Adrian Segar

🔸 16 years of 900+ posts on #MeetingDesign #facilitation #consulting #LifeLessons #FacilitatingChange, being trapped in an elevator with a Nobel Prize winner & other #stories at conferencesthatwork.com 🔸 #Nonprofit board member junkie 🔸 Recovering #academic #Introduction 2 of 2

We're getting better at building software faster than we are at understanding and maintaining it. What happens when no human fully understands the systems we're entrusting to AI? I'm worried about where this leads. www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/te... #AI #AgenticAI #CyberSecurity

When we see it, we have to call it what it is plainly: blocking the right to vote. Millions of Americans have already voted and more will vote between now and next Tuesday. That right is absolutely sacred.

The musician and outspoken critic of the president is suing for $10m in reputational damages – six years after a settlement in which Trump agreed not to use the song again

A former Miss Switzerland contestant has accused Donald Trump of raping her at the Plaza Hotel in 1993. Now House Judiciary Committee Democrats are calling for an independent special counsel to investigate allegations involving Trump and Jeffrey Epstein.

It's time for a "sound of silence" roundup of meetings industry pet peeves. Do they resonate? What am I missing? www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/me... #meetings #PetPeeves #AirQuality #evaluations #PayingSpeakers #eventprofs #assnchat

The NYT story does not even include the word rape. Not once.

JD Vance: "Gas prices are too high ... they skyrocket every time some tinpot dictator decides to throw a tantrum"

WATCH: A defense contractor CEO and his close associates donated nearly $900,000 to dozens of politicians and got over $40 million a year in government funding. He told the FBI that Sen. Susan Collins was his most important patron. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqyiFFB7Kjg

What's the best way to teach participation techniques? Here's a workshop story about the power of experiential learning… www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/le... #facilitation #learning #workshop #story #ExperientialLearning #MPI #eventprofs

Someone wanting to get started in the meeting industry asked me: "How do I break into the event services industry?" Here's my answer. www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/de... #events #career #GettingStarting #eventprofs

In 2022, Zoom added avatars to their Meetings and Webinars products to mixed reviews. Here are my and others' thoughts… www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/ev... #Zoom #avatars #neurodivergence #DEI #eventprofs #assnchat

How I deal with comments in my website spam queue, including trackback spam, and reflections about spam and unaware small businesses www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/so... #spam #CommentSpam #TrackbackSpam #SpamBlocking #Akismet

Tips for organizing Pecha Kucha sessions. PowerPoint or Keynote or both? Selection criteria, templates, fonts, and merging. www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/pr... #EventDesign #PechaKucha #Ignite #Keynote #PowerPoint #tips #eventprofs

Integrating participation into conference sessions to improve learning and connection. Simon Waddell interviews me at EIBTM 2012. www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/in... #meetings #participation #learning #connection #improvement #interview #events #eventprofs

NEW: "Donald Trump was an active participant in Jeffrey Epstein’s sexual abuse of young women during the mid-to-late 1990s," per new House Judiciary Dem report. Report has new allegation that Trump raped a 24-year-old and then promised the victim a visa & NYU admission, demanding she stay quiet.

My friend Traci shares about a workshop that wasn’t. I explain what makes good workshops, and why to include them at meetings. www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/ev... #meetings #EventDesign #workshops #presentations #lectures #eventprofs

A Conference Weavers session encourages reflection & reinforces learning by publicly sharing thoughts & impressions from event experiences www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/pr... #meetings #EventDesign #GMIC #SustainableMeetings #eventprofs

If you haven’t yet had a chance to see or read Barack Obama’s speech in Cleveland Saturday night, please do both. And then share it as widely as you can. https://robertreich.substack.com/p/wise-and-important-words

NEW: Omar Muñoz, a 72-year-old LA grandfather, was dragged out of his home by DHS agents and paraded in front of cameras for Trump's "voter fraud" crackdown. The DOJ used footage of his arrest for a promotional video. Omar is a green card holder in the US for 50+ yrs W @samrlevine.bsky.social

Health secretary’s effort to alter makeup of ACIP panel means no new recommendations coming – even as new vaccines are approved

That this is in THE WASHINGTON POST is almost too much irony to bear.

My second essay on how under Trump we’ve already gotten used to a level of fascism, authoritarianism, and corruption that would be unthinkable to us just years ago. Today: The corruption of the Justice Dept and *EIGHT* scandals on par with Watergate: www.doomsdayscenario.co/p/trump-s-ty...

Why do some learning experiences stay burning in our brains and others fade into oblivion? Here's how to inspire transformational learning. www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/le... #FacilitatingConnection #EventCamp #eventprofs

We're getting better at building software faster than we are at understanding & maintaining it. What happens when no human fully understands the systems we're entrusting to AI? I'm worried about where this leads. #AI #CyberSecurity www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/te...

‘Zero-energy companionship’: bizarre hobby takes hold among China’s stressed young adults. Facing a stagnant job market, many are spurning children and pets for ‘raising bricks’. “No cats, no dating, I started raising a brick,” wrote one brick parent on #SM. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/o...

Events operate by stories. "Our species doesn’t operate by reality. We operate by stories. Cities are a story. Money is a story. Space was a story, once." www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/ev... #events #SciFi #stories #ScienceFiction #eventprofs

Vermont’s EMS providers show up for our communities every day. But too often, they can’t get reimbursed by Medicare for the care they provide on scene. My EMS ROCS Act would change that. Our first responders show up for us. It’s time we showed up for them, too.

Billionaires want you to believe taxing their extreme wealth is too radical and that it can’t be done. Baloney. Economist Gabriel Zucman debunks their lies. Watch. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNg2Uea6uUs

The former CEO of a naval defense contractor told FBI agents he cut cash-for-contracts deals with South Carolina’s two most powerful members of Congress — Sen. Lindsey Graham and Rep. James Clyburn.

How to make your workshop/meeting/conference middle-aged friendly? Consider participants' memory, vision, hearing, physicality, and content. www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/gu... #meetings #EventDesign #MiddleAgedFriendly #memory #vision #hearing #physicality #content #eventprofs

Stooa is a free fishbowl tool for managing online discussions. Here's an initial Stooa review, including features & potential enhancements. www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/ev... #facilitation #free #tool #Stooa #fishbowl #OnlineDiscussions #review #eventprofs #assnchat

After over forty years of working with organizations, I think that it's possible to change an organization's culture — but it's far from easy www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/fa... #FacilitatingChange #OrganizationalCulture #management #emergence #ProcessTools #assnchat

Can meetings where no one says a word exhibit significantly different interpersonal dynamics? After my third silent meditation retreat, I say: Yes they can! www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/ev... #meetings #EventDesign #SilentRetreat #meditation #InterpersonalDynamics #eventprofs

Elon Musk is spending $445M+ to buy the midterms for one very simple reason. He's terrified that a Democratic Congress might finally hold him accountable.

One memorable night, I found myself listening to the UPS guy www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/li... #LifeLessons #listening #UPS #death #dying #support

As a facilitator, working with both sides of an issue with a group can be hard. Doing so challenges me to practice non-attachment. www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/fa... #facilitation #moderation #attachment #WinLose #WinWin #MeetingDesign #assnchat

We are all Donald Rumsfeld. His infamous remark about "unknown unknowns" contains lessons about hubris and humility. www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/li... #RumsfeldMatrix #TacitKnowledge #humility #hubris

An unexpected reunion at IMEX America 2026 brought three meeting-industry professionals together for an unforgettable evening of conversation, connection, and serendipity. #IMEX #EventDesign #MeetingDesign #post www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/ev...

Political appointees at the Department of Homeland Security wanted CISA, an agency that protects election systems, to acquire and hack a voting machine, which shocked staffers. “This goes against everything CISA represents,” a former official said.

The Association for Software Testing issued a free guide to creating peer conferences. I contributed suggestions and it's well worth a look! www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/ev... #meetings #EventDesign #PeerConference #unconference #free #guide #AssociationForSoftwareTesting #eventprofs

The most important reason people go to conferences is to usefully connect with others around relevant content. Here are five reasons to change conferences. www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/ev... #meetings #EventDesign #article #NSASpeaker #magazine #ReasonsToChangeConferences #eventprofs

We are becoming a patron economy. In the future, content creation will be increasingly supported by the subsidy of patrons. www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/ev... #economy #PatronEconomy #CopyProtection #meetings #eventprofs

Why don't meeting conferences pay speakers? Here's why so many industry conferences budget for everything — except their presenters! www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/ev... #meetings #events #speakers #presenters #SpeakForFree #compensation #eventprofs #assnchat

An unexpected reunion at IMEX America 2026 brought three meeting-industry professionals together for an unforgettable evening of conversation, connection, and serendipity. #IMEX #EventDesign #MeetingDesign www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/ev...

Brandt Krueger interviews me about the secrets behind conference engagement, how to get your audience tuned in and engaged, and much more www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/in... #meetings #EventDesign #interview #BrandtKrueger #EventIcons #engagement #learning #crowdsourcing #eventprofs

The meeting industry old normal is over, and many event professionals are hoping and waiting for a meeting industry new normal. Don't wait! www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/me... #meetings #EventIndustry #OldNormal #NewNormal #myth #eventprofs

Here’s something you should know about minks: They have lungs and airways remarkably similar on a cellular level to those of people. They’ve spread flus and infected humans before with COVID-19. Right now, bird flu is spreading on a Utah farm filled with thousands of them… 🧵

My good friend, Jan-Jaap In der Maur, co-founder of Masters In Moderation, has published "The participants' Bill of Rights". Read it! Adopt it! www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/ev... #MeetingDesign #eventprofs #participation #AttendeeRights

A reflection on David Adler’s powerful essay about why human gatherings matter deeply to health, trust, learning, belonging, & human flourishing in an increasingly AI-mediated world. www.conferencesthatwork.com/index.php/ev... #Gatherings #HumanConnection #Events #MeetingDesign #Belonging