I’m excited to introduce you to Jason Young and the Whiteboard Sessions 2011…a church conference for everyone. I’ve been advertising for it on my blog this month and thought you should hear a little more about it. I’ve been to Whiteboard and Jason is the new director of this conference. I’ve spent some time with Jason and I’m convinced he’s going to make this conference a “must attend” event this year.
Here’s an interview I did with Jason recently about Whiteboard:
What made you decide to get into the conference business?
Conferences have been a part of shaping who I am. As a pastor working in the local church for 14 years, I have attended my share of conferences. Part of wanting to enter the business side of the conference world was a personal curiosity to see how I could provide a different experience for the everyday church leader. The drive for me is to equip influencers. I believe every person has the opportunity to influence those they lead. What if a conference could help positively change the trajectory of one’s work and personal life?
What would be a win for you in this conference? What do you hope people leave having received?
I have a two-part answer. First, to fill 700 seats with hungry influencers. Second, that attendees find one thing that could help them in their place of ministry. Just to have talking heads is not what changes things. The convergence of the right presenters, with the right message, with the needs of the influencers in mind, and in a safe environment where significant conversations and meaningful relationships can take root.
What’s unique about Whiteboard?
There are one day events. There are events with numerous presenters given long and short times to speak. There are affordable conferences. Why not allow all of these elements to converge on to one scene…the Whiteboard Sessions. We strive to provide a helpful post-event growth strategy for both individuals and leaders. We believe that an event challenges you and a process changes you. We provide both.
You’ve got an interesting mix of speakers. How did you choose them?
We get that response a lot. We are proud of our presenters because of their diversity. You have a Lead Pastor to a CEO to a strategist at Google, Inc. We have worked hard to bring together an eclectic group that have helped to shape their respective ministry or business. Another element important to me personally, is to identify young voices who have substantial content but no platform. Our desire is to give them opportunity. You will meet some of them at this year’s gathering.
What instructions do the speakers have…how are they preparing for their talks…is there a theme?
Our theme this year is ONE THING. We chose this direction because we feel like there is a misnomer about options and leadership. If there are more options and more information, then we can make better leadership decisions. Research debunks this myth. We want to help people hear short bursts of ideas and strategies, and to explore which would have the greatest impact in their ministry context. We provide five “rules” to all presenters: (1) Everyone hates a messy whiteboard – keep it simple (2) Respect the whiteboard space – share something new (3) Whiteboards without diagrams are boring – provide a visual (4) Whiteboard space is limited – focus on a single idea (5) Don’t get high on markers – stay within your time limit
Who should come to this conference?
Leaders in the church that find ideas and/or strategy necessary for Kingdom advancement. I have found after working in the local church that you’re either an idea or strategy guy. I want to bring both types together for conversation.
Put this conference in your plans this year. There’s still time to get good pricing. Click HERE for more information or to register.
What other conferences are you going to this year?
