President's Corner - March 2025

I’ve been thinking about the fear of failure a lot lately, and of course the five-year anniversary of the outbreak of COVID-19.

In some ways, COVID-19 drove innovation. Since we could not do in-person events, we all had to find new ways to stay connected with our communities and each other. Personally? I felt a lot like Ross Geller from Friends every time someone said the word “PIVOT!” That word still makes me twitch a little to this day.

Now that we’re five years past that outbreak, I think the fear of failure is stifling innovation for our industry. I really do understand. The incalculable financial loss left scars, not to mention the loss of all the experienced event professionals - planners AND suppliers - that permanently left the industry. Risk management says to put practices into place to mitigate another possible disaster and so often the event planner is left out of those conversations.

Some of you know that I’ve been making jewelry from polymer clay. As a kid growing up, we didn’t use words like high-functioning anxiety in my house. As an adult, I’ve come to recognize that I’m a poster-child for the term.

The most magical thing happens when I have clay in my hands. I’m not afraid of failure any more. When something doesn’t work, it’s okay. I just try something else. Many times I’m happy with the end result, but sometimes it goes in my jar of failures. Either way, it really is okay. Failing isn’t a big deal. Taking that risk and learning from it is a crucial part of success.

Here’s my wish for our industry: let’s all find some small risk that we can take. One place that we can innovate. Find it and do it! And whether it works or it’s a learning moment, it’ll be a crucial step on your path to success.  

Thank you,

Donna Harbers, CMP
2025 MPI THCC President