Management Essentials: Major Takeaways from a Session at the NRPS Conference

As a dedicated lifelong learner, or "Nerd" as some might say, I really enjoy work conferences. Truly! There is so much to learn from motivational speakers and subject matter experts in your field of study. Whether you attend mostly for networking, professional development, personal intrigue, career advancement, industry swag or raffle prizes... you will never walk away from a conference without a few major takeaways!

This week I attended the Nevada Recreation and Park Society (NRPS) Annual Conference held in the city of North Las Vegas. The two day event featured two keynote speakers and multiple breakout sessions. Each session focused one one or multiple aspects of L.E.A.D. or:

L = Leadership
E = Excellence
A = Alliance
D = Development

As a L.E.A.D. Institute Mentee, I was instructed to attend various sessions, so long as I hit on at least one of each of those letters. In addition to the two keynote speakers, I attended seven of the breakout sessions. They included:

8 Attributes Every Leader Needs (L, A)
Leadership, Organizational and Cultural Management Essentials (L)
Collaborative Innovation: Learning Through Shared Mistakes (E, A, D)
So You Want to CPRP (L, D)
The Importance of Employee Onboarding (L)
Control Your Online Presence (D)
Sign Language

While it looks like I didn't hit up many that focused on "Excellence" or "Alliance," I can assure you that each session encouraged us to strive for excellence and enabled us to build our network. I was not only able to connect more with my peers in the city of Las Vegas, I made some great connections with people at the city of North Las Vegas, city of Henderson and Clark County Parks & Rec departments... mostly those in special events, but these are also the people with shared/similar experiences, challenges and successes.

As a supervisor within our department, I think it's important to continue developing our leadership and people skills... afterall, we are not in the business of making widgets; we are in the business of helping people. We are in the business of improving the health and wellbeing of the individuals in our communities through sports and community engagement. This takes collaboration, ingenuity and a growth mindset.

One of my favorite sessions was: Leadership, Organizational and Cultural Management Essentials by James Moore. He hit on something I've said time and again, which is so important, are the 1:1 Check-ins as well as having Group/Team monthly meetings on a consistent basis. However, he went further to layout the elements and structure of a great meeting to maximize your time for more efficient and effective communication.

My favorite Tip/Takeaway from this was the 3P's of a Check-In, which could be anywhere from 5-30 minutes:

Progress: What have you accomplished since we last met?
Plans: What are your goals/plans before we meet again?
Problems: What are the roadblocks you are experiencing or what is getting in the way of your goals/plans?

I also found the "Laws of Leader Language" and tips on "Team Meetings" to be worthy of implementing right away. Not only will this improve communication, but also productivity. These tips should help empower and engage your staff as well. With kindness and curiosity, enable and encourage your team to solve their own problems. Stay engaged, check in and follow up.

Not only did I win 3 raffle prizes at this conference and accept the "Silver State Legacy Park Award" for Floyd Lamb Park at Tule Springs on behalf of our department, I made some new professional connections and took away some valuable tools to put in my Leadership toolkit.

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