity for interaction and engagement, keep them music-free

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

music at conference socials: graphic of a person trying to hear someone talking to them while bombarded with loud music from a guitar player
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-04

Do beats Show and Tell. Multi-sensory environments improve our ability to learn, requiring us to be active participants in our learning.

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

Do beats Show and Tell: a photograph of a kindergarten class with children sitting on the floor and a teacher and a child with an umbrella up front. Photo attribution: Flickr user wwworks.
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-04

In 2011, I wrote about why hybrid events "aren't going away". Tech has significantly improved since then…but the article is still relevant.

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

hybrid events aren't going away: photograph of napkin with the written message "ME LEAVING TOO. CONNECTION TOO BAD. TWEET YOU L8R"
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-04

We'll all get a lot more out of our events when we practice wirearchy, not hierarchy. I encourage you to join me.

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

A photograph of birds on a wire and a lamppost.
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-04

Traditional conferences have implicit ground rules. Surprisingly, it turns out we also need explicit ground rules.

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

implicit ground rules: photograph of a baseball umpire pointing dramatically
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-03

Stay on time! How not keeping to your conference schedule plays havoc with your attendees' meeting experience and satisfaction.

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

A red poster in the style of British government posters. It includes a white crown and the words "KEEP CALM AND STAY ON TIME"
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-03

How do you crowdsource a conference program in real time? I explain, using the 2017 Haute Dokimazo in Austin, TX as an example.

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

Screenshot of participants listening to facilitator Adrian Segar at the Haute Dokimazo unconference, Austin, TX, in May 2017
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-03

Here are two ways to take a hard look at your conference evaluations. You may be surprised by what you find.

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

hard look at conference evaluations: an illustration of people looking at evaluation forms
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-02

Hack the peak-end rule to maximize conference impact by including many different kinds of short experiences in our events

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

Hack the peak-end rule to maximize conference impact: photograph of a person, silhouetted against the sky, making a triumphant gesture at the top of a rocky hill
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-02

Whenever possible, avoid squaring the circle of a room set design. Here's what to do when you can't use circular seating layouts.

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

An overhead photograph of a group of people sitting in a large circle with Leonardo de Vinci's "Vitruvian Man" superimposed at the center.
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-01

An independent review of my conference design work, published as a case study in Chapter 25 of "The Routledge Handbook of Business Events".

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

Image of the front cover of The Routledge Handbook of Business Events. This book, published in 2023, includes a case study of Adrian Segar's work.
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-01

Don't waste valuable meeting time with lectures! Social production is the way to maximize learning that leads to significant, valuable, long-term change.

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

Don't waste valuable meeting time having experts presenting to "learners". A panel from a Calvin and Hobbes cartoon. Calvin is sitting at a school desk saying "THIS IS A BIG, FAT WASTE OF MY TIME!"
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-01

Here are four unquestioned assumptions that lay at the heart of a traditional conference format

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

Photograph of a man in a suit standing at a sales window. A sign on the wall beside him says "NO MISTAKES CAN BE RECTIFIED AFTER LEAVING THE WINDOW".
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-01

Too many events still use child-based pedagogical instead of adult-centered andragogical modalities. Concentrate on the latter.

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

pedagogy and andragogy: photograph of two men sitting on tiny chairs in a nursery school
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-02-01

Can meetings where no one says a word exhibit significantly different interpersonal dynamics? After my third silent meditation retreat, I say: Yes they can!

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

The interpersonal dynamics of silent retreats: a photograph of a group of people silently meditating, sitting indoors, on the floor
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-01-31

Meeting planners try to minimize surprises. But incorporating planned surprises into our events can improve attendees' experience and learning. Here are three examples.

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

Adrian SegarASegar
2026-01-31

Low-tech and high-tech voting solutions abound. Here's when to use no- and low-tech techniques for participatory voting.

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

Low-tech and high-tech voting: a photograph of low-tech RSQP voting using sticky notes on wall-mounted flipchart paper
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-01-30

Three tips for facilitating group discussions by using a fishbowl format to create an effective focused discussion with a group

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

tips for facilitating group discussions. A photograph of a fishbowl discussion. People sit in a large circle, listening, around a smaller circle of five filled chairs where a discussion is taking place.
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-01-30

How can we build connection and engagement with the people with whom we work? By giving up control over the choices they're offered.

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

build connection and engagement: photograph of a square yellow plastic sign clamped to a wire mesh fence. The pink sign says "CONTROLLED AREA" with a radioactivity symbol underneath.
Adrian SegarASegar
2026-01-30

Do you create events that tug at heartstrings? If so, you should feel proud. I know I do.

conferencesthatwork.com/index.

events that tug at heartstrings: A photograph of a young girl with a pink flower in her hair

Client Info

Server: https://mastodon.social
Version: 2025.07
Repository: https://github.com/cyevgeniy/lmst