The National Automobile Dealer’s Association is having their annual meeting in two weeks. You wonder how lavish a meeting they’d hold amid such a catastrophic car buying downturn; Chrysler bankrupt, GM down 46.1 percent, Ford down 41.1 percent, dealers shuttering businesses across the nation.

Well, in a move either to be revered for boldness or wrangled for stupidity, it’s being held in Hawaii. Guess if you can’t sell any cars, you may as well surf.

Got me to thinking…

What are the contractor “events” going to be like this year? I only speak eight times a year (deliberately cut back from 10 for the past eight years) and had one cancelled a couple months back.

Reason?

“Too little attendance,” they said. Interestingly, two weeks ago I did one that set a 30-year attendance record. There was no difference in the contractors, the speaker, the offering, nor the fee.

What was the difference? Easy — motivation and differentiation.

The second group was motivated to do something different, to raise the enthusiasm, boost the baseline, turn off the TV and make something happen. They did, in a big way. They also made dead certain this was not just another event.

Last year, I attended several national industry events, only one stood out as being forcibly different. They too, set attendance records. The others seemed, well, funeral-like in both demeanor and unwillingness to change the venue.

What events are you planning to attend for the rest of 2009?

What would make you want to attend a training event?

What would make you stay home?