HOT OFF THE PRESS

Most Events Are Expensive Mistakes Pretending to Be Strategy

Nov 4, 2025

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12 min read

Most Events Are Expensive Mistakes Pretending to Be Strategy

I attended three corporate events in a row where the chat begged for acknowledgment like ghosts in the machine. No one looked. No one cared. This is the story of how we let “content delivery” replace connection... and how to fix it before everyone stops showing up.

Event Programming

Rachel Elnar

BREAKING NEWS

Oct 22, 2025

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4 min read

From Cleveland to Chicago: How Jenn Visocky O’Grady & Justin Ahrens Built a Design Legacy with AIGA on Pyramids, Posters, and Pizza Costumes

From student chapters to national impact, here’s how two AIGA leaders turned board service into a career-defining friendship (with karaoke).

Podcast Episodes

Oct 18, 2025

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7 min read

Beyond Thank Yous: What Community Leaders Really Need

Last week, I watched something that shouldn’t be remarkable: 50+ volunteer leaders getting a night off.

Creative Community

Oct 1, 2025

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7 min read

When Love Meets Leadership: Laurel Webster and James Hersick’s Journey from AIGA Blue Ridge to Community Impact

Or: How Refusing to Dance at a Design Conference Led to Marriage, 3,000 Student Competition Entries, and an Air Horn That Didn’t Last Long

Podcast Episodes

Stop leading alone. Start creating together.

Subscribe to transform how you approach creative leadership, team building, and community cultivation.

What’s New

LEADERSHIP GEMS

Podcast Episodes

From Cleveland to Chicago: How Jenn Visocky O’Grady & Justin Ahrens Built a Design Legacy with AIGA on Pyramids, Posters, and Pizza Costumes

Rachel Elnar

Podcast Episodes

When Love Meets Leadership: Laurel Webster and James Hersick’s Journey from AIGA Blue Ridge to Community Impact

Rachel Elnar

IMPROVE EVENTS

Customer Experience

Most Events Are Expensive Mistakes Pretending to Be Strategy

Rachel Elnar

Customer Experience

The Behavioral Psychology Behind Virtual Events That Actually Work

Rachel Elnar

GROW COMMUNITY

Creative Community

Beyond Thank Yous: What Community Leaders Really Need

Rachel Elnar

Creative Community

Why I Stopped Trusting General Event “Best Practices” and Started Building Community Instead

Rachel Elnar

Design Leadership

Livestreaming

Podcast Episodes

Event Programming

Team Collaboration

Creative Community

Customer Experience

Design

Creative Process

Poll Advice

Bonus Resource

GUEST AUTHOR ARTICLES

Livestreaming

Top Tips for Taking Care of Talent

Behind every polished virtual presentation lies an invisible support system. These essential strategies from Line Producer Layne ensure your on-camera talent delivers their best performance.

Layne Arnold

Creative Process

The Art of Creative Structure: A Coffee Shop Philosophy

Heather reveals how the perfect balance of reliable systems and creative freedom—much like in a well-run coffee shop—can elevate your work from functional to exceptional.

Heather Lynn

Event Programming

Community Content That Never Stops

In the world of design and creative leadership, community doesn’t pause between events—it’s always on. Elysia unpacks what it really takes to keep the momentum going.

Elysia Syriac

Livestreaming

The Art of the Through Line—Finding the Story in Digital Events

Betsy Ambrose illuminates how key elements create digital experiences that transcend typical webinars—turning business objectives into meaningful moments that resonate long after screens go dark.

Betsy Ambrose

Design Leadership

The Translation Layer

Business leaders and designers often speak entirely different languages—one talks KPIs and ROI, the other design systems and user journeys.

Elysia Syriac

HOT OFF THE PRESS

Most Events Are Expensive Mistakes Pretending to Be Strategy

BREAKING NEWS

From Cleveland to Chicago: How Jenn Visocky O’Grady & Justin Ahrens Built a Design Legacy with AIGA on Pyramids, Posters, and Pizza Costumes

Beyond Thank Yous: What Community Leaders Really Need

When Love Meets Leadership: Laurel Webster and James Hersick’s Journey from AIGA Blue Ridge to Community Impact

Stop leading alone. Start creating together.

Subscribe to transform how you approach creative leadership, team building, and community cultivation.

What’s New

LEADERSHIP GEMS

From Cleveland to Chicago: How Jenn Visocky O’Grady & Justin Ahrens Built a Design Legacy with AIGA on Pyramids, Posters, and Pizza Costumes

When Love Meets Leadership: Laurel Webster and James Hersick’s Journey from AIGA Blue Ridge to Community Impact

IMPROVE EVENTS

Most Events Are Expensive Mistakes Pretending to Be Strategy

The Behavioral Psychology Behind Virtual Events That Actually Work

GROW COMMUNITY

Beyond Thank Yous: What Community Leaders Really Need

Why I Stopped Trusting General Event “Best Practices” and Started Building Community Instead

Archive

TAGS

Event Hosting

Design Leadership

Livestreaming

Podcast Episodes

Event Programming

Team Collaboration

Creative Community

Customer Experience

Design

Creative Process

Poll Advice

Bonus Resource

GUEST AUTHOR ARTICLES

Top Tips for Taking Care of Talent

The Art of Creative Structure: A Coffee Shop Philosophy

Community Content That Never Stops

The Art of the Through Line—Finding the Story in Digital Events

The Translation Layer

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