27 Days. 6 Cities. 1 Life-Changing Lesson From Every Stop.
A journey across America that revealed the secrets of connection, leadership, and unforgettable experiences.
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TL;DR — Six Lessons From 27 Days on the Road
• San Antonio, TX – The Work is never done and progress is enough
• Boston, MA – With practice you can do the impossible
• HUB International Employee Appreciation Day Rodeo Virtual – The unexpected fiddle is the most engaging
• Los Angeles, CA – Do stuff your loved one loves
• Amelia Island, FL – Pickleball is the most engaging sport in the world
• Cleveland, OH – Setup early, setup often
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Wait…The $695 USDLA National Conference Is Free?
Join The United States Distance Learning Association’s National Conference for FREE because you’re with Platinum Sponsor Engaging Meetings.
Just click https://zoom.us/j/96498316502?pwd=5D6fobMWrHMfbbMZspkT3iINgDIMrd.1 at the following times.
Tuesday June 23, 2026, all times are CST
9am-10:30am – Josh Penzell – Rehearsing the Future: Finding Harmony When Everyone’s Improvising
11:45am – 1:15pm – Sponsor Shoutouts – See how 4 4K Cameras and 8 wireless microphones allow you to learn about 20+ sponsors
1:30pm – 2:15pm – John Chen, CSP – 6 Ways to More Engaging Hybrid: The Latest Updates on Engaging Hybrid
2:30pm – 3:15pm – John Chen, CSP – More Amazing, Uplifting Inclusion in Your Next Meeting
3:30pm – 4:45pm – Betty Dannewitz – Build Your Playlist: A Mixed Tape for Your Learning Toolbox (Networking)
Wednesday June 24, 2026
9:15am – 9:45am – Betty Dannewitz – AI Can’t Fix Your Imposter Syndrome: How to Build Steady Confidence During Rapid Tech Change
3:15pm-4:00pm – Elizabeth Guarino & Kathy Wilson – Double Feature: Designing Distance Learning Hubs that Perform Like Rock Stars – Part 1
4:15pm-5:00pm – Double Feature: Designing Distance Learning Hubs that Perform Like Rock Stars – Part 2
Thursday June 25, 2026
8:30am-12:00pm – Center for Interactive Learning & Collaboration Virtual Field Trip Showcase: 8 leading museums and experts
For full descriptions, click https://members.usdla.org/members/publication/program_issue.php?iid=1958545 and search for any session in the “Ballroom”
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27 Days. 6 Cities. 1 Life-Changing Lesson From Every Stop.
I have a confession.
After thousands of hours on stage, hundreds of events, and more airline miles than I care to admit, I thought I knew exactly what I would learn from another month on the road.
I was wrong.
Some of the most important lessons didn’t happen under the spotlight.
They happened in a hallway conversation.
A smile from a volunteer.
A technician solving a problem before anyone knew there was one.
A conversation over coffee.
A moment when a stranger became a friend.
Over 27 days, I traveled to six cities, speaking, emceeing, producing experiences, and meeting incredible humans from completely different backgrounds.
I went looking to create engagement.
I came home remembering that engagement is everywhere.
Stop #1 — San Antonio, Texas
The Work is never done and progress is enough
This year Khris Baizen, Cameron Curtis, Marques Davidson and I hosted the workshop called “The Work”. As a continuation of Cultural Competency 2.0 at Meeting Professionals International World Education Congress, we all felt called to go deeper and do something more meaningful.
The Work was 4 collaborative workshops in 75 minutes. The result? Everyone walked away with at least one tangible idea to implement. Sponsor New Orleans & Company is about to release a wheelchair specific event and tour that takes accessibility to a whole new level.
While The Work may never be done, it filled my heart to see and hear about so many beautiful examples like my first ever Asian American Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander Summit in Seattle, WA and hybrid that had over 250 registrations and was sponsored by the Seattle Public Library.
That is the foundation of engagement.
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Stop #2 — Boston, Massachusetts
With practice you can do the impossible
Due to scheduling, this setup required us to setup, tear down, setup, tear down, setup, tear down 3 separate times.
Normally this is a 4-6 hour process. We were able to reduce it down to 2-hours by rehearsing, training and delegating.
We setup for a 90-minute workshop at the Crown Plaza Hotel.
Then we tore down.
The next morning, we arrived at 7am and was ready to go by 9am in the historic Turner Hill Golf Club.
Then we tore down.
That evening, after an amazing wedding (that we got chocolates from), we setup again for a 9am start.
We had a full day of workshops and presentations.
And then we tore down.
THANK YOU to my assistant producer JO Welch, teammates Phil Hamilton, Austin and others. We never could have completed this schedule without a complete team effort.
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Stop #3 — HUB International Employee Appreciation Day Rodeo Virtual
The unexpected fiddle is the most engaging
Over 700 HUB International Employees celebrated their annual Appreciation Day with a Western Rodeo theme. For one section, I was the emcee for the JohnChen Western Fashion Show. I selected 8 people to spotlight that had great Western outfit. I introduced each one of them and then remembered to go back and learn something about each of the contestants. A woman said, would you like to hear a song and we all said YES!
What happened next was pure virtual magic. She picked up a fiddle and started to play. Like really play. Like the Devil Went Down to Georgia PLAY! The virtual audience audibly gasped. The StreamAlive poll swung immediately from 2 other contestants to her. The last contestant just conceded to the fiddle player. And the audience was totally engaged.
It truly is often the unexpected moments that are the most engaging. It’s also creating the psychological safety for an employee to take a risk in front of 700 other employees. It’s also a planner putting this on the agenda and having an emcee that brings it all together in the moment.
The unexpected fiddle is the most engaging
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Stop #4 — Los Angeles, California
Do stuff your loved one loves
Donna loves jigsaw puzzles. She loves them so much she finished a 24,000 piece puzzle. She bought a 40,000 piece puzzle. She watches top jigsaw YouTubers. And she wanted to compete in a 12-hour half marathon in Orange County.
I used my 4 OBSBOT Tail Air 2 on every corner of the table and an overview view and was unofficially voted the best video setup. I also met the organizer of the Seattle Half Marathon and I talked about turning it into a 12-hour livestream with the ability to zoom into any puzzle.
If you do the stuff your loved one loves, you’ll probably find a way to do the stuff you love too!
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Stop #5 — Amelia Island, Florida
Pickleball is the most engaging sport in the world
This is my 14th convention for being the virtual, hybrid or in-person emcee for Mendee Rock and the Georgia Healthcare Association.
Mendee texted me and said, “Do you know how to play pickleball?”
I’ve been resisting playing Pickleball for years. So I played in the Visit Seattle Pickleball tournament in San Antonio, TX. And it paid off.
I won 3rd place in the Pickleball Tournament out of 8 and most of all, I knew enough to round a 4 game FUN tournament so everyone played with someone new.
Pickleball was invented on Bainbridge Island, WA and is designed to allowed players of all ages and skills to play and now I agree.
If you want to play me Pickleball, reply and let’s find a time to meet up. And watch out what happens when I take 4 AI tracking sports cameras to your next pickleball tournament!
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Stop #6 — Cleveland, Ohio
Setup early, setup often
When you get the opportunity to setup 24 hours ahead of time, do it.
Setup was so relaxed. This year’s setup for the United States Distance Learning Association is one of the most advanced setups we have created.
• 4 OBSBOT Tail Air 2 Cameras with a PTZ controller running over NDI and a PoE (Power over Ethernet) router
• 9,400 watts of audio power
• An Allen and Health QU-24 digital mixer
• 4 Sennheiser wireless microphones (up to 4 handheld or 2 handheld, 2 headset)
• 4 Shure QLXD wireless microphones (up to 4 handheld or 2 handheld, 2 headset)
• Remote control of the presentation computer on stage
• Ethernet HDMI and audio running from the front and the back of the room
• 2 ATEM Mini Pros to independently control the left and right new Epson 7,000 lumen projectors so you can show slides or Zoom
Rick Seeley and I are showing the FUTURE of distance learning TODAY!
(See above to see hybrid so good in action and help you feel like “you’re in the room with us!”)
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Final Thought: The Greatest Journey Wasn’t Across America
I started this tour believing I was traveling to six different places.
I was wrong.
I was traveling through six different reminders of the same truth:
If you want engagement, engage.
Every city showed me a different version of that lesson.
San Antonio taught me to celebrate people.
Boston taught me to honor the past while embracing the future.
Los Angeles reminded me to appreciate the unseen heroes.
Amelia Island showed me the power of hospitality.
Cleveland demonstrated the courage to reinvent.
Seattle reminded me why the journey matters.
Twenty-seven days, thousands of miles, and countless memories later, my biggest takeaway is this:
The greatest technology in the world will never replace the oldest human need in history: the desire to be seen, heard, and valued.
And that is a lesson worth taking everywhere.
Let’s engage,
-John Chen
CEO, Engaging Virtual Meetings
Your experts in engaging virtual and hybrid meetings
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7/26/2026-7/27/2026National Speakers Association Influence ConferenceAustin, TXhttps://influence.nsaspeaker.org/
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8/2/2026-8/4/2025NACE Experience New Orleans LA
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