As part of my day-to-day, non-CMEpalooza professional responsibilities, I spend a lot of time working on presentations that will be delivered by other people. This isn’t always easy. Sometimes, I don’t even know the clinician for whom I am creating or editing content beyond a few emails back and forth. I usually try my best to put myself in their shoes (“How would I try to convey this concept?”), while knowing full well that they are going to put their own spin on things. I am always fascinated when I’m working on a series of live programs and have the chance to see different people take the exact same presentation deck and deliver a completely differently-focused activity.

By now, I like to think I’m pretty good at composing material for other people (at least no one complains), but this wasn’t always the case. I remember one time in my late 20s when I had to write a draft of a speech for our association president to deliver at the annual conference, and I inserted way, way too much of my own snark into the speech. I don’t think there were too many ‘80s pop culture references, but there may well have been. Needless to say, my draft was pretty much gutted as it went up the internal food chain, and my days as a speech writer were over. It was pretty humbling.

But as with everything else, you learn as you grow professionally. These days, I have figured out how to remove my personality (mostly) from content that I will not be personally delivering by making things more straightforward and to the point. It doesn’t always make for the most exciting material, but it allows faculty the leeway they need to craft their own story.

Every once in a while, though, it’s good to be able to put my own personality into content that I am going to personally deliver. Derek and I usually stick to behind-the-scenes roles, but we’re stepping out from behind the webcam in two weeks at the annual Alliance for Continuing Education in the Health Professions conference in New Orleans to give a presentation we’ve entitled “10 Years of CMEpalooza: Lessons for the CME Community.” Basically, we’re cramming a decade of educational tidbits into 60 minutes. There will be haikus, there will be trivia, there will be snarky asides, and there will be lots and lots of ‘80s references. Basically, everything that CMEpalooza is known for jam packed into an hour. Things will probably go off the rails fairly quickly and I’ll start throwing things at Derek, but it’ll all be in good fun. The best thing is that this session is buried so far into the afternoon agenda that we can all just go to the bar when we’re done and laugh it off (note from Derek: I suggest we cut out the intermediate step and all just meet at the bar).

Speaking of innovative presentations, did you hear that we’re accepting abstracts for CMEpalooza Spring taking place on Wednesday, April 24? You know that Derek is dying for a musical adaptation of the ACCME’s Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Education, but I personally wouldn’t suggest going that route unless, you know, you want to likely embarrass yourself in front of hundreds of your colleagues. But hey, maybe you have a little Judy Garland in you and want to go for it. Be my guest (note from Derek: ignore Mr. Grumpy Pants. A musical adaptation of the ACCME’s Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Education would be amazing and would impress all of your colleagues.)

I do hope that, musical or not, you give some thought to having a little fun in finding a way to share your professional expertise. That’s the joy of public presentations – it gives you a chance to show the world a little bit of your personality while also passing along something of educational value. It’s a delicate balance that maybe takes a time or two to get right, but here at CMEpalooza, we love to be guinea pigs for new concepts. Just use your imagination. And if you have an idea that you think is absolutely, completely impossible to pull off, run it by us. Maybe we can help you figure out how to cook a soufflé while talking about Moore’s outcomes levels. We’ve done stranger things.

Did you know…

…that there are only two escalators in the entire state of Wyoming? It’s true!

…that the unicorn is the national animal of Scotland? It’s true!

…that Venus is the only planet that spins clockwise? It’s true!

…that the Easter Island heads have bodies? It’s true!

…that Alexander Graham Bell’s preferred greeting when answering the phone was “Ahoy-hoy”? It’s true!

…that you can now submit an abstract to present at CMEpalooza Spring 2024, that the due date is February 14, and that you can read all the details here? It’s true!

Look, it’s Friday. It’s cold. I don’t feel like writing a long blog post. You don’t feel like reading a long post. Can we all just agree that I’ve written something clever and witty to remind you that you can now submit an abstract to present at CMEpalooza Spring 2024 and move on with our day? Yes? Super.

Happy Friday, everyone!

Transcript from the recent CMEpalooza 2024 planning meeting

Scott: OK, it’s the 10th anniversary of the original CMEpalooza. Do you have any bright ideas for how we can celebrate?
Derek: Yes, sir! I am positively brimming with ideas! I got ideas coming out of my ears, I have so many.
Scott: [rolls eyes] Great, let’s hear them.
Derek: OK, picture this: A session-by-session remake of the entire agenda from the first Palooza, including all the delays and glitches.
Scott: [stares directly at Derek without blinking]
Derek: I can see you are at a loss for words and unable to respond to my brilliance. It will be great. We can dress like it’s 2014. I’ll grow out another terrible goatee to match-…
Scott: [still glaring] The original CMEpalooza was 2 days long. There were 22 sessions. Some were only 15 minutes long.
Derek: I know! It will be great! We’ll have to adjust our timing and…
Scott: The content is 10 years old. Some of the speakers have retired or no longer work in CME.
Derek: Well, sure. I guess we’ll have to put on our detective hats and try to track them do-…
Scott: No. Next idea.
Derek: OK, picture this: We could ask people to submit abstracts again.
Scott: [standing up to leave] Perfect, let’s do that.

(Note from Scott: I know you all think that Derek is exaggerating in his replay of our conversation, but this is pretty much spot-on. At least the part where I stood up to leave 5 minutes into our discussion.)

Yes, it’s that time of year, and the planning has begun for CMEpalooza Spring (it’s on Wednesday, April 24. Save the date in your calendar if you haven’t already.) As in the past few years, we want to include a broad range of the CE community in the planning and development process of the CMEpalooza agenda. Anyone is welcome to submit an idea for a CMEpalooza Spring session, though it’d probably help if it’s a good idea (we tend to like those).

The process is fairly simple. If you have an idea for a session that you would like to lead at CMEpalooza Spring, just complete the CMEpalooza Spring 2024 Abstract Submission form by the end of the day on Wednesday, February 14 (yes, Valentine’s Day – nothing more romantic than a CMEpalooza abstract). After that, Scott and I will review all the proposals we receive and select at least five for the official Spring agenda. If there are more that we like, we may hold onto some ideas for the Fall event as well.

Here are a few guidelines:

1. This is a virtual conference and all sessions are done via StreamYard. It’s easy.
2. Proposals will only be considered if they are submitted via the abstract submission form. Or if you hire a wagon train and deliver them in writing to my front door. Whichever is easier.
3. The deadline for proposals to be submitted is 9 p.m. ET on Wednesday, February 14.
4. We are open to pretty much any idea as long as it relates in some way to CME/CE. The more creative, the better. My dream is for someone to propose a musical (this is not Scott’s dream).
5. Interactive formats with multiple presenters, such as panel sessions and interviews, are encouraged. If you want to figure out a unique way to incorporate Poll Everywhere into your session, that’s totally fine too.
6. Please verify the availability of all presenters for the date of CMEpalooza (Wednesday, April 24) before submitting their name in your proposal.
7. We don’t want to limit creativity, so there isn’t a limit on the number of proposals you can submit, but use common sense and be reasonable. We will likely only choose one proposal for which you are listed as the lead contact, so don’t submit 10 proposals or something crazy like that.
8. While it’s not a hard and fast rule, we’d prefer that you not simply submit a proposal that mirrors a presentation you gave at another conference within the last 12 months. At least give it a unique spin.
9. We will notify you within a week of the abstract submission deadline if your proposal has been accepted or not.
10. If you have any questions, feel free to email Derek (thecmeguy@gmail.com) or Scott (scott@excaliburmeded.com), or find us at the Alliance conference in a couple weeks.

I think that about covers it. I especially want to encourage people who have never presented at CMEpalooza to submit a proposal. We are always happy to have new presenters participate. Maybe you are intimidated by getting up in a front of a room full of your colleagues and presenting material — not a problem with CMEpalooza. Maybe you are worried that your idea would be too “out there” for a traditional conference — not a problem with CMEpalooza. Maybe you are just too lazy to want to put together a slide deck for a presentation — so are we, which is why we often encourage our panelists to use few (if any) slides.

Give it a shot.

Click here for the CMEpalooza Spring 2024 Abstract Submission form