As a first-time attendee of the ISPA Conference & Expo, my initial reaction was to think of my past. What had I learned from previous trainings? Would I be at the same level of expertise as my peers? Would I feel part of the industry in this large spa community?
Then, at the opening General Session, keynote speaker Jim Collins made a statement that brought me to my future. He said: “Your organization is not truly great until it would not be great without you.”
This really opened my eyes and was one of my Conference takeaways. I envisioned the future with my spa, where we want to be as a team and what I could do to help us achieve our goals. Looking around at all the other spa professionals, I could see many of them were thinking about the important role they play in their team’s success.
During the Wednesday General Session with Deborah Szekely, the “godmother of the spa industry,” I found myself once again drifting to the future. She spoke of the mind, the importance of silence, of “meeting with your mind” or setting a time for reflection. This was my second Conference takeaway; a simple, but powerful concept.
After such an empowering week, I left no longer focused on the past but towards the future—my own future, the future of my spa and the future of an industry I feel such a sense of passion for. Embrace your own future and know the best is yet to come.
Jackie Schieding- ISPA Member
Bella Sante Spa
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