After attending the Small Giants Community Summit, or after attending any business conference, leaders leave feeling inspired and on fire to implement what they learned. But day to day responsibilities soon take over and the grind continues, ultimately extinguishing that fire before it can ignite change and positively impact the business. 

We get it! And so does Lauren Adams, Partner and Director of Operations at Center for Financial Planning. That’s why Lauren thought through how to approach and organize her learnings before even stepping foot through the Summit doors. Doing this helped her more easily begin to tackle an action plan once she returned to work, and made sure she got the right information in front of the right people so that they could take the actions relevant to them.

Here are the steps Lauren followed to make the most of her Summit experience, which might also be helpful for you! You can also meet Lauren and watch a video walkthrough.

As the Summit begins…

1. Get your notes in order.

Leave a few pages blank at the start of the notebook you’ll receive so you can fill in key information as you go and easily find it later. For example, you may choose to:

• Save a page to jot down book recommendations shared by fellow attendees and speakers.
• Save a page for the contact info of the new friends you make so you can lean on them for support and accountability down the road!
• Save a page or two to write down quick summaries of key action items or tasks so you have everything you’d like to implement laid out organized together.

2. Create a note-taking system.

While you’re listening to presentations at the Summit, label your notes in a way that you can easily find things once you’re back to work. The more clearly you label and organize your notes as you go, the less sifting and searching you have to do down the road to get your thoughts back in order.

Some ways you can keeping your notes organized: 

• Put stars by simple actions that you can implement quickly and immediately.
• Mark action items with a specific symbol or color, and follow suit when you tag it on the pages you save at the front of your notebook so you can easily find it later on.
• In the margin, write the name of a teammate who an idea or task is relevant for, or who makes the most sense to implement it.
• Circle or highlight any information that requires a conversation back home to be discussed with others.
• At the end of a session, write a quick TLDR recap to summarize your top thoughts while they’re fresh.
  
  

3. Take photos of helpful slides.

Even though the Small Giants team will share speaker slides a few weeks after the Summit, take photos of any standout slides that support what you want to share with your team right away. Then, just email yourself these key photos at the end of each day so you have easy access to sharing with your team.

Once you’re home…

1. Come up with a prioritization game plan. 

Don’t lose steam! While your Summit learnings are still fresh and the energy is high, make sure you are prepared to bring your ideas back to your company. Go back through your notes and organize your thoughts and priorities. Not all topics or information are important for the whole organization or a full team, so decide who needs what information to bring it all to life. 

• Is there “low hanging fruit” or items you can implement right away? 
• What can you do on your own? 
• What will you need others’ help with?
• Is there anyone else who could lead the charge on items relevant for their team or department?

2. Record your thoughts.

• Keep it under 10 minutes! Only focus on key items so the information is easily digestible.
• Call out your colleagues! In the recording, name specific people for who specific topics or information is most relevant. Be clear and direct, and let them know what you hope they’ll do! 
• Spread the wealth! Share the video with anyone who should be in the loop or who might be able to help bring the ideas to life. It’s also a great way to spread your Small Giants perspective and Summit experience with your company. 

So before you attend your next Summit, take time to plan ahead on how best to take the learnings with you. We want you to fully maximize your experience even after the Summit, and we can’t wait to see the positive impact you’ll make back home as a result!

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