Full Transcript for No Slides, No Screens: Matt Homann on Better Meetings and Thinksgiving STL

amazing would it be to have a space that was built the way that you wanted to do the meetings that also gave you the ability to change on the fly. 00:03:41.520 --> 00:03:45.120 It also gave us power in a different way because we were real in the space. 00:03:45.280 --> 00:03:49.439 I think you found that here than just being a facilitator who would show up in a hotel room. 00:03:49.840 --> 00:03:56.400 No one's ever had a breakthrough idea in a hotel ballroom, and no one has ever had a massive insight looking at a PowerPoint slide. 00:03:56.560 --> 00:04:03.840 And so the moment we started to own and kind of control the meetings that we designed and facilitated for others, it allowed us to really experiment and try new things. 00:04:04.080 --> 00:04:04.879 Yeah, that's amazing. 00:04:04.960 --> 00:04:08.400 In spaces, like even at the space we're at currently, we've tried different rooms. 00:04:08.560 --> 00:04:10.240 We've made the garage a meeting room. 00:04:10.400 --> 00:04:13.840 We had a consultant come in with sticky notes and we put them all over the office. 00:04:13.919 --> 00:04:18.240 And there's just, it's it's really the getting in person and actually solving issues. 00:04:18.319 --> 00:04:22.959 And actually, like you mentioned, like the amount of decks that we look at every single week are just exhausting. 00:04:23.199 --> 00:04:28.879 But and I think one of the challenges fundamentally is to realize when you're together, you want to be doing things together. 00:04:29.040 --> 00:04:33.439 The telling the weather reporting meeting isn't worth being in person to do. 00:04:33.519 --> 00:04:36.079 And it probably doesn't require there to be a meeting, right? 00:04:36.319 --> 00:04:39.199 In fact, no one turns on the weather to see what happened yesterday. 00:04:39.360 --> 00:04:49.279 Yet so often meetings we do are the ones that are here's what I've been doing, here's my outreach, here's my things that I've been accomplishing, not what I need help with. 00:04:49.439 --> 00:04:56.240 And so to the extent that you have people reporting on what they've done, that generally doesn't need to be together and use meeting time. 00:04:56.480 --> 00:05:00.959 The problems they want to solve moving forward to help them accomplish their goals, that's more important. 00:05:01.120 --> 00:05:01.360 Yeah. 00:05:01.519 --> 00:05:10.319 And if you start to think about that with the con the classic taking turns meeting, everyone gives their five-minute report, that isn't just an hour meeting with eight people. 00:05:10.399 --> 00:05:11.519 It's an eight-hour meeting. 00:05:11.600 --> 00:05:11.759 Yeah. 00:05:11.839 --> 00:05:12.000 Right? 00:05:12.079 --> 00:05:13.439 It's the hour that everyone uses. 00:05:13.519 --> 00:05:24.800 And so the moment you start thinking about doing something asynchronously, the moments you start bringing others in to potentially help make the room go the way it needs to do, and it turns you into a peer versus a leader, which is also important. 00:05:25.120 --> 00:05:27.279 And just getting people to say, We're together. 00:05:27.439 --> 00:05:30.560 What do I need help with versus what did I do in the past? 00:05:30.800 --> 00:05:36.639 Everything that's past tense can likely be an email, likely be on a notion page, could likely be in some sort of document. 00:05:36.879 --> 00:05:42.959 And then what you're using the time together for is the things that require mutual brain power versus one person talking at a time. 00:05:43.199 --> 00:05:43.519 Exactly. 00:05:43.680 --> 00:05:46.399 So you were a lawyer, so you're used to meetings. 00:05:46.480 --> 00:05:49.199 And now I read something that you're a recovering lawyer. 00:05:49.279 --> 00:05:50.079 So what does that mean? 00:05:50.319 --> 00:05:52.240 Well, it means I don't practice anymore. 00:05:52.399 --> 00:05:56.800 Um I I don't know what step of my 12 steps of recovery from being a lawyer is. 00:05:56.959 --> 00:06:01.439 Uh lawyers are like, I didn't have a lot of meetings with lawyers other than the one-on-ones, right? 00:06:01.680 --> 00:06:04.480 Because lawyers generally are not as collaborative as some other professions. 00:06:04.560 --> 00:06:04.720 Yeah. 00:06:04.959 --> 00:06:06.800 But I was one of the first legal bloggers. 00:06:07.120 --> 00:06:12.639 So 25 years ago or more, I was writing a blog about innovation, creativity, client service, et cetera. 00:06:12.800 --> 00:06:14.319 And I started to realize two things. 00:06:14.480 --> 00:06:19.360 One is I would go to these conferences, I would go to the continuing legal education, and it was terrible. 00:06:19.519 --> 00:06:20.639 A lot of it still is. 00:06:21.120 --> 00:06:27.680 But I was sitting at a bar at about three in the morning, there was about 12 of us having this amazing conversation in Chicago years and years ago. 00:06:27.920 --> 00:06:31.439 The bar had been closed for two hours, but it was a conversation we were never, ever going to have. 00:06:31.600 --> 00:06:33.439 It was never going to be on a conference agenda. 00:06:33.680 --> 00:06:37.360 It was never going to be able to have three panelists showing their slides. 00:06:37.600 --> 00:06:42.800 And in that moment, I thought, wow, why can't we do this next year when it's still light outside? 00:06:42.959 --> 00:06:44.720 And so all of us agreed to stay a year later. 00:06:44.800 --> 00:06:46.240 We made an invitation-only event. 00:06:46.399 --> 00:06:47.839 We thought we'd have the same 12. 00:06:47.920 --> 00:06:53.759 We had almost 50 people show up, including people we would have never had the courage to invite ourselves who asked for invitations. 00:06:53.920 --> 00:07:02.399 And they were dying for this kind of collaborative experience where they could talk about the things that were important to them versus someone from a stage telling them what was important a year ago. 00:07:02.480 --> 00:07:02.800 Yeah. 00:07:03.040 --> 00:07:07.439 And in that moment, I was

still practicing in Highland, Illinois, which is where my law practice was. 00:07:07.600 --> 00:07:10.240 And it was in that moment where someone said, Hey, this is great. 00:07:10.319 --> 00:07:11.680 Can you do this for my law firm? 00:07:11.920 --> 00:07:13.199 Someone else, can you do this for my company? 00:07:13.279 --> 00:07:14.319 I'm like, what do you mean do this? 00:07:14.480 --> 00:07:16.079 Like, oh, facilitate a meeting. 00:07:16.240 --> 00:07:19.519 And it was in that moment when I thought, oh, wow, there's a different path there. 00:07:19.839 --> 00:07:24.319 Uh thought it would be part-time for a long time, but it kind of pulled me into that path, and here I am. 00:07:24.639 --> 00:07:29.759 For over 150 years, SSM Health has been providing hope, healing, and opportunities to the St. 00:07:29.920 --> 00:07:30.639 Louis community. 00:07:30.800 --> 00:07:38.800 With over 40,000 employees across four states, they're not only delivering exceptional care, they're one of the region's largest employers, shaping the future of healthcare. 00:07:38.959 --> 00:07:43.759 We're proud to present SSM Health as the official healthcare partner of the STL bucket list show. 00:07:43.920 --> 00:07:50.399 If you've dreamed of a career where you're truly making a difference every day, SSM Health can help you take that to the next step. 00:07:50.560 --> 00:07:53.040 Learn more at their website in the link in the show notes. 00:07:53.199 --> 00:07:53.519 Yeah. 00:07:53.759 --> 00:08:02.639 And now, you know, these meetings have becoming more and more beneficial with the rise of remote work, is being able to, like, let's say these groups only get together once a quarter. 00:08:02.720 --> 00:08:04.319 It's like that core that day matters. 00:08:04.560 --> 00:08:07.759 Oh, and tell me about that because that's probably shifted your business. 00:08:08.240 --> 00:08:09.040 I mean, it matters so much. 00:08:09.120 --> 00:08:11.680 It, it, it, we, we were doing more and more of that work. 00:08:11.759 --> 00:08:21.600 One of the things that we saw is that people would spend all of this time planning for everyone to be together, but the only non-structured together time was the dinners and happy hours. 00:08:21.759 --> 00:08:28.160 And the rest of it was presentations, and it was things we could have been done the week before on Teams or on Zoom. 00:08:28.480 --> 00:08:36.159 And so as you gather together, you start to think about the communication we have, the things that we'd like to solve for, uh, the ideas, right? 00:08:36.240 --> 00:08:40.240 There's something that happens when people are in small groups, even in a 15-person room. 00:08:40.480 --> 00:08:43.759 We might break out into three, four, or five-person breakout groups. 00:08:43.919 --> 00:08:46.559 It multiplies the number of ideas that get generated. 00:08:46.879 --> 00:08:50.720 It uh allows, it balances for introverts and extroverts in a better way. 00:08:51.360 --> 00:09:00.080 And it also, and we were talking about this a little bit before we joined the podcast, is that it turns leaders into peers in a way that is different. 00:09:00.399 --> 00:09:04.960 Because if they're in a small group as a CEO, they might ruin that group, but they aren't ruining every group. 00:09:05.440 --> 00:09:12.399 And then the teams come back and say, this is what we thought about, this is what we decided, these are the sit, these are the ideas that we have to share. 00:09:12.639 --> 00:09:21.360 And it really moves a room faster forward than the again, the one person talking or the here's what our financials were last year. 00:09:21.600 --> 00:09:21.759 Yep. 00:09:21.919 --> 00:09:29.120 So I want to talk more about no screen, zero slides on purpose because you mentioned like there's nothing we can gain from something that happened last month. 00:09:29.279 --> 00:09:30.320 It's what are we doing here? 00:09:30.399 --> 00:09:35.039 But like, what is the really the no screen, zero slides on and the on purpose is really what I'm more interested in. 00:09:35.279 --> 00:09:37.039 Well, I I'll I'll say this about PowerPoint. 00:09:37.200 --> 00:09:38.480 I have a reputation now here in town. 00:09:38.639 --> 00:09:42.399 People apologize when they invite me to a meeting that has slides, which I kind of appreciate. 00:09:42.559 --> 00:09:43.840 Like you're the no slides guy. 00:09:44.080 --> 00:09:45.679 You you can be good at slides. 00:09:45.840 --> 00:09:50.399 The problem is that when you saw a slide in a meeting, it's never the first slide a person has seen that day. 00:09:50.480 --> 00:09:52.639 And it's certainly not the first one they've seen that week. 00:09:52.799 --> 00:10:01.919 And so no matter how good your slide deck is, you're still communicating them in the exact same way they've seen nonstops from Monday through Friday from eight in the morning till five in the afternoon. 00:10:02.159 --> 00:10:06.639 And so I have this great deck of slides I show, but it's this 75th slide someone's seen that day. 00:10:06.960 --> 00:10:10.159 And so for part of us, the no slides is a novelty piece. 00:10:10.320 --> 00:10:11.600 Uh, and we draw. 00:10:11.679 --> 00:10:13.519 So we always have an artist in every session. 00:10:13.600 --> 00:10:22.559 So there is a visual artifact, but we'd rather instead of having the room's attention turn to the front of the room, to the person who's leading it, we want the room's attention to turn to one another. 00:10:22.720 --> 00:10:33.440 So when we talk about being on purpose, it's not just getting rid of slides, it is building really intentional, collaborative tools that allow people to communicate, to solve problems, to think about things in a different way. 00:10:33.679 --> 00:10:38.240 And we've learned that people's compulsion to follow directions overcomes a reluctance to share. 00:10:38.399 --> 00:10:48.159 And so you give a group of people a tool, a worksheet that's intentionally designed that is on topic for

what they're talking about, and you give them an hour to talk about it, they'll fill it out. 00:10:48.320 --> 00:10:54.480 But the purpose of the filling it out for them is to guide their conversation in a way that a facilitator at every table might. 00:10:54.720 --> 00:10:58.000 But then we're now using AI to read everyone's terrible handwriting. 00:10:58.240 --> 00:11:01.600 And we now can synthesize in ways we weren't able to before. 00:11:01.759 --> 00:11:08.960 Here's all the ideas that emerge in a room of a hundred or two hundred or three hundred people, or even a 15-person leadership team. 00:11:09.279 --> 00:11:25.279 Here's where the themes emerged and showed up again and again across the course of a day, and then be able to give a client, and here's actionable steps that your people talked about and wanted you to take versus feeling like a consultant who's giving you prescriptive advice of what we believe you should do. 00:11:25.600 --> 00:11:29.759 And the stuff that they would have never discovered in a normal Monday check-in on Zoom. 00:11:30.080 --> 00:11:31.360 Well, I think Yeah, that's true. 00:11:31.440 --> 00:11:36.480 And one of the one of the pieces that we've learned is that people don't share their ideas at two ends of the spectrum. 00:11:36.559 --> 00:11:41.200 On the one hand, they don't share the ideas that feel crazy or out there for them because they're afraid they'll be judged. 00:11:41.600 --> 00:11:46.480 But on the other hand, and especially when there's a power imbalance between a leader and someone who's relatively new. 00:11:46.639 --> 00:11:46.799 Yep. 00:11:46.960 --> 00:11:50.000 But the other ideas that never seem to get shared are the obvious ones. 00:11:50.159 --> 00:11:53.279 Because if it's obvious to me, I assume it must be obvious to you if you're my boss. 00:11:53.360 --> 00:11:56.720 It must be obvious to others who've been here longer who I think are smarter than I am. 00:11:56.879 --> 00:12:04.879 And so finding ways not just to capture and share the outrageous ideas, but also the simple, the safe, the obvious ones. 00:12:06.000 --> 00:12:13.919 I'm shocked over and over and over again that it's the obvious ideas as defined by an individual that for everyone else are the breakthrough ones. 00:12:14.159 --> 00:12:17.759 So you've branded your own condition as idea surplus disorder. 00:12:17.919 --> 00:12:19.840 I think it's something that a lot of entrepreneurs face. 00:12:20.000 --> 00:12:21.279 I have new ideas all the time. 00:12:21.360 --> 00:12:26.000 And now that I have AI infused in everything, I'm able to like spin up more ideas faster. 00:12:26.159 --> 00:12:31.120 So now I can like talk to my agent and then it spins up like a doc and then I present it to the team. 00:12:31.200 --> 00:12:34.879 And they're like, dude, you can't present new ideas every single Monday, but that's just my disorder that I have. 00:12:34.960 --> 00:12:36.240 And I think you probably have the same. 00:12:36.480 --> 00:12:37.759 You've classified yourself as that. 00:12:37.840 --> 00:12:38.720 What does that actually mean? 00:12:38.799 --> 00:12:40.080 And is that a good or bad thing? 00:12:40.559 --> 00:12:46.399 It actually started as a joke because that it's it's not attention deficit disorder, though it might also be attention deficit disorder. 00:12:46.559 --> 00:12:51.200 Um the idea surplus disorder for me, it's just something that I am curious. 00:12:51.360 --> 00:12:56.879 And in our work in particular, we're constantly in rooms of really smart people solving their version of the same problem. 00:12:57.360 --> 00:13:02.480 And so again and again, we're immersed in ideas and insights and we're able to share them back. 00:13:02.639 --> 00:13:08.480 Uh, I don't really know that it's a disorder uh that an individual is afflicted by, but it can be very damaging to a team. 00:13:08.559 --> 00:13:08.799 Yeah. 00:13:08.960 --> 00:13:12.399 And so to your point, I'm the same way, like, ooh, what about this? 00:13:12.639 --> 00:13:19.039 The challenge that we've said we've seen, Luke, is that lots of times people will, leaders will share ideas like, ooh, wouldn't this be cool? 00:13:19.200 --> 00:13:21.440 But your team hears them as a decision. 00:13:21.840 --> 00:13:25.759 And so when they're exhausted, it's not so much, oh, that's a cool idea I want to think about too. 00:13:25.840 --> 00:13:32.320 It's the, oh my goodness, you have me now doing another thing without being intentional about taking the things away that you gave me last week. 00:13:33.039 --> 00:13:39.200 We started to believe that there's four kinds of conversations and meetings that dream, debate, decide, or do. 00:13:39.519 --> 00:13:43.360 And the moment you start to label them, say, hey, this is just a dreaming conversation, right? 00:13:43.840 --> 00:13:46.000 Then your team knows to come with ideas. 00:13:46.559 --> 00:13:50.320 Uh and be clear if you're debating, well, and come with the point of view. 00:13:50.559 --> 00:13:51.519 The decision is different. 00:13:51.600 --> 00:13:55.600 The decision is we're clear who the decider is and when we decide and what we're deciding about. 00:13:55.759 --> 00:13:57.279 And the doing is the rest of it. 00:13:57.919 --> 00:14:09.919 But until you started, until I personally as a leader started to say, hey, this is just a dreaming conversation, I would find that my team would get twisted in knots thinking that I had given them yet another initiative, yet another project. 00:14:10.080 --> 00:14:11.759 When I was like, ooh, that'd be kind of cool. 00:14:12.000 --> 00:14:18.159 The STL bucket list show is proudly sponsored by Suede Dispensary with 11 Missouri area locations. 00:14:18.320 --> 00:14:20.000 Suede does so much for the St. 00:14:20.080 --> 00:14:20.720 Louis community. 00:14:20.879 --> 00:14:28.960 We've been working with this team for a couple of years back since Medical was here, and we're excited to support their new product

launches, events, and community initiatives. 00:14:29.120 --> 00:14:33.679 We couldn't be happier to work with this premier cannabis brand, and we're excited for them to sponsor the show. 00:14:33.840 --> 00:14:35.279 Enjoy the rest of the podcast. 00:14:35.519 --> 00:14:35.840 Yeah. 00:14:36.080 --> 00:14:36.799 No, that's amazing. 00:14:36.960 --> 00:14:39.679 So I was uh when we were catching up with Britney upstairs, she mentioned the St. 00:14:39.759 --> 00:14:42.879 Louis Business Journal article, and you mentioned, and I want to like talk a lot about St. 00:14:42.960 --> 00:14:44.240 Louis because you think that St. 00:14:44.320 --> 00:14:47.200 Louis needs more idea sharing and more collaboration. 00:14:47.440 --> 00:14:50.000 Help me put that into words for those that haven't read the article yet. 00:14:50.240 --> 00:14:53.840 Well, I we've we're really fortunate to do lots of convening work. 00:14:54.000 --> 00:14:57.840 So a ton of our clients will say we've got to get a group of people together to talk about stuff. 00:14:58.000 --> 00:15:03.600 And most of the time, those convenings are again just people taking turns talking at the rest of the group. 00:15:03.759 --> 00:15:04.000 Yep. 00:15:04.240 --> 00:15:05.120 What we learned in the St. 00:15:05.200 --> 00:15:16.159 Louis work, and it was work convened by the RBC here in town, which is made up of the top hundred CEOs, is as we're thinking about downtown in particular, they brought us in to help guide a handful of sessions. 00:15:16.240 --> 00:15:19.279 And what we learned is there's lots of amazing things happening in St. 00:15:19.360 --> 00:15:21.840 Louis, but they're often happening in isolation. 00:15:22.000 --> 00:15:26.399 And so for people to not just say, hey, here's the work we're doing, but here's the help we need. 00:15:26.799 --> 00:15:31.200 And then to get everyone to say, like, oh, well, if you need this help, I can help with that. 00:15:31.440 --> 00:15:32.159 Because St. 00:15:32.320 --> 00:15:38.000 Louis is one of those odd cities is that we always think that we're well behind others. 00:15:38.480 --> 00:15:47.600 We have this kind of uh inferiority complex to pick a city, Nashville, Kansas City, Indianapolis, and the list goes on and on, Detroit even now. 00:15:48.240 --> 00:15:56.240 But the amount of work that's happening to make the city better and the amount of commitment that's happening to make it better, I think is really, really cool. 00:15:56.399 --> 00:15:57.759 But we just don't know about it. 00:15:58.000 --> 00:16:06.320 And the cool things that you're doing in your neighborhood and the cool things I'm doing in an adjacent neighborhood, how much better could we be if we collaborated, if we shared? 00:16:06.639 --> 00:16:11.120 And we're able to have a conversation about that versus let me give you my list of stuff. 00:16:11.200 --> 00:16:13.039 And now it's your turn to give me your list of stuff. 00:16:13.200 --> 00:16:14.320 The collaboration happens. 00:16:14.399 --> 00:16:17.039 People connect better when they think together, not just when they drink together. 00:16:17.440 --> 00:16:28.399 And too oftentimes the collaboration piece sits at the end of a day that in an informal setting that is that is built for extroverts, not introverts, versus it being the core of why we gather. 00:16:28.799 --> 00:16:30.480 And you're mentioning the happy hour culture. 00:16:30.559 --> 00:16:38.399 It's like, you know, the loud bar that you can't talk and you can't actually write notes, like you're not taking a note and you don't even even think about it the next day because you're just in a meeting at 8 a.m. 00:16:38.559 --> 00:16:39.039 the next morning. 00:16:39.279 --> 00:16:41.919 So I think it's being intentional and blocking out that time. 00:16:42.000 --> 00:16:44.399 But I want to shift to Thanksgiving. 00:16:44.559 --> 00:16:49.440 It's an event that's a flagship community event that you guys established as now an annual tradition. 00:16:49.679 --> 00:16:54.559 So when going through the event, just high level, STL nonprofits come to you, they submit challenges. 00:16:54.720 --> 00:16:56.000 They can't be about money. 00:16:56.080 --> 00:16:58.799 They have to be specific challenges that they're facing. 00:16:58.960 --> 00:17:02.000 You get business teams that work directly with them, draft that. 00:17:02.080 --> 00:17:11.920 So, like for those that haven't been, tell me, you know, what that is and the actual collaboration that gets in there because you're you're bringing two different types of people together and solving real issues in real time. 00:17:12.160 --> 00:17:22.559 Yeah, it's the thing I'm most proud of in all the stuff that we do at Filament is we started to realize early on that the challenges that nonprofits had and the challenges businesses had were almost exactly the same. 00:17:22.720 --> 00:17:24.240 They just were branded differently. 00:17:24.480 --> 00:17:25.920 They were called different things. 00:17:26.079 --> 00:17:41.200 And while the businesses would be focused on solving those challenges occasionally, the nonprofits oftentimes would let anything that was unrelated to fundraising and uh even short-term sustainability, those were the things that kind of like as one accumulates technical debt, right? 00:17:41.599 --> 00:17:48.000 And so the way that Thanksgiving works, and this is year seven for us, is that we work with nonprofits and they come up with a challenge. 00:17:48.079 --> 00:17:51.759 And again, they they can't be about money because otherwise every challenge would be about money. 00:17:52.079 --> 00:17:54.000 And so the challenges are strategic. 00:17:54.160 --> 00:18:00.400 They are around people or culture or branding, the kinds of things that nonprofits oftentimes put off to the side. 00:18:00.640 --> 00:18:02.160 And then we have a draft. 00:18:02.319 --> 00:18:04.720 And so we have business partners in town. 00:18:04.960 --> 00:18:06.480 Lots of

the big companies submit teams. 00:18:06.640 --> 00:18:11.039 Many of them submit them for emerging professionals or young leaders, so they're not everyone. 00:18:11.200 --> 00:18:16.240 And the teams come in, and the nonprofit team and the business partner teams are both of about four or five people. 00:18:16.480 --> 00:18:19.119 But the business partners come in and they draft a challenge. 00:18:19.279 --> 00:18:22.400 So they see a challenge, a how might we sort of challenge. 00:18:22.480 --> 00:18:26.160 They pick a challenge, but they don't know the nonprofit it belongs to till after they pair. 00:18:26.400 --> 00:18:29.759 And then we teach those business partners how to run an innovation day. 00:18:29.920 --> 00:18:31.200 So we do workshops with them. 00:18:31.359 --> 00:18:39.680 So they're upskilling their people on how to use our tools and process and approach to really do any kind of challenge that they might have at the office. 00:18:40.000 --> 00:18:48.000 But then on the first Thursday of November in Cortex, the innovation district where we're headquartered, the business partner teams and the nonprofits gather. 00:18:48.079 --> 00:18:59.839 And so we'll have 30 to 40 different nonprofits all being served in a single day this year, all in these parallel rooms, all by these uh earnest and insightful and innovative business partners. 00:19:00.000 --> 00:19:03.680 And by the end of the day, and talk about being analog, it looks like a junior high science fair. 00:19:03.759 --> 00:19:11.359 We give everyone a poster to fill out, but it talks about the work they did, the next steps they'll take, uh, big insights they had. 00:19:11.839 --> 00:19:21.279 And what I love about it is we really focus on making the next steps small because we want them to be something they can actually do versus something that requires them to go raise a million dollars. 00:19:21.759 --> 00:19:27.599 But the business partners and the nonprofits both walk away from that session feeling like they're the winner, right? 00:19:27.680 --> 00:19:33.839 The nonprofit doesn't just get help from a business partner, but they get time set aside to think about the things that they may have been putting off. 00:19:34.000 --> 00:19:38.079 So oftentimes for the nonprofits, just the conversation is as valuable as the ideas. 00:19:38.319 --> 00:19:38.640 For sure. 00:19:38.799 --> 00:19:44.160 Because they'll bring a board member, a CEO, a team member close to the problem, a volunteer, that sort of thing. 00:19:44.319 --> 00:19:51.039 But the business partners not only feel like they've given back in a way, it's better than I think than stuffing backpacks for building bicycles. 00:19:51.279 --> 00:20:00.000 But the other thing that happens is that the business partners oftentimes and talking about their challenges and how they relate to what they're engaging with the nonprofit about, have insights of their own. 00:20:00.079 --> 00:20:00.319 Yeah. 00:20:00.559 --> 00:20:04.799 And

so my favorite part is at the end you'd hear the nonprofits go, Oh, that was great, expected. 00:20:04.880 --> 00:20:10.400 But then you hear the business partners go, like, oh my goodness, we had a breakthrough idea on our own based upon this conversation. 00:20:10.480 --> 00:20:14.160 And so it's one of those kind of win-win-win, and everyone seems to love it. 00:20:14.319 --> 00:20:14.480 Yeah. 00:20:14.559 --> 00:20:16.880 So this event is November 5th at Cortex. 00:20:16.960 --> 00:20:18.480 Um, so that's a whole day event. 00:20:18.559 --> 00:20:20.400 But is there a specific Thanksgiving moment? 00:20:20.559 --> 00:20:22.400 I mean, you've been doing this now, you said seven years. 00:20:22.480 --> 00:20:24.319 This is your seventh year that you're doing it. 00:20:24.480 --> 00:20:28.319 Is there a specific moment breakthrough that really sticks with you that like keeps you motivated? 00:20:28.400 --> 00:20:30.400 Because at the end of the day, it's a huge thing to coordinate. 00:20:30.480 --> 00:20:34.559 I mean, you just talked to me yesterday, you guys were going through all this, and like it's a big project. 00:20:34.640 --> 00:20:37.279 And but there has to be some moments that happen each and every year. 00:20:37.359 --> 00:20:40.880 Is there one that sticks out to you specifically that that keeps you inspired? 00:20:41.119 --> 00:20:43.039 I there there's too many to choose from. 00:20:43.119 --> 00:20:47.039 And and and I say that with like immense gratitude that I can't pick just one. 00:20:47.440 --> 00:20:51.039 Uh, I have a goofy smile on my face the entire day walking around. 00:20:51.119 --> 00:21:00.079 I'm popping into the rooms, and just the I would say the gratitude that each side shows to the other throughout the day. 00:21:00.160 --> 00:21:06.640 We and we've had people say we've had a year of consulting, and our day at Thanksgiving was a better, we got more done with that than the year with a consultant. 00:21:06.799 --> 00:21:13.599 We've had people get rebranded completely, we've had people continue to work with their business partner for years after. 00:21:13.839 --> 00:21:14.160 That's cool. 00:21:14.400 --> 00:21:26.079 And so just when everyone walks away and we do a solution showcase where everyone gets to see all the work everyone else did at the end of the day that's open to the public, that is the moment where every year I'm like, we're exhausted. 00:21:26.400 --> 00:21:35.200 The team is just ready to all go to bed, but we pop a bottle of champagne after everyone's gone home and we just breathe in what we've done. 00:21:35.440 --> 00:21:41.759 And I will say my favorite part about Thanksgiving as a business owner is what it does for our team. 00:21:42.160 --> 00:21:44.799 Uh, it is a touch point for us every year. 00:21:45.039 --> 00:21:49.759 Uh, it allows us as a company to give back at a scale we could never do individually. 00:21:50.160 --> 00:21:59.279 And I know that it drives my team members to love all of the other hard work we do because there it's that payoff every year that really matters. 00:22:00.160 --> 00:22:04.640 You you could build this model anywhere, and I know you do, but why does it stay so rooted in St. 00:22:04.720 --> 00:22:05.039 Louis? 00:22:05.119 --> 00:22:07.680 Like what is what does that whole thing mean to you? 00:22:07.759 --> 00:22:09.279 Because this model is could be everywhere. 00:22:09.359 --> 00:22:13.759 And I know it is at some points, but it seems like most of the work, you know, when it comes to your partners are here in St. 00:22:13.920 --> 00:22:14.160 Louis. 00:22:14.400 --> 00:22:20.079 On the on the Thanksgiving side, it's funny you asked that because we're trying to look at possible uh possible expansions. 00:22:20.240 --> 00:22:20.559 Yeah. 00:22:21.200 --> 00:22:26.480 Uh we've got a a couple of our business partners who are saying, how can we take this to other locations of ours? 00:22:26.720 --> 00:22:28.400 So those conversations are underway. 00:22:28.960 --> 00:22:31.359 Um I'd love to see it in every city. 00:22:31.839 --> 00:22:32.079 Right. 00:22:32.160 --> 00:22:36.960 And if I were to ever sell filament, I would be hard pressed to let Thanksgiving go with it. 00:22:37.519 --> 00:22:50.960 Uh, because it is something that you see the impact, and it's a really unique model that we just haven't seen elsewhere in the country, and that isn't that is hard to do, but we a lot of the business modeling we've kind of figured out. 00:22:51.039 --> 00:22:53.440 So that's one the growth part is one thing we're really thinking about. 00:22:53.599 --> 00:22:57.359 Uh but even from Filament's perspective, every city has bad meetings. 00:22:57.759 --> 00:23:01.759 Uh, and one of our purposes is that we believe the world works better when people meet better. 00:23:02.240 --> 00:23:06.880 And so again, as we start to think about growth, we've we've we keep on making different mistakes. 00:23:07.039 --> 00:23:09.359 Thank goodness goodness we're not always making the same mistake. 00:23:09.519 --> 00:23:18.799 But I think we've now learned enough what it means to be a great facilitator, how the tools work that maybe next time we talk, we have a global expansion path mapped out. 00:23:19.519 --> 00:23:25.039 So I read something that you know you can't just you don't just let people rent your space for a normal meeting. 00:23:25.200 --> 00:23:31.440 It's not because in in turn you have all this nice space that would be great for meetings, but you decided that that is not your model. 00:23:31.599 --> 00:23:32.640 So why is that? 00:23:32.799 --> 00:23:36.880 Because it's so important to follow your process, or is it is because you have all these great rooms. 00:23:37.119 --> 00:23:40.960 I you know, I I don't want anyone to have a terrible meeting to fill them in unless it's our fault. 00:23:41.039 --> 00:23:41.359 Yeah. 00:23:41.599 --> 00:23:43.759 And we've have great space in Cortex. 00:23:43.839 -->

00:23:50.559 Before we were in Cortex, we were downtown, we had great space there, and it is a reflection of the kind of space we want to build a meeting around. 00:23:50.640 --> 00:23:52.160 So really comfortable space. 00:23:52.319 --> 00:23:53.599 The tables are small on purpose. 00:23:53.680 --> 00:23:55.759 We make it hard to plug in a laptop on purpose. 00:23:56.240 --> 00:24:00.079 And early on, we didn't have that rule, and we'd rent our space from time to time. 00:24:01.359 --> 00:24:07.519 But I net like it's one of the things that's really unique about us, it's that's a differentiator. 00:24:08.079 --> 00:24:12.960 And frankly, we make a lot more money when we facilitate a meeting than when we rent it to someone else. 00:24:13.440 --> 00:24:21.200 And so the idea of if you want to have the best meeting space in the Midwest, it comes with a best meeting facilitated by filament. 00:24:21.519 --> 00:24:21.920 Exactly. 00:24:22.160 --> 00:24:22.640 I love that. 00:24:22.799 --> 00:24:25.359 So I want to do some rapid fire just to have a little bit of fun. 00:24:25.440 --> 00:24:26.079 So, what's a St. 00:24:26.240 --> 00:24:29.359 Louis spot that you love to send your out-of-town visitors when they come in town? 00:24:29.599 --> 00:24:30.160 Oh my goodness. 00:24:30.480 --> 00:24:33.200 You mentioned Highland, Illinois, so you're you're kind of a little bit outside. 00:24:33.599 --> 00:24:35.759 I grew up in Highland I grew up in Highland, live in New City now. 00:24:35.839 --> 00:24:36.160 Yeah. 00:24:36.400 --> 00:24:45.039 Uh if it is a like the things that they're most surprised about, City Museum is easy at the top of the list, uh, botanical garden, especially the Japanese garden there we love. 00:24:45.519 --> 00:24:50.400 Um Indosado, you know, and and any of his restaurants are so amazing. 00:24:50.559 --> 00:24:51.759 Nick's places are great. 00:24:51.920 --> 00:25:00.480 Uh, but we oftentimes love to also send them to our newest discovery, which might be one from last week or the week before, not just to say this is what's great about St. 00:25:00.640 --> 00:25:04.640 Louis all the time, but look at how much it's changing and how much it's improving. 00:25:04.720 --> 00:25:11.759 And then Forest Park just fits the we we won't have someone in town without taking them through Forest Park, and people's eyes just fall out of their heads how amazing that place is. 00:25:11.920 --> 00:25:12.480 Yeah, it's so cool. 00:25:12.559 --> 00:25:15.279 I love that you mentioned City Museum first and then kind of went down the line. 00:25:15.359 --> 00:25:18.799 But yeah, to your point, it's like, hey, like you were you came here 20 years ago. 00:25:18.880 --> 00:25:28.880 It's like, hey, let's go back to this neighborhood and like look at the Shaw neighborhood and how it's changed here, even though you know, like you could take them to all these key spots, the arch grounds, but most of your friends probably already came to the arch grounds the

first time they came and saw you. 00:25:29.039 --> 00:25:33.759 And um so what is one word for a bad meeting? 00:25:33.920 --> 00:25:37.200 Is there a specific word that you would classify as a bad meeting? 00:25:37.519 --> 00:25:38.400 Performative. 00:25:38.720 --> 00:25:39.039 Okay. 00:25:39.279 --> 00:25:41.279 And then what about one word for a great meeting? 00:25:41.599 --> 00:25:42.160 Collaborative. 00:25:42.400 --> 00:25:42.960 Okay, great. 00:25:43.039 --> 00:25:43.440 That's perfect. 00:25:43.599 --> 00:25:46.880 The STL bucket list show is fueled by Upshot Coffee. 00:25:47.039 --> 00:25:50.720 My friends at Upshot Coffee have some of the best beans in town. 00:25:50.799 --> 00:25:52.400 I got some of their new packaging here. 00:25:52.559 --> 00:25:53.359 Look at this bag. 00:25:53.440 --> 00:25:54.480 Look how big this is. 00:25:54.640 --> 00:25:55.680 Um, they have four St. 00:25:55.839 --> 00:26:00.480 Louis locations, their flagship in Coddleville, the break shop over by Lindenwood in St. 00:26:00.640 --> 00:26:06.960 Charles, their Clayton location called Hi-Fi, um, and then Flyby over in Tower Grove, their newest location. 00:26:07.119 --> 00:26:10.079 Um, and they also sell their coffee online everywhere. 00:26:10.319 --> 00:26:14.799 If you guys haven't added Upshot Coffee to your STL bucket list, it's time to try it. 00:26:14.960 --> 00:26:18.480 Some of the my favorite people in the industry and some of the best coffee in the game. 00:26:18.720 --> 00:26:25.680 And then you are an idea guy, but I'm sure you also love to take inspiration and quote, steal ideas from other people. 00:26:25.839 --> 00:26:31.680 Are there are there certain ideas or things that people are doing with meetings across the nation that you're really inspired by right now? 00:26:32.079 --> 00:26:34.880 Yeah, there's some people who are really starting to rethink the conference model. 00:26:35.039 --> 00:26:35.440 Yeah. 00:26:35.680 --> 00:26:36.400 Which is cool. 00:26:36.559 --> 00:26:40.640 That's some that model looks pretty much the same in every event, every year. 00:26:40.799 --> 00:26:41.119 Yeah. 00:26:41.279 --> 00:26:47.359 Uh and and I am uh like I the newsletter that I write every week is called Idea Surplus Disorder. 00:26:47.680 --> 00:26:52.240 And there are anything I find that's cool that week lives in that newsletter. 00:26:52.319 --> 00:26:52.480 Yeah. 00:26:52.640 --> 00:26:58.400 So sometimes I have to apologize for being so long, but like, what that's my collection of cool ideas and place I can go back to again and again. 00:26:58.640 --> 00:27:16.400 I I will say the one thing that is really happening in meetings that has taken a long time to change is that as people now realize we learned during COVID that we can be terrible with PowerPoint on Zoom and Teams just like we can in person, there are a handful of entities and organizations that are really starting to think like, what is that moment in the room? 00:27:16.559 --> 00:27:23.279 And how do we make that the reason we come to the event because of the people we'll meet, not just because of the people we'll hear? 00:27:23.440 --> 00:27:28.240 And I'm really having fun following some of those trends and helping out and doing some of that stuff ourselves. 00:27:28.559 --> 00:27:32.079 Is there a certain, like you said, Thanksgiving is your your baby? 00:27:32.160 --> 00:27:35.119 And is there a certain thing that you haven't done yet that's on your bucket list? 00:27:35.200 --> 00:27:36.319 This is the bucket list show. 00:27:36.400 --> 00:27:38.319 And I'm not saying like travel and all that. 00:27:38.400 --> 00:27:45.279 Like, is there a certain meeting or conference that you still have to crack off your bucket, or maybe even a partner that you want to you can shout out some people you want to work with. 00:27:45.680 --> 00:27:46.640 It's funny, it's funny you say that. 00:27:46.799 --> 00:27:47.759 We've been having conversations. 00:27:47.920 --> 00:27:50.000 Explore STL. 00:27:50.160 --> 00:27:50.240 Yeah. 00:27:50.400 --> 00:27:53.759 Uh the folks at the convention center have become have clients and are friends of ours. 00:27:53.839 --> 00:27:53.920 Yeah. 00:27:54.079 --> 00:27:56.240 And the thing that I want to do, I have two bucket list items. 00:27:56.400 --> 00:28:00.000 The one is to build the turnkey thousand-person conference that they can sell. 00:28:00.079 --> 00:28:00.160 Yeah. 00:28:00.400 --> 00:28:04.400 And it's the best place to come for a the best meeting in St. 00:28:04.480 --> 00:28:04.799 Louis. 00:28:04.960 --> 00:28:05.839 So you've got to come to St. 00:28:06.000 --> 00:28:07.039 Louis to have this meeting. 00:28:07.359 --> 00:28:08.160 Make that a staple. 00:28:08.400 --> 00:28:11.920 And it's a turnkey, it makes it easy on the it makes it easy to plan, et cetera. 00:28:12.000 --> 00:28:14.240 So it doesn't look like all the other events in the convention center. 00:28:14.720 --> 00:28:22.720 The second thing, and I've not put this out in the universe much, but I'll do it here, is that Thanksgiving locally works really, really well. 00:28:22.960 --> 00:28:25.680 But what I would love is I would love for Thanksgiving to be St. 00:28:25.759 --> 00:28:27.200 Louis's South by Southwest. 00:28:27.599 --> 00:28:34.240 And so over the course of three or four days, national nonprofits from all over the country, if not the world, come here to St. 00:28:34.319 --> 00:28:38.160 Louis and are helped by the best innovation teams around the world. 00:28:38.319 --> 00:28:41.759 So all the consultancies send their best innovators and so on and so forth. 00:28:41.839 --> 00:28:45.599 And they do that full day in the same model as we do now. 00:28:46.000 --> 00:28:53.359 But then way to day and the day later, all of our local nonprofits are served by the senior leaders of the national nonprofits. 00:28:53.680 --> 00:29:03.200 So it kind of is a pay it forward and allows us to make this a place where people really rethink how services are delivered to people in need all around the country. 00:29:03.440 --> 00:29:04.400 Yeah, that's so cool. 00:29:04.559 --> 00:29:08.559 So for those of that want to get involved, is it still time for businesses to get involved? 00:29:08.799 --> 00:29:09.519 This is November 5th. 00:29:09.920 --> 00:29:13.279 Businesses Thanksgiving Day.com is a Thanksgiving website. 00:29:13.680 --> 00:29:17.920 Uh so click on the business partner link and a chance to add your information, what you're curious about. 00:29:18.160 --> 00:29:21.599 Yeah, we're super excited and grateful to have you on and and thank you so much for your time today. 00:29:21.759 --> 00:29:22.160 I appreciate it. 00:29:22.240 --> 00:29:22.640 Thanks so much. 00:29:22.880 --> 00:29:23.519 See you guys next week. 00:29:23.680 --> 00:29:23.920 Bye.