Sarah Fejfar
Reading a room and setting the stage, y'all if we could get better at those two things as event leaders, we would see phenomenal jumps. And not only our guests engagement, but our confidence as the host of the event. And today, Jessica is going to share some secrets for how I cannot wait for you to hear this.
Sarah Fejfar
Inquiring minds want to know, how are entrepreneurs like us daring bravely to build a stage ditch the sweat pants and step up to the mic? How do we create our own transformative events so we can get our message out into the world in a bigger way that's not only profitable, but it's actually something we can be proud. That's the question and the answers are inside this podcast. My name is Sarah Fejfar for welcome to Green Room Central.
Sarah Fejfar
Hey, it Sarah, I have an invitation for you right now. You can join entrepreneurs from across the globe who share a passion for hosting their own events become part of the community that inspires and cheers Ilan over at greenroom central.com. Today, I brought into greenroom central studios, Jessica Creane, founder and CEO of IKantKoan plays an interactive experience studio dedicated to the exploration of complex subject matter through the lens of play. I can't can host live and digital play based events designed to foster intimacy and creativity for individuals and teams, rooted in games and storytelling. Jessica, welcome to Green Room central studios say hello to linchpin nation,
Jessica Creane
hello linchpin nation, it's great to be here.
Sarah Fejfar
Thank you for thank you for sharing your time with us today. I'm excited because this is an area that I'm super, like nervous about because I don't tend to be a person who is naturally like playful and fun. And you're gonna, you're gonna help your change my, my mind on on all things play in our lives. And in on that note, I want to ask you, what are some common misconceptions about the role of play in our lives?
Jessica Creane
I think one of the big misconception is, is that play is not for adults play is for kids, and then we grow out of it, and we can't play anymore, because then we would somehow be like letting ourselves down. Or it was such a vulnerable act that we who can we be playful with? We have to really trust people these days. And we can't just kind of walk up to people like when we were kids and say Hi, I'm Jessica want to play? Like it's different now. And so I think so there's a misconception around the fact that we can, in fact, ask people to play and engage in play, even as adults. And also that play is always fun. I think folks think if something is hard, it can't possibly be play. But plays is an engagement of self. It is an engagement with our environment. And so it is very possible to be having an experience where you are feeling really playful and not necessarily light hearted. And so I think those things get conflated pretty often. And then also something that you said earlier, I think is a misconception. There's this idea that I am not a playful person that a lot of folks have, or that it is an absolute way of being. And I'm much more playful now than I was as a kid. When I was a kid I was extremely serious. And so I've really grown into my playfulness and and I think that that's something that we can all do.
Sarah Fejfar
Okay, there's so many, like barriers you just broke down there that we can play as adults. Like we would invite someone to play with my kiddo I noticed often, just so simple, like, oh, yeah, I'm just gonna go up to so and so and ask them to play. And it's just like, very common and happens all the time. But that would not be something I would ever think to do. Miss practical Sarah here. And then this other boundary of like, yeah, that I have label a label on myself that I'm not a playful person, or that I'm a fun hater. And that I need to remove those labels because that like I'm living in world of world of absolutes, and that's craziness of. And then the other one that you said was that, if it's work, it can't be play. And that like that's also a misconception. And I think that's huge for me, because, like I told you, I'm a super practical, very driven person and very serious about like, getting this stuff done. And so sometimes I feel like play kind of interrupts that line of thinking for me.
Jessica Creane
There's one of my favorite quotes about play is comes from a book that I love by James P cars called Finite and Infinite games, and he says, one who must play cannot play. And so I think there is a distinction around consent for starters, around the fact that like You can have somebody who is in, you can have two people in a situation and one of them can be playing, and one of them might not be playing. And sports, I think is a really great example of this. We call it game we call it play. But if your livelihood depends on it, if your identity is attached to it, it's not necessarily going to be play. And I live in Philadelphia, I mean, the Eagles are based here, like, Philly sports fans are extremely intense. And I would not say always playful, and so like, I'm a playful reader. And yet I don't think sports are necessarily play. So I think there's a lot of ways in which play manifests in our lives.
Sarah Fejfar
So good. So I want to tie this into events a bit here. And as a person who's an expert in play, of all the things to spend your time on why events, why are you are you combining these two worlds?
Jessica Creane
So I grew up as a theater kid, like, you know, I'm sure we've got some, some other nerds out there who are, you know, in the same vein, and I think that what theater really taught me was a couple of things. One is the power of a good story, story changes us. And we can be invited into stories, whether we're the ones playing through them ourselves as actors, or the ones shaping them as a director, or the ones in the audience saying, I see myself in this or I see my loved ones in this stories can be really inviting. And those are events, theatrical events, are experiences. And so I think what that what theater taught me was that we gather, there's a reason why we gather and come to these places to collectively tell stories, and that can be a powerful and transformative experience. And I think the other is that it is a ritual activity, we come expecting something different than we usually have. And so we find ourselves generally at events much more open to change or open to doing something differently. And a lot of times we even take on our role like I am just a fancier version of me this evening is a role. And so it breaks down some of our again, these like little traps of identity that we hold ourselves to that could be holding us back and give us space to be different and to take risks with with ourselves with our personality with our identity that we don't always have.
Sarah Fejfar
I think that's absolutely magical. And key what you said right there, because I see it in myself too, when I attend an event, especially an in person event, where you can be fully immersed in the experience, and the environment is really controlled for you. I do see myself, or allow myself to take on a different role. And perhaps a role I wish I had in my life all the time, like someone who claps and jumps up and down or dances or plays the game, I see that. I don't know if I noticed that that was a pattern until you just suggested it there. But absolutely, I do think events create this environment where we're willing to do, we're willing to step outside of our box. And so you're saying then why not games in that environment?
Jessica Creane
Yeah, and the social roles are different. You know, we, it's easier, I think often it's easier in advance at an event to meet new people, because everyone is, is there with the express purpose of we all share something in common. We have an interest in X, or we know this person who's the birthday, you know, person, or whatever it is there's there's some element of purpose that brought everybody together. And so it's easier to find something to to meet each other on a level if we know that we have a commonality.
Sarah Fejfar
Hmm. Oh, so good. So you, you started by saying that you have your theater theater kid. And in so I want to dive into that a little bit. And I want to kind of explore how do you think your theatre background helps you as an event host?
Jessica Creane
Yeah, I think that it has probably above all, instilled in me a malleability that I have found to be really essential in in leading events, to be able to read the room essentially to say, okay, so they're not going to get anything done, unless I can meet the group where they're at somehow. And so I think what it really taught me particularly improvised theater or immersive theater, which I still do quite a bit of is, every audience is different, every group is different. And if I walk in thinking that last Saturday's energy is going to be this Saturday's energy, I'm in for a rude awakening. But if I can really be present with this group, and take some time to breathe with them, and get to know what the actual vibe of the space is, it means that we can grow from there. And it allows us to take, I think, a much bigger bounce in how we transform over the course of an event. And I think it taught me, it taught me the value, I think probably have like a tight feedback loop. That the audience is a part of the experience. It's not separate from it. We're not I'm not here to serve them totally. They're not here to serve me. We are co crafting and experience and as a leader in that people are going to probably look to me in some way or whoever else is leading this event. And so whether I want it to be the case or not. There's a modeling that goes on there. And I think theater really taught me that as well. No matter what people are going to be looking at you they're going to be looking to you for something So be prepared for that.
Sarah Fejfar
Oh, my goodness, there's so many amazing things you just said there. But I want to I want to get something I want to pull something specific out of you because I bet a lot of linchpin nation right now is wondering, okay, so how do I read a room? Like, can you give us like a specific tactic that we could use that would help us?
Jessica Creane
That is a great question, Sarah, I think the thing that comes to mind first is practice, which is a little bit vague and probably dissatisfying. So I'll try and go a little deeper than that. But I do think that it is, it is a practice. You can't like read a room once and get good at it, like you will start to notice and pick up on a lot of nuances. So to I think be to have it to really have a mastery. And I would not say that I have a mastery, like I am still practicing all the time. And sometimes I get it wrong. But the act of doing it repeatedly tells me like oh, there's just a little bit of nuance in the vibe of this room, or Oh, there's one person who's angry, and they're sitting right up front. And so they're like this, and so everybody around them is like, and so one of the things that I've also learned from theater is people's heart rates sync up, over if you're at a live event. And if there's a critic in the room, it is like literally people's the temperature around that person is lower than it is at other places in the theater, people don't laugh as much, because you can sort of sense that there is judgment happening. And so I think you start to pick up on like, what are the pockets of energy going on in the room right now. And one thing that I found really helpful just in terms of relaxing enough to even be able to start reading the room is to find somebody with bright eyes and a good smile and look at them for a minute. And if I need to find anchor points in an audience that a lot of events or someone who I know I can turn to who is going to either let me know that everything's okay. And keep going don't panic, so that I'm not infusing myself with the energy of the room. And that way, I'm not sort of like blocking what is happening, I can stay open to to the vibes of the room. It's not really a step by step, but I think those things are key.
Sarah Fejfar
That's so good. I think just the permission that you just gave us to, to know that this is a practice reading a room is something that we're gonna have, we're gonna be learning that skill over time. And so give ourselves grace is event hosts, as the leader who brought you know, everyone together to know that you're gonna get better over time, and it's gonna take time. So that ended I this is super helpful.
Jessica Creane
Yeah. And the Bible change like the you can read a room at one moment, and we're gonna flip a page at some point, and it's gonna be different, huh?
Sarah Fejfar
Yeah. No, and I think, you know, if I just like flip through my my rolodex of, like, snapshots from events that I've been at. I agree. Yeah, I get, you know, I could picture like, you were saying, like, you know, the person who's angry and their shoulders are like, tense, and they're on the edge of their seat, I can picture that and the energy around that person. Yeah. Are you you call it the temperature? I am. That's awesome. Now that you're giving us like language, for the stuff that we're sensing is happening. I think that helps us. Yeah, learn keep on this, like, practice of reading room.
Jessica Creane
Yeah, if I can add one other nuance to that, I think it's that there's nothing wrong with the person who's angry. Sometimes. Sometimes, it's it really isn't, it also isn't, they're not angry, they're just cold, you know, and that's why they're doing this, I there's so many reasons that it can be really challenging to be able to read individuals and read a room at large. But that person probably is the person who will benefit most from a little extra eye contact or a little extra something, or it's very, at least worth the experiment of it. So I think the act of generosity and those moments of just assuming that that people are okay, or that maybe they came in angry, and they're really excited to not be angry, all of that is possible and important.
Sarah Fejfar
Huge there because I love I'd love to say like, if to see the humanity and everybody and we have to go if something's if someone is kind of expressing themselves in that way, then we have to kind of take a step back and think about what has to be going on internally in their life for them to be showing up in this way. And just kind of be honoring of that and again, like see the humanity like there could there's we have to as event leaders, respect the fact that while our event is happening, you have live right now. And this is the most important thing in our lives as the event host we have to honor and respect the fact that there's like so many other facets to this human and their life that could be going on right now that like pressures that internal pressures that They're an external pressures that that they're experiencing, and that all that is coming into the room with them. And and not to say that in a way that makes it feel like oh gosh, it's like, it seems so heavy, but more just like awareness, right? And I love that you're calling it temperature instead of like, kind of naming emotions, because temperature almost gives us this, this this hope, which as a shed that that we have control over, like, where it goes. Yeah.
Jessica Creane
I had an audience member recently for an event that I ran, she was on her way out after the experience. And I had been clocking her over the course of the event. And it's like, I think, yep, everyone looks engaged. Okay, I think we're good. I think we're good. And then as she was leaving, you know, she said, Goodbye. And then she stopped in the doorway. And she turned around, and she said, how do you sleep at night? Yeah, that was my reaction. Oh, dear Lord, uh, oh, my God, did I? What did I do wrong? What was my first thought? Like? How like, How dare I charge money for this? Like, what does that mean?
Sarah Fejfar
And so I have
Jessica Creane
joked it off. And it's like, well, not very well, actually. Why
Sarah Fejfar
do you ask my end.
Jessica Creane
And she ended up writing me, she gave me a quick explanation in the moment and ended up writing me the next day. And turns out she wasn't, it wasn't a critique at all. It was just like, wow, this, this event hits on heavy stuff. This event sort of asks us all to hold space for each other in a big way. And people get very vulnerable. How do you take all of that in and, and not be totally crushed by it? And so it took that it took the additional explanation of things for us to really be able to have a conversation about that and say, oh, yeah, you're absolutely right. This is a hard thing. Thanks for engaging with me. That's what makes it possible.
Sarah Fejfar
Wow.
Jessica Creane
It was terrifying in the moment.
Sarah Fejfar
Yeah. So you do deal with these really heavy things in your inside of your events? How do you make that a luring, if you will, like the the act of like, personal growth inside of an event? Like, how do you make it attractive to potential guests,
Jessica Creane
I think plays learning. It's a great way to learn. And very often we sort of think of it as as respite from learning are respite from the things that are more serious in our life. And my personal take is that the things that we are the most playful about are often the things the things that we should be the most playful about are often the things we take most seriously. And in a lot of ways that will inhibit our creativity, because we'll just stay in our strict boxes. And so I think part of my job is to say, creativity is a thing, if you're into creativity, if you want to think differently, if you want to be evolving as a human being, then you're going to have to shake things up a little bit, because it just is in order to grow, we need space. And if there's no space in our minds, or our activities, then there's no room for growth. And so those things are hard to like really shove their way in. So a lot of what I do is create space. And then a lot of the the other half of that is modeling. Some of the behavior of this is what it looks like to learn or this is what it looks like to be playful in this world. And setting setting a tone where there's there's no failure, where you're not going to be chastised for anything that doesn't go according to plan, because these are spaces of supportive chaos. And we're sort of aiming for that. And so, so some of it is modeling a level 10 of what it looks like to take a risk or to engage so that folks will know that it's okay to be a four or five. And the other is to I think, hopefully create games that people want to engage with, and activities that people want to engage with. So there are some times they're seeing me do it for sometimes they're seeing other people very often it's choice based. I do not think there's ever been a time when I have had an event where someone has to do something, because what do I know, you know, I'm here to support it, like you said, Make it alluring. And so a lot of it is to be clear about the roles, like here's how we're playing, and here are your permissions, and permissions and expectations. This is the expectation for the game. Here are some ways you can play with that, if that doesn't feel good for you. If that still doesn't feel good for you held me down. There are other things that we can do and talk about. And so a lot of it is is again, reading the presence of the people there, letting them know what they can do, and then letting them know it for those who are like that's not enough for me. Here's where to start. Here's the first step to do this thing.
Sarah Fejfar
Hey, I don't want you to miss out. Did you know that this conversation always continues inside the linchpin nation community. It's a free modern discussion forum exclusively for greenroom central listeners that will have a profound impact on the way you look at events in your business. Get answers to your biggest questions here behind the scenes nuggets from event leaders, and get access to helpful templates, guides and checklists. As you start and scale events in your business. Be part of the daily discussion with entrepreneurs just like you, you can join for free over at greenlam central.com. I'll see you inside it's so important linchpin nation that you hear with just because just said there about setting expectations. And I think it applies whether it's, it's a game or it's, you know, learning a specific curriculum a more, you know, traditional way it without games, it's it's being very clear on on roles in the room, it's being very clear on what they have permission to do and not do. I love that. What's the first step? People as soon as they arrive into your event, you're creating a community. And the first thing anybody wants to know, when they arrive in a new community is how do I fit in. And so Jessica's modeling here very clearly how to set expectations. And I feel like that's like table stakes. Number one thing to do when when people show up for your thing, and then to reset them as you go, because like, let's say you've been, you know, teaching for a while, and now you're going to go into a game teaching scenario. Like, that's the perfect opportunity to reset expectations and the rules for how to fit in and play, you know, in this game, so I love everything that you just said there.
Jessica Creane
Yeah, I think one of the things that people often do too, in order that clarity is vital, and it is also nuanced. And so I think like those of us, you know, we host events, so we get really good at this. But sometimes there will be people, you'll still hear people say like and now we're going to do the fun thing. And there's just nothing that makes people feel less fun than telling them they're about to have fun. It just many people, myself included, and I'm like well not me or prove it, you get a little bit defensive about it. So saying you are gonna feel this way people tend to shut down with but saying, like, we're gonna open up this thing, we're gonna explore this thing together, there's their space for them to bring themselves to it, where they don't feel like they have to meet a certain certain emotional layer that is that is being put on top of them. Hmm,
Sarah Fejfar
okay. Love that. So on top of all the list of things that we, you know, say in our expectation setting, one of them to not say is this is how you're going to feel? Because, yeah, that just gets Yeah, for people. Yes,
Jessica Creane
yeah, we I don't know how anybody's gonna feel what I yeah, I can tell them what we're gonna do. I can tell them to what I can tell them though. Why, but I can't tell them how they're gonna feel.
Sarah Fejfar
Okay, awesome. So all this stuff is is a lot about intimacy within an event, and, and fostering that, and I want to dive into how games are able to help us foster even more intimacy within an event?
Jessica Creane
Yeah, games are like events within events, you know, like you are at an event, you've come for a purpose. And the game says right now there are going to be some additional rules and structures, and permissions granted, and possibly even some very specific roles, but that you get to play. And a lot of what I do is have people play with their own identity. So like, you are not going to be queen Sarah, in this, you're going to be you know, a version of Sarah that is often confused by how to keep plants alive. And so like that's going to be a core part of your identity in this, we're going to explore that together, whatever it is, it's I don't know, that we have ever done
Sarah Fejfar
that is often an identity that I take on is like how do I keep this plan alive? So this is this? Yeah, hitting home for me. Thank you.
Jessica Creane
Yeah, so a lot of it is just exploring facets, facets of ourselves that we don't always get to explore. And I think we are so used to engaging with, there are so many layers to this, right? Like if I'm running a public event, it's how do we contend with strangers? Or how do we present ourselves to people who don't know, when are we performing? When do we break things down? What's it take to do that? How do you build trust. And if I'm working with like, smaller groups, I do like coaching with individuals, I also work with teams, all kinds of things. And that's very different. Because a lot of teams, if they've been working together for quite some time, they know each other in a very specific context in very specific roles. And with very specific dynamics that have built up over time, the culture has been layered on top, there's, there's already so much going on there. And so play says no to a lot of that places, we're going to try something else. And you're going to get to be somebody else and it's it is deeply humanizing to see folks take on something take on a role that you haven't seen them take on before. Or to campaign together, I do a lot of role playing and sort of building role playing games with folks. And so you get to just say, Okay, I'm gonna I'm going to be a warrior in this or I am not usually the one to be at the frontlines and this time, I'm going to just give this thing a shot, and suddenly everybody's rooting for you, because you're campaigning together and it's weird and exciting to see you know, Jenni from HR wielding a battleaxe. And they're not always I mean, I tend to run very pacifist games, actually. But I think it's like a nice touchstone for folks is you can, you can really take on something new and unexpected. And you just end up learning about people. And having these kinds of fear or moments together, where you really get to celebrate your accomplishments in a way that I think gets lost very often among teams, or there is a formal celebration of what we've done, but not necessarily a deep or intimate celebration of the work that it took to get something done and every individual's contribution to making that happen. So I think games create a lot of space for that. And they also create a lot of space for us to think about how we present in the world, a lot of the games that I create and run our philosophy based. So it's very much like Who who are you actually? What are your values? What is it that you find really important to talk about in the world? What is it a universal truth to you? And so it opens up a dialog for these these deep questions that we can often feel as teams or as as it as an event as a group. But we don't have the language for or we haven't had a chance to really go deep, because why would a team spend their time talking about universal truth if they don't have to? In what world? Is that relevant? And it ends up being relevant? And we end up surprising ourselves in that level of surprises? Profoundly bonding?
Sarah Fejfar
Oh, I love that. I, I'm such a practical person. And so I kind of want to know, in a virtual setting, how, how do you because you typically use board games, right? Like analog board games? Like how do you how have you been making that work?
Jessica Creane
Yet, the act of translation is one of my favorite things. So I geek out on it, I think is the short answer. The question of like, can this thing be done is exciting to me, the first game I ever made came from the question, can I make an infinite tabletop game? Can I make a game that never ends? And so so I've definitely been like leaning into The Nerdery. On that one. I think zoom has a lot of affordances. One of them is, there are some things you just can't do in person, like send a DM and have nobody know that it has happened. If you're passing notes, and during a board game, everyone's gonna know who you're conspiring with. If you're, if you're doing this on Zoom, no one's gonna know. Or you can send messages to me personally to say like, Okay, I want to try this thing, or like, how does this sound you can check in, you can actually build safety in a lot of ways that you wouldn't be able to in a more public setting. So there are definitely ways to sort of say, okay, what can this thing do that the real world can't do? And how can we use that as a tool, or what we call game mechanics, the actions that players take? Cool.
Sarah Fejfar
Instead of your, like, instead of, oh, what are all the ways this is not gonna work? Like, oh, starting with, what are all the cool things that we can do now that we couldn't do before, you're my one of my favorite. You're gonna, I don't know if you think this is cheesy or not are like so small fry game. But one of the, like, favorite things that happens during virtual events, for me that feels very safe and playful, at the same time, is scavenger hunts, because we are all sitting now in like a room with props. And so we can go ask people to like as an icebreaker to go run and grab something and then like, talk about it in a breakout room. Right? And how fun is that? In? That's not possible in a boardroom? per se, right? Like I would not be able to go grab, like that piggy bank behind me and bring it up and like, share the story that it's like from childhood is Fisher Price. It is fabulous. And they don't make things like this anymore. I don't get to have that conversation. Because yeah, I don't have it. Like I can't like, show and tell it.
Jessica Creane
Yeah, yeah. This this world we live in is so personal. These are these are prop books. Like these are just some of my favorite books. And a lot of it is like, oh, yeah, I love talking about books. And so this is ideally a signifier like hey, come talk to me about books. I'm down. Yeah, there's so much we can do.
Sarah Fejfar
Wow, I love that. So let's, let's talk a little bit about things that you take away from events. I think you and I share a similar love for swag, but not in the sense of like a throwaway pen, but in the sense of something meaningful. And so what are your thoughts on artifacts, swag talismans that you take that the guest would take with them after an experiential event?
Jessica Creane
Yeah, I think there's a lot of ways to do it. And my favorites so far is a takeaway for something that has already been imbued with value over the course of the event. So it's not like coming out in a minute and seeing like, oh, cool water bottles, other water bottles are great, but something that you are using over the course of the experience. So by the time you leave, you don't want to hurt with it. There's a and an event that I run right now where people have the choice at the end to essentially keep this artifact that they've been building this connection with, and filling with their own secrets and perceptions of them from others over the course of this of the experience, and they have to make a choice at the end about whether they want to keep those things, or what it would take what it would mean to sacrifice them into into the void, and what would come from that. And so I think something like that, that is both attached to people's agency. And also is, is valuable to them at that point is is something that is worth holding on to, I think they also things that trigger our I'm in a very associative, associative thinker. And so when I see things around me, I'm immediately transported to the place where I got them are the people that I was with, and so the things that fill me with joy or pride, or like, oh, I, I took a risk the day I got that lip gloss or whatever it is that I feel that way again, and if I wanted to be able to trigger that feeling, and myself, then artifacts are really helpful for that. And so I think the things that that make us really feel something when we look at them are the artifacts that I find myself very interested in.
Sarah Fejfar
I couldn't agree more. Love that. So as we wrap up here, I want to I want to go into a lightning round if you're, if you're willing, and ask you a few questions, just to get your quick, quick answers on each. So the first one is, what do you say to yourself backstage versus on stage?
Jessica Creane
What a great question. Usually I'm dancing backstage to be perfectly honest. Like just got to get my body moving. But I think the takeaway is just like love, love them, whoever's out there. Just love them. They're worth it. You're worth it. Everybody showed up. And so don't pay lip service to showing up really show up.
Sarah Fejfar
huge, hugely powerful. Share your best tip for filling events with linchpin nation.
Jessica Creane
Oh, this is so not a tip. I I'm gonna say it anyway. Spend time with the people that you want to reach. It's not about everybody, it's not going to be for everybody. And the best way to grow an audience I think is having people who are going to do the proselytizing for you because you've done something for them. So what can you do for these people? And then find the ones who are going to be your diehards. Easier said than done, but valuable.
Sarah Fejfar
Right? Yeah, it works. What is your favorite moment at events? You host?
Jessica Creane
I think it it is probably the moment after an event has ended when I get to find out if it worked. Because usually I can tell but this is so egotistical. Yeah, I think I like the the the confirmation that the experiments has has worked for some folks, or there's some or they'll tell me things that they were thinking. And so it's a it's a way for me to check my own narratives. I think it's actually what I really like about it is to find out like, Okay, what was this person thinking? Or that person? You know, and that table over there? Like, I heard her seriously interesting questions. And I'm not actually sure if it was because she was questioning the materials or deeply engaged. And so being able to get those checks sort of helps me to build things for the next time. And so yeah, that that transition space between here's what was and here's what could be is very alive and electric.
Sarah Fejfar
Do you use that time to like, check in with guests one on one personally? Yeah,
Jessica Creane
yeah, absolutely.
Sarah Fejfar
What's the best thing about hosting your own events?
Jessica Creane
It's, it's probably similar, it's probably the chance it's the it's a chance to run an experiment. Something that I believe in something that I am deeply interested in. And it's all interpersonal and interdependent, like, I can't do games to play themselves and play we can play with ourselves, but the best plays with others. And so it's all an experiment like how, how can I learn something? How can I get better at creating spaces that feel playful and transformative for folks? It's the unknown. I like the unknown, even though it's scary.
Sarah Fejfar
It's very scary, but it's the best thing happen. Things happen. I'm noticing you're using the word experiment. Intentionally. Am I right?
Jessica Creane
Yes, yeah. Yeah, absolutely. I have a hard time with absolutes. And so experiments feel very open ended. It also gives me permission to make mistakes. It gives me permission to set aside some of my perfectionist tendencies. I'd say sometimes I'm just a perfectionist, and sometimes I'm a recovering perfectionist. And so an experiment really helps with that. It says this is one of many this isn't the event took my life.
Sarah Fejfar
Oh, I want everyone to just like underline that one in their notebooks right now. Experiment This is an experiment. Okay, I would love to know what you're reading right now.
Jessica Creane
Oh, probably like six things. I am reading a book by Ken Liu, which is it's a novel of his. I can pull it up in a second. But I'll Hockett one of his other books for a second. I just finished the paper menagerie recently and have been just low key obsessed with this book. I also just finished a mushroom at the end of the world, which was fascinating look at the relationship between mushrooms and storytelling and capitalism and people. Fascinating. And I am also reading the practice of groundedness right now by Brad Stolberg, which is, yeah, I feel seen
Sarah Fejfar
with that book. Ah, that's awesome. What? What have you got going on right now just cuz that linchpin nation should know about?
Jessica Creane
Yeah, I think what I've got going on right now is, is some event hosting that I'm doing and looking to do some more of. So I wrapped up a large project in December, and I'm looking to get into some, some a bunch of different kinds of events. And so I'm finding myself with a space for the first time in months to be running more online events for organizations and individuals. And in, in, hopefully, the next month, when omachron dies down, we'll be back to sell live performances on New York's lower lower Eastside at a place called caveat for an event that I've been running there for about nine months.
Sarah Fejfar
Oh, excellent, excellent. And where's your favorite social spot for people to bump into you?
Jessica Creane
I am probably this isn't? Well, it is a social spot. But I'm probably on email the most and slack. But I can be found on Instagram and Twitter. And I check those things regularly. Starting in six days when my self imposed social media detox is done.
Sarah Fejfar
We all need one of those three, well, I will link link all those up in the show notes so folks can find you. Jessica, this has been an absolute treat. And I'm so thankful you joined us here today. Thank you very much.
Jessica Creane
Thank you, sir. It's been a pleasure. And thank you linchpin nation, it's been awesome. And I hope to be able to to engage and connect further.
Sarah Fejfar
Thank you for listening to the green room central podcast. If you love this episode, then please take a screenshot on your phone and post it to Instagram. And be sure to tech at Sarah Fejfar. And let me know why you liked it. And what you'd like to hear and who you'd like to hear from in the future. That'll help me know what to create for you.
Sarah Fejfar
And also, if scaling events, your business sounds like something you want to tackle in 2022, and you need a coach, let's connect to see if one on one coaching is for you. Just go to the green room central.com. And you and I can work together one on one throughout the course of the year and deep dive into the inner workings of your events and business. You'll receive mentorship, personalized feedback, and customized guidance to define your goals and achieve your next level of success. Go to greenroom central.com right now to apply.
Sarah Fejfar
Now, in case you're curious that this podcast is built on Kajabi, I am absolutely loving how easy it's been to get things set up. But more so I'm thrilled that my entire business is run within one platform, from my emails to my pages to my courses. And now to my podcast. It's all under one roof. If you love simplicity and scalability as much as I do, then I want you to go to greenroom central.com Right now, to get a free 14 day trial from Kajabi who I am thrilled to say is a sponsor of this podcast.
Sarah Fejfar
I appreciate your commitment to leveling up and learning the mindset and strategy of live events. Want you to keep going, keep learning. And if you want more, head over to greenroom central.com For show notes and all the links from today's episode.
