The Four Cs

Hello, again, TNBA members! Is there a touch of fall in the air, or is this just the “false fall” season I see Southerners joking about on social media?

Either way, the approach of the joint KYRBA/TNBA Fall Conference & Supplier Showcase in just six weeks has me thinking.

I was listening to a podcast about longevity recently, and I heard a speaker talking about the four Cs: connection, contribution, coping and cooking. Those four ideas put me in mind of our industry gatherings. Bear with me.

I first thought of executive assistants coming together at Ben Lomand Connect’s Crossville location recently for a half-day meeting packed with topics ranging from board minutes and annual meetings to handling of travel arrangements, holiday parties and training. The meeting represented connection, contributions and ideas that make coping with everyday tasks more manageable.

I expect the similar outcomes from the TNBA marketing committee meeting later this month. The subject matter is business development, sales initiatives and public relations. Through a similar process of sharing, connecting and contributing, the marketing peers will walk away prepared to cope with upcoming grants, fiber builds and customer experiences.

And that thought brings me to another gathering. The KYRBA/TNBA conference is around the corner—it will be Oct. 21-23. This will be our 30th year meeting to discuss a constantly changing industry. Attendees will enjoy three days of renewing connections, making new ones, contributing what they’ve learned in the past year, showing the latest and newest innovations, and learning to live with their not-so-great golf scores from Monday’s outing.

I was fortunate to spend a few hours with the executive assistants and documented my own list of things I can do differently and better. As I headed to the home office to work on speaker proposals and conference plans, I realized we have those first three Cs in our corner. Now, how do you feel about cooking classes at the conference?