Day One
ISPA day one started with a warm welcome from the ISPA Chairman, Kenneth Ryan. Over 2300 spa leaders gathered at the Venetian Las Vegas, where inspiring speakers, industry educators, and a diverse array of spa, wellness, and fitness brands filled the 3-day agenda.
Colin MclIheney presented the latest ISPA Foundation research, sharing that US spa statistics have increased across all key metrics – revenue, spa visits, locations, revenue per visit, and number of employees.
The ISPA dedicated contributor award was presented to Kate Mearns, a previous ISPA chair, who spoke of the passion and kindness of the people within the industry.
Diana Kander gave a speech titled ‘Unleash Your Curiosity’, speaking of her past, arriving in the US as a USSR refugee. Her parents showed her that people can break free of the status quo by just believing that better is possible.
Diana compared Snoop Dogg with Vanilla Ice, one of whom is more relevant to every generation, all over the world, and the other is still performing the same hit from the 90’s and living in the past.
Diana posed the question: ‘Our growth is slowed down by our…’ The answer she proposed is: our success. The more we know about something, the less we question!
What are you investing time in at work that is not producing real value? What should I stop? is the question we should be asking ourselves, to free up our time for valuable work.
What is a ‘waste of time, waste of money’? WOT-WOM
How does this rank from 1 to 10?
What can I reimagine?
Everything that works for us today is also the prison that keeps us from what’s possible in the future.
Who should be in my PIT crew? Diana gave the example of the Formula One pit crew, who advised the Great Ormond Street children’s hospital on their operating room organization. Who can help you see things you cannot see?
Never GOAL alone!
Change is inevitable, but our growth is optional!
Day Two
After a sparkling evening of glitz and glam at the ‘Solid Gold’ ISPA welcome party, day two commenced with Kenneth Ryan, ISPA chairman, announcing the education platform resources available to members, along with research and the newly launched spa visit playbook.
The ISPA Innovate award winners were announced and invited to the stage. Winners included Eminence Organics, Zents, Ammortal, Farmhouse Fresh, Four Seasons, and Kohler, among others.
Jay Shetty, recipient of the Alex Szekely Humanitarian Award, opened with a story of his stay in LA many years ago, where he tweeted about his desire for a restaurant reservation at his favorite pizza restaurant and tickets to the LA Lakers game. The hotel concierge could have arranged it all, based on information online, but that didn’t happen.
For a conscious mindset, Jay explains, there are four things you can start practicing immediately.
Thankfulness: being present in gratitude prevents us from having any anxious or worrisome thoughts at that moment. Over 80% of our thoughts are anxious and repetitive. Thankfulness is a way to break through this thought pattern. Gratitude should be expressed and personalized.
Insight: we feel excited when we learn something new, and that novelty helps to rewire our brains. Expanding the mind through insight and learning allows the mind to approach the world like a child, with moments of pause, awe, delight, and inspiration.
Mindfulness: we experience our mind being ahead of our body, waking up with thoughts of the day racing ahead of us. Mindfulness and meditation allow the mind and the body to be present in the same place. Get present by tuning into your five senses. What can you see, feel, hear, smell, and taste? Have a 3-minute meeting with yourself every hour.
WWW:
- walk somewhere
- drink water
- look out of a window
Exercise: moving the body is integral to maintaining a conscious mindset and being present.
Jay asked the audience to separate into groups, outgoing vs reserved, and then people-oriented vs task-oriented, explaining that each of these four groups expresses and understands very differently. A good leader must be able to get the best out of each team member by adjusting their communication style to suit different personalities.
The connected mindset. The most difficult job in 2019 (as studied by Yale University) was deemed to be a hospital cleaner. Those who consider themselves ‘healers’ – because a clean hospital is integral to the healing journey of patients – had higher self-worth, purpose, and job satisfaction. Our mindset about the job we do completely alters how we see ourselves and feel about our work and role in life. We all have the opportunity to look at the world differently.
Day Three
ISPA day three welcomed Marti Morenings to receive the ISPA visionary award. As the founder of Universal Companies, Marti has shaped industry growth across several decades.
Jon Acuff took the stage and spoke about goals. Goals are the fastest way to get from where you are today to where you want to be. Overthinking stops ideas from flourishing and is the most expensive thing companies invest in every year without knowing it. It’s when what you think gets in the way of what you want.
When asked, 99.5% of people admit to overthinking. All of our clients and coworkers are overthinking! High performers are deliberate about their mindset. What is your soundtrack? You have a soundtrack for every place, job, and situation you’ve ever been in. Culture is a collection of soundtracks playing consistently at a company.
Great thoughts lead to great actions that lead to great results.
Find your loudest soundtracks and ask three questions. Is it true? One of our greatest mistakes is assuming all our thoughts are true. Is it helpful? Does this move us in the direction we want to go? Is it kind? On a great team, you can ask questions, suggest new ideas, and admit you’re wrong.
Ask yourself, where do I want to win this week? Understand what’s needed and then act on it, and care about what the people you care about care about! Read fewer minds. Ask more questions! When you ask someone what they need, they become visible and valuable.
By Sara Jones, editor
