PILD Conference-Was It Worth the Time and Effort?

Debby Mathews (AL), VP Public Affairs

Getting someone to write about an experience provides evaluation information that is otherwise hard to glean. That is true of what PILD paragraphs written by our PILD “scholars” reveal to us in NEAFCS. Please take time to read your NEAFCS colleagues reports on the www.neafcs.org website to learn more about why YOU should take time for PILD 2014!

PILD 2013 was my third PILD experience, and it just gets better every time! I always know I’ve been to a good conference when I come home with a list of books to read. This time, after hearing Daryl Buchholz of Kansas State University speak, I was obsessed with getting a copy of Start With Why (how great leaders inspire everyone to take action) by Simon Sinek.

I love leadership books, but it’s been a long time since I’ve gotten excited about a new book until I heard Daryl mention this one. As an adult I’ve discovered that I am a big “whereas” person. I want to know the motivation that drives decisions and movements. I’ve seen leaders fail to get anyone motivated to move for lack of this element, so I want to know more about how to lead effectively. Thanks to Daryl I was motivated to think and explore this concept.

Daryl’s talk was about our work as Extension educators. We translate, engage and transform people and communities through our work.  This is what being a 21st Century Extension professional entails, and you will hear much more about this at Galaxy IV. In this “information age” there is way too much information for anyone to comprehend and people need help translating what the read-in their own language! It’s also a challenge to get people to engage in their homes and communities to solve problems and adapt to change. We assist in that process. No wonder we had to take psychology and sociology in college! Then, through the process of translating and engaging, transformation takes place. Wow!

If this excites you and causes you to be more missions minded about you work, that is good. That means you would benefit from being a part of PILD because PILD is not a program showcase, it is a best practices application showcase. Make plans now to be at PILD 2014, April 6-9.