The big amusement industry trade show, the IAAPA Expo (International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions) is this week, and I took Wednesday off to roam the show floor and catch up with industry folks I haven't seen in awhile. It was really fantastic. Too much time has passed since I've seen some of those folks. And I had my FitBit on, and was amazed to see that I walked about seven miles on the show floor, over 16,000 steps!
My perspective was a little different this time, and I found myself looking at slightly different things. I've had inside knowledge for many, many years, that folks have trusted me with. But this year, I was an insider because I work in the industry. It was a really subtle difference, but an important one for me. I'm in a place now where I'm contributing to the business, not just observing it.
I picked Wednesday because Matt Ouimet, the CEO of Cedar Fair, was doing the keynote at the Owners & GM's Breakfast event. It's no secret that I'm crazy about the guy, and feel smarter whether I get to spent five minutes chatting with him or two hours. There are few people I respect in terms of their leadership abilities the way I do for him. His speech was about leadership and innovation, and he knocked it out of the park.
My favorite part was a story he shared about one of his first walk-throughs at Disneyland when he began to run the resort. There was a churro cart in front of the castle, and it troubled him that it would likely be in every photo that people inevitably would take of the iconic location. A foods manager, who to that point had not met him, said she was concerned about moving the cart, because other locations dropped the revenue from it in half. At first he was hesitant, but asked how much the cart made there. She said about a million dollars, and he decided the cart had to stay. His point was that, as leaders, we frequently want to make decisions and have influence, when what we should be doing is listening.
The usual roller coaster parts were on display, as well as other moderately interesting things, but at the end of the day, the show is mostly about a lot of business being conducted. That's one of the reasons I stopped covering the show extensively for CoasterBuzz... the audience isn't really the business audience.
But again, for me it was a great chance to network and talk to people I just don't get to see very often. After being there nearly 11 hours, I left feeling overwhelmed and at least mentally energized about all of the things that might be ahead. I'm still processing it. I even had a little left to help out GKTW, which I admittedly haven't done enough for since moving here.
Tomorrow is the last day of the show, and to all my friends returning home, safe travels!
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