Remember the movie Batman Begins, about a dozen Batmans ago? When young Bruce Wayne falls into a (bat) cave, his father asks him an important question. “Why do we fall?” The answer, of course, is “So we can learn to pick ourselves up.”
About everyone I know has gotten plenty of practice picking themselves up over the last couple of years. From a personal level like keeping up good eating habits or exercising to running our businesses, we’ve all felt the strain. One particularly unfortunate casualty of the pandemic has been the ability to gather in person. I don’t know about you, but that’s been one of the hardest things for me. I thrive on personal contact, sharing ideas, and the tremendous energy that happens whenever Bureau members gather together under one roof. There’s nothing like it.
Yes, for a while, it seemed like things were going back to normal. But just as we started preparing to get back to in-person events, our old nemesis Covid reared its ugly head again. But wait one darn minute! There’s a big difference this time. We’re ready. Not to say that it doesn’t suck. But now we have a plan.
Before I go any further, I need to explain that we serve at the pleasure of the Bureau community. And the community is split on what to do about Covid and in-person events. There are those that think we should wait until Covid is gone. There are those who think we need to take precautions, but get back to it. Often this decision is made for them because either they or a loved one is immunocompromised.
With that in mind…
Bureau Events 2022 - Choose Your Own Experience
In March of 2020 the Bureau was struggling. Like everyone else, we had no clue what was happening. But thanks to members like you, we were able to turn things around and now we’re stronger and smarter than before.
That’s why with this most recent surge we’re implementing a new approach to our in-person events. Let’s start by taking a look at how we’ll handle the upcoming Owner Summit.
The Talk Show Model
When it comes to our larger events, we normally have hundreds of people in attendance. But while Covid is surging, we’re capping those events at 50 people. And, like all of our in-person events, attendees agree to be fully vaccinated before the event starts. This is now our live studio audience! It’s the option for that part of the community who is ready to get back together in person.
For those that aren’t ready? Well, although I was tempted to strap on a GoPro and give you that true Carl POV experience, a better idea prevailed. We’re partnering with Bureau Member avad3 to make sure you get the quality streaming experience you deserve. And not just for Owner Summit, but all of our larger events. That way we can create a new way to attend Bureau events that is consistently awesome.
Will it work? We really think so. But a lot of that is up to you. If you want to see this be a permanent addition to our larger events, please support the effort by joining us at Owner Summit.
The Crowdfunding Model
For our smaller events, mainly Camps, we’re going to stop committing financially to a venue and then hoping for the best in terms of attendance. Honestly, it’s always been a stressful model. Instead, we’re going to share the planned location and take deposits from those who apply to attend. If enough people apply in time for us to secure the venue, then the event will be in-person. Hurray! If not, then the event will take place online. This also rocks because the online events have gotten really great. It’s win-win.
So there you have it, my friends. I look forward to not only hearing your feedback but also seeing you either online or in person. We got this!
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