Take a Risk... On People

I've written several pieces about "taking a risk," but one very important aspect is "taking a risk on people." In better words, "give people a chance" whenever you can do so.


When I look back at a very long career in the event industry, I'm proud of the fact that I've done just that. As a result, I've launched some careers for people who have become successful and productive members of the events community. They have added creativity and expertise to the industry and gone on to educate others who then follow in their footsteps. I have asked a few of them to remind me of how we started out, and I joyfully share with you what happened when I took a chance on people I didn't know but about whom I just had a good feeling.

I invite you to pay it forward in your own world and do the same. The results can be remarkable.


Fred Tallaksen, Choreographer
To be totally honest, I was wearing a bad wig and doing a Fred and Ginger dance routine at a corporate event when I first met Andrea. (My Ginger had a bad wig, too.) We had a good laugh but developed an immediate friendship. I had just moved to Los Angeles from Manhattan in 1992, and didn't know many people. I was still a performer and just starting to think about possibly choreographing the corporate gigs I had been dancing in for years. Not only did Andrea encourage me and give me the confidence to step up and be a choreographer... but she also helped me start my own entertainment company and guided me through my first few years of business all the way up to today... hiring me, teaching me, supporting me, and sharing much of the important inside information about the special events world that takes a lifetime to gather. I still apply all that knowledge to this day, 26 years later. And at the end of the day, we're still laughing about lots of things and enjoying a close friendship which I cherish more than work or money in the long run!

Greg Jenkins, Bravo Productions

It's hard to believe 31 years have passed. Andrea took a chance on us based on our Rose Parade background, and the rest is history. We will always be eternally grateful! Andrea and her team continue to be a champion, inspiration, and vital voice for the events industry.

Greg Christy, Bright Ideas

Andrea and I first met some 30 years ago through a mutual friend, Don Gilmartin. Don and I had been working together for several years, and he wanted to introduce me to a dynamic woman doing amazing, cutting-edge work in our industry. I can still remember the day I met her. She asked piercing questions, and I quickly knew that I had to up my game to keep up with her. I must have said the right things, because she took a chance on a guy just starting out in the industry, with nothing but ideas and hopefully a good vision. She gave me a little show that became two more, and eventually she became one of my best clients, and a true friend.

Paul Creighton, T. Skorman Productions

It's an age-old conundrum. How can you work if no one knows who you are? And how can anyone know who you are if you don't get a chance to show them? 

I found myself in the same situation over 22 years ago. The Special Event Show was coming to my town, and I wanted in. I had an idea for a new band that didn't exist on the East Coast. With the help of some local friends, I found the name of the executive producer of the Gala Night and approached her with my idea. She was an icon in the industry, a soon-to-be Lifetime Achievement Award winner. I wasn't in her league. But still, she gave me her blessing, and I went to work producing the act. The evening was a smash success, and that was the beginning of a wonderful relationship. It started as mentor/pupil, moved to client/vendor and over the years, it's grown into so much more. Just a few years ago, I was honored with the same award that my mentor won so many years before. And, she was in the audience when it happened.

I've tried to live up to the bar she sets in her business, and I've tried to mirror the mentoring and teaching that she does with giving back of my own. That's what it's all about. Paying it forward. Looking toward the bigger picture. Growing an industry. I'm glad I met Andrea Michaels. Wouldn't it be great if everyone could find their own Andrea? What a great industry we would have! 

Andrea Michaels is the founder and president of Extraordinary Events, an award-winning, international event agency based in Los Angeles. She is the author of Reflections of a Wallflower – Lessons in Business; Lessons in Life. Andrea may be reached via amichaels@extraordinaryevents.com.

The 25 Dollar Mistake

I always read Shep Hyken's articles because they are basic lessons in how we should all behave. This particular article resonated because we are always signing multi-year contracts, and within them there is a lot of fine print. And that's where the up-charges start to appear in a world where "transparency" is required yet very rarely provided. Is it worth losing customer loyalty over those little things that really don't matter in the long run? 

I recently had an experience where I did lose a client, and to this day wonder if it was worth it. I had a crew of 100 people on overtime after a very long day, and my client planned a rehearsal for 10 p.m. He didn't show up until after 2 a.m., and then didn't want to pay the overtime, which amounted to around $30,000. I had a significant profit on the job, so I could have acquiesced. I held my ground, and because of it lost a client that had the potential for major business for years to come. Was it worth it? Who knows? I might have not regained the business anyway and had not only no job, but no $30,000. 

Something to think about when you read Shep's article below. Thanks, Shep. -Andrea Michaels

-By Shep Hyken

I recently planned a small two-day meeting for about 25 people. This was the second year for this meeting. The previous year we had stayed at a hotel that did a magnificent job of taking care of us. After that meeting, I talked to our sales rep and mentioned that if they repeated the contract we signed for that first year, we would most likely come back. And, we did.

In looking over the final contract for our most recent meeting at the hotel, there were a few minor changes from the year prior. Most of those were due to slight increases in the room rate and food costs. I expected that this might happen, and so I was fine with those. However, there was one change in the agreement that was unacceptable. The first year, the hotel gave us free Internet service for our attendees. This year they wanted to charge us for it.

Asking for free Internet is a common negotiation. So, the hotel chose to go into negotiation mode on this point. They came back and said they would only charge $75 for everyone to have Internet access in the meeting room. That is reasonable, except I made it clear that I wanted the identical terms as the year before. Our sales rep said she would go back to her leadership team and ask them to honor last year’s contract terms. She came back and said they reduced the cost to us to $25.

Well, $25 wasn’t a deal-breaker, and staying at that hotel was definitely easier than starting over with another hotel. But I had to wonder, who on the leadership team was so short-sighted as to charge $25 for something they could simply give away? We were getting ready to book about 35 rooms in a slow week for the hotel and spend thousands of dollars in their restaurants, bar, and for our banquet meals. I asked to speak to the individual on the “leadership team” who was making this short-sighted decision. I never heard from that person.

When I arrived on the property for the meeting, my very nice salesperson met with me. She again apologized for the small Internet fee. It really wasn’t her fault, but I still wanted to get the explanation from the person who made the decision. I candidly told her that a little “nickel and dime” charge of $25 might have me looking at other hotels in the area for next year’s meeting. It wasn’t just the $25. That’s not worth switching hotels over. It was the idea that we had originally agreed to repeating last year’s contract, and that tiny charge was the only thing getting in the way of them honoring our verbal agreement.

The lesson here is that it’s not about the money. It didn’t break the bank for us to pay the $25 fee. The hotel violated several rules of customer service. They didn’t recognize the long-term value of their customer, and they were willing to lose him over a very small fee that, by the way, they had waived in the past. They changed the rules in the middle of the game when they didn’t honor their agreement of “same as last year,” even though it was just $25. And, with all they were charging, they “nickel and dimed” their customer. In their eyes, they could only see the money they were earning rather than all the money they could potentially lose when we decided to go elsewhere the next year.

Shep Hyken is a customer service expert, keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling business author. For information, contact 314-692-2200 or www.hyken.com. For information on The Customer Focus™ customer service training programs, go to www.thecustomerfocus.com. Follow on Twitter: @Hyken

Andrea Michaels is the founder and president of Extraordinary Events, and the author of Reflections of a Successful Wallflower: Lessons in Business; Lessons in Life. She may be reached via amichaels@extraordinaryevents.com.