July 2010 Edition of the Charisma Productions Gazette

1. Charisma Productions Gazette
Volume 2, Issue 7 July 2010
Meetings That Deliver Happy 4th of July
Meeting Design Principles From Charisma Productions Network
Understanding Meeting Principals Independence Day
Charisma Productions Network Charisma Productions Network
Every great off-site meeting should have well crafted
objectives that the top leadership team is committed to
achieving. The off-site objectives should drive every other
decision about the off-site meeting. They will influence the
location, how many days, who will attend, and how much
preparation time and resources you will need. So get started
early, ideally 3-4 months before the meeting. Keep in mind
your venue site; some companies book their venues 1+ years
in advance.
Leaders sometimes underestimate what an important, and
potentially defining, leadership moment such off-site
meetings can be – for better or for worse! Invited participants
assume that everything that happens, everything on the
agenda, is there because the most senior leaders wanted it th
The basis for the 4 of July celebration is the signing of the
there. They expect to hear from the senior leaders, and they
often are interested in the senior leaders’ reactions to what Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776 by our
happens and what is discussed at the meeting. Be sure your Founding Fathers. This Declaration of Independence made
senior leaders appreciate both the opportunities and risks
America a free nation. We celebrate this holiday with
that such meetings present. And be sure to design the
meeting in such a way as to help them make the most of their firecrackers, parades and picnics. It is important to enjoy
leadership moments. these festivities with family and friends but it is equally
Meetings that have impact engage people - their minds and
important to teach our children what this day really means.
their hearts. Think of the few off-sites you’ve been to that
really made a difference, off-sites that truly accelerated So with that in mind we here at Charisma Productions
lasting, positive changes in your company or organization. Network hopes everyone will celebrate with family,
What happened? Chances are that these meetings
friends and maybe meet some new friends and take a
moment to remember how important this holiday is to
continued on page 2
America.
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
1 Meetings That Deliver
1 th
Happy 4 of July
2 Meetings That Deliver Continued
3 From Our IT Department
4 Recipe of the Month
5 Strategic Partner – Aces of Acts Entertainment
Newsletter 1

2. continued from page 1 communication that prepares you to be most effective in your
time together and there is follow-up after the off-site that
demonstrated a few important meeting design principles.
helps assure that things committed to at the off-site are
Get Creative, there are dozens of effective and engaging
accomplished and integrated into your on-going work.
ways to accomplish off-site objectives - clustering people in
smaller discussion groups, electronic “secret ballot”
surveying, hands-on projects that help drive home key points Meeting design comfortably fits: The meeting is fast-
and build relationships, panel discussion formats, customer paced, yet it doesn’t feel over-stuffed. There is time to
speakers, and so on. Of course, the choice of methods is accomplish what the meeting has set out to accomplish,
guided by your specific off-site meeting objectives and the protecting the integrity of the meeting design.
design principles above. No matter how “cool” the method is,
it has to be a “best choice” to serve off-site objectives and For more information please contact
design principles. Splashy methods can make a meeting info@cpnevents.com or visit our website
memorable; they are only worthwhile if they are created to
www.charismaproductionsnetwork.com.
delivering on the meeting objectives. Charisma
Productions Network can help you develop what it
takes in order to get your meeting objectives met and exceed
all of your expectations.
Off-site Meeting Design Principles
Connection before Content: People are encouraged
to “connect” with each other, informally and personally. This
happens early and often. If the meeting participants are to do
any “real work” with each other at the off-site (e.g. make new
organizational arrangements, commit resources, etc.), this
foundation of personal connection is essential.
Conversations, not lectures: There is lots of
conversation, and little lecture. The core principle here is that
people typically learn more, and change more, when they
have to formulate and express their ideas, not just listen to
the ideas of others.
The right people: The “right” people are in the room.
Building and paring the invite list for most off-sites is a
challenge, and invariably additional people get added for
political reasons. But be sure that enough of the right people
are there – the ones with the knowledge, the power, and the
influence to accomplish the meeting objectives - and the
ability to bring the rest of the organization along with the new
direction when they return to work. Be careful not to dilute
the meeting with too many who are not well positioned to
help.
Informative, Inspiring
An off-site is more than a list of agenda items:
There is a coherent arc to the meeting, an overall story line.
and Empowering
Each step of the meeting builds toward the next step, serving
the overall objectives and deliverables. You get the sense
that it is well choreographed, that there is a good reason for
Let Charisma Productions Network
everything that is on the agenda. become your one-stop solution for
The “how” says volumes about the “what”: How all your corporate meeting, events
the meeting is conducted is in sync with the messages
delivered at the meeting. For instance, if the message is that
and conference needs.
senior management wants ideas and input from the next
levels of management, then lots of time at the meeting must
be devoted to eliciting ideas, and demonstrating that (at least
some of) the ideas will be acted upon. It isn’t, “55 minutes of
slides with 5 minutes of Q&A.” Careful design helps the
meeting itself “walk the talk.”
The off-site began before it started, and finished
well after it ended: There is pre-work and
Newsletter 2

3. From Our IT Department
Use these tips to help manage your files.
Use Documents. For many reasons, it's smart to take advantage of the Documents feature (called Documents in Windows 7
and Windows Vista, and My Documents in Windows XP. To open Documents in Windows, click Start, and then click
Documents. And discover an easy way for you to store your personal documents.
Find files. Windows provides easy access to the Documents folder (and its subfolders) in many places: through the Start
menu, the task pane in Windows Explorer, common File Open and File Save dialog boxes, and other places.
Back up files. You should back up files regularly—and keeping all your files in one place helps make backup a snap.
Keep files separate from programs. By separating document files and program files you reduce the risk of accidentally
deleting your documents when you install or upgrade programs.
Adopt consistent methods for file and folder naming. Develop a naming scheme for the kinds of files you create most often and
then stick to it.
Keep names short. Even though Windows enables you to use long file names, it does not necessarily mean you should. Long
file names are harder to read.
Let your folder structure do some of the naming. For example, rather than creating a file called Great American Novel Chapter
One First Effort, you can build a structure like:
Separate ongoing and completed work. To keep the Documents folder from becoming too unwieldy, use it only for files
you're actively working on. As a result, you can reduce the number of files you need to search through and the amount of data
you need to back up. Every month or so, move the files you're no longer working on to a different folder or location, such as a
folder on your desktop, a special Archive folder, flash drive, external hard drive, or even on a CD.
Store like with like. Restricting folders to a single document type (or predominantly one type) allows you to take advantage
of folder templates in Windows Explorer. This makes it easier for you to find files. For example, with all your graphics in a
single folder, it's easy to use the Filmstrip view and slide show feature in Windows Explorer to find the right picture for your
newsletter.
Avoid large folder structures. If you need to put so many subfolders in a folder that you can't see all of them at a glance,
consider creating an alphabetic menu.
Use shortcuts and shortcut links instead of multiple copies. If you need to get to the same file from multiple locations, don't
create copies of the file. Create shortcuts to it instead. To create a shortcut, right-click on the file and click Create Shortcut. You
can drop and drag the shortcut to other locations.
Quickly get to the items you use every day. Jump Lists, a fun new feature in Windows’ 7, are lists of
recently opened items, such as files, folders, or web sites that are organized by the program that you use to open them. You can
use a Jump List to open items. And you can also pin favorites to a Jump List.
Newsletter 3

4. From Our Executive Chef
Seared Steak with Chard Salad
Ingredients
• 1 bunch Swiss chard, stems removed, leaves thinly sliced
• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 cups large crusty bread cubes
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 3 to 4 anchovies
• 1 clove garlic, smashed
• 1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 1/2 pounds boneless beef sirloin steak
• 1 teaspoon dried mint
• 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
Directions
Put the chard in a bowl. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.
Add 1 tablespoon olive oil and the bread cubes and season with salt and pepper. Cook, tossing, until toasted, 4 to 5 minutes. Add
to the chard.
Add the anchovies to the skillet, mashing them with a whisk. Add the garlic and 2 tablespoons olive oil and cook until the garlic is
golden, about 45 seconds. Add the tomatoes and warm slightly, then whisk in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper.
Pour the warm dressing over the chard, toss and set aside to wilt.
Wipe out the skillet and place over high heat. Sprinkle the steak on both sides with the mint, and salt and pepper to taste. Add the
remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil to the skillet. Sear the steak until browned on the bottom, about 5 minutes. Turn and cook until
browned on the other side, 3 to 4 more minutes for medium-rare. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest 5 minutes.
Add the feta to the chard salad and toss. Thinly slice the steak and serve with the chard salad.
Newsletter 4

5. Strategic Partner
Aces of Acts Entertainment
Las Vegas, Nationwide and Worldwide Cirque Style Productions Company specialize in offering exceptionally unique Cirque
theatrical presentations for exclusive special events and corporate entertainment.
We offer full productions Cirque Style Shows unique Aerial Shows as well Cirque on Ice Shows from 20 minutes to 85 minutes long,
complete with costumes, choreography, lighting and music.
Entertainment concepts
Design & development events
Theatrical productions
Full-length shows
Management
Specialty & Cirque acts
Atmospheric characters
Models
Dancers
Music & Bands
Choreography
rigging and technical support
Celebrating your special occasion – the Cirque Way ,Corporate Events Cirque Awards, After Dinner Cirque Shows, Cirque sales
meetings, Cirque – Exhibition Style, Red Carpet Cirque Receptions, Cirque Fundraising and Galas, Convention centers arenas
outside Cirque live events, Cirque Weddings, Birthdays, Bar/Bat Mitzvahs and Passover Celebration.
WASHINGTON D.C., March 20, 2009 -- For the second consecutive year, Aces Of Acts Anatoli Miagkostoupov (PRESIDENT) has
been selected for the 2009 Best of North Las Vegas Award in the Entertainers category by the U.S. Local Business Association
USLBA).
We will either find a way to entertain you, or make one.
www.AcesOfActs.com
Duo Aerial Silk Act
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpuVWvdpNzA&feature=channel
Newsletter 5

6. Thank You for Your Support
We wish to thank our readers and our clients for their support and feedback helping to continually grow the Charisma
Productions Network. We look forward to another successful year in 2010 as we continue to grow and provide you
with successful stress-free events.
We appreciate hearing from all of you and strive to improve our articles and hope to have something for everyone at
one point or another. Please send us suggestions for topics you would like to read about or if you have an article that
you would like to share we’ll be happy to post it.:
Please send all comments to:
comments@cpnevents.com
Earn A Referral Gift Card
In Appreciation of a Client Referral That Is Converted Into An Actual Event, Charisma Productions Network, is offering a
$100 Gift Card For Every Confirmed Account.
The Gift Card Will Be Mailed To The Referring Party Within 14 Days After The Event Completion. Promo Code, & Full Details Of The Referring Party Must Be Given To The CPN Representative At The Time Of
Receiving A Request For Proposal (RFP). Offer Valid Only In The Continental United States, & Is Subject To All Local State, & Federal Taxes.
This Offer Is Void Where Prohibited By Certain State Laws
Authorized by: Geoffrey R. Andrews
Expires: August 31st, 2010
Promo Code Number : CPN06010831-10
Charisma Productions Network
A Geoff Andrews Company
805-241-0566
www.charismaproductionsnetwork.com
info@cpnevents.com
© Charisma Productions Network 2010, All Rights Reserved
Newsletter 6