A Persuasive Evening in February

The February chapter meeting was marked by 3 significant things:

1. A great presentation, by Dr. Rosemary Dietrich, on Persuasion and Influence in Training,

2. An overflow crowd that was very lively and enthusiastic,

3. Good weather, finally!

While the last two chapter meetings were marked by inclement weather that kept attendance artificially low, this meeting was packed with pre-registrants and walk-ins, such that more chairs had to be set up in the room. A new policy we’re trying out – allowing people to attend just the talk (no dinner) for a lower cost seemed to be well-received also, though most came for dinner and enjoyed the interaction of the mealtime. As usual, we had a number of folks “in transition” who are looking for their next career role, and the format of our meetings allows for networking connections to be made that might prove helpful.

Louise Vivona-Miller, one of our first-time guests, won the traditional pie (cherry this time, in honor of President’s Day) for having the closest birthday to the event!

Dr. Dietrich did a wonderful job presenting the principles of persuasion hammered out by Dr. Robert Cialdini, while also facilitating helpful group discussions. In fact, the audience participation was so lively that she barely made it through the material! Some photos of this enjoyable evening together are below (our next event chapter meeting, in March, is on Level 3 Evaluations – see our Events page for more information and a link to sign up!).

Discussions over dinner

Dr. Dietrich presents

Application discussions at the table

Discussion of principles during workshop exercises