Minneapolis| St. Paul Professional Development Day
I got home on a Saturday afternoon after ten days in Las Vegas. Before doing anything, I took a six-hour nap. I unpacked and repacked to leave Monday morning to speak at the MSP PDD. This has always been one of the best IIBA conferences in the Midwest. The event has not been held in person since 2019, and this would be my first in-person speaking at this conference.
I am okay with the six-hour drive as it gives me time to talk on the phone with handless calling, and performing deep thinking. Light rain, but I had an uneventful drive to the Twin Cities. The conference was held at the Heritage Center in Brooklyn Center. It used to be a working farm but now has two hotels and a conference center. It was a great campus to walk around. There was a family of ducks when I walked over to the restaurant for dinner.
This conference involved only part of the walking I had to do in Las Vegas. I was presenting "Why Successful Leaders Have an Athletic Coach Mindset." I use sports leaders to get my point across. It is currently my favorite presentation. This is a link to a short video of the opening of my presentation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9cxqB6A-eg&list=PL-SmcUrFY2Scwd9OrJVXH_7GBYPruFY83
I gave the best presentation of my career. I spoke from the heart and with passion. Why would I not be passionate? How could I not be passionate about sports, leadership, and business analysis? I did have about 60 attend, and Delvin Fletcher, IIBA CEO, and President, attended the last half. You could tell by the enthusiasm and applause that I resonated with the audience. I don't feel my feet hit the ground for several days.
I drove back to Omaha the day after the conference and arrived home on Wednesday evening. I only had to unpack a few things because I left for Des Moines, Iowa, the following day. I saw many people in Minneapolis that I had not seen since BBC 2019. I met many new people in Minneapolis and have a new BA family there. I also got to see many of my old friends. I had one more stop before I arrived home for the summer. Until next time, please keep your glass at least half-full.