Embrace Life
This is one of the most powerful and brilliantly directed ads I’ve seen in a long time… courtesy of the Sussex Safer Roads Partnership.
Just another good reason to buckle up and hug somebody you care about today.
The SSRP is currently promoting Embrace Life, a campaign designed to remind individuals of the importance of wearing their seat belts. Embrace Life smashed through one millions views online in less than two weeks, is being shown in front of James Cameron and Bill Gates at the Ted.Com conference in Long Beach, California, and may also be screened on international TV stations from the Arabic Gulf to Canada, the USA to France.
8 Lessons All Dads Should Teach
Yes, there will be a test at the end. It’s called life. Here’s how to make sure your kids ace it.
Another great article from Men’s Health magazine. Thought you’d enjoy it. ~mp
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1) Words are Valuable
Speak up: Your kid is listening. In families with two working parents, fathers have a greater impact on their children’s language development by age 3 than mothers do, according to a study in the Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology. Provide a creative, dramatic play-by-play of the activities you’re engaged in and your surroundings. Use big words, even if they’re unfamiliar to your kid. Children learn a lot by context.
2) Tantrums Earn You Nothing
“When your anxiety visibly rises, you add fuel to the fire,” says Hal Edward Runkel, a family therapist and the author of ScreamFree Parenting. And if you simply hand over a piece of candy, you encourage more bad behavior. Instead, when your kid starts shouting, be calm and attentive. Don’t ignore it. This signals that you will not be rattled and the child won’t win—ever. It may not work for the first tantrum, warns Runkel, but it’s magic by the fifth.
3) Competition Leads to Confidence
Children as young as 4 start to compete with their parents—sprinting to the car, wrestling on the sofa, stuff like that. Roll with it. Let them win a lot, and then slowly ramp it up so they have to work harder for their victories. “It’s a way for kids to develop a sense of strength and to let them test their muscles,” says Justin Richardson, M.D., who teaches psychiatry at Columbia University. They’ll start to walk more confidently and be less of a mark for bullies.
4) Quitting is Hard
When his son wanted to quit baseball at age 8, Runkel said to him, “Sure, but you have to tell your teammates and coach.” The boy couldn’t do it. He’s played for 7 years since. Show kids the pain of quitting, and they won’t make those kind of decisions lightly, Runkel says. “If your kid says a school project is too hard and that he wants to give up, that’s okay,” says Runkel. “But say, ‘Tell your teacher you’re quitting and that you’ll take whatever grade is appropriate.’ Trust me, he’ll stick it out.”
5) Other People’s Feelings Matter
It’s easier to connect with others if you understand their perspective, so nurture that instinct in your child. Start with the child’s own feelings. “Say, ‘Man, it must be hard being 8 years old. What’s the hardest part?‘ ” suggests Runkel. Then mention people your kid knows who are having a hard time—say, a friend whose dad lost his job. Ask what he thinks it’s like for that friend. “They won’t always have an answer, but they’re thinking about it,” Runkel says.
6) Fights Can Be Resolved
Unless one kid is dangling the other out the window, don’t say a word. “As soon as you become involved, they no longer care about a solution. They’ll only try drafting you to their side,” says child psychologist Anthony Wolf, Ph.D., the author of Mom, Jason’s Breathing on Me! The Solution to Sibling Bickering. If they pester you, say your solution will be bad for both of them. They’ll learn that pleading is fruitless. More important, they’ll learn quickly to compromise.
7) Independence is Earned
When your kids ask to stay later at a friend’s house, ask what time would work for them. Then ask why. If you don’t hear a good answer, it’s okay to say no. If you do, try it, says Pennsylvania-based psychologist Janet Edgette, Psy.D. When parents give children freedom and responsibility, studies show, the children develop stronger morals more quickly.
Success Requires Focus
Maybe you don’t wish for a prodigy, but our competitive society suggests otherwise. That’s why so many kids have trouble focusing, says C. Andrew Ramsey, M.D., a psychiatry professor at Columbia University. Make sure your kids know your expectations. Celebrate improvement first. And explain the value of slow mastery. “Whether your kids love Tom Brady or Beyoncé, let them know that these people succeeded because they mastered one skill,” says Dr. Ramsey. “Learn to go through one door and many others will open for you; try to go through five doors at once and you’ll go nowhere.”
Staying Connected With Skype and a Business Profile on Facebook
After attending a 70th surprise birthday party last September, I knew I was a little behind the times. The MMP website and MMP blog had been getting rave reviews since their inception so I thought I was on top of the social media cool-factor scale… not quite. When you have 70 year old guys talking about video-calling their grandchildren overseas (via Skype) and saying things like, “yeah, I left a message on their wall and they posted some great pictures” (via Facebook), it’s time to do some catching up.
Within the next few weeks, all of my previous clients and industry contacts will be getting an e-invitation to “become a fan” of MMP Entertainment and Event Production on Facebook. After a month-long trial and getting my virtual feet wet, I’ve managed to merge the MMP Entertainment blog with the MMP Entertainment Corporate Profile page on Facebook. For those of you that follow the blog, you know that we feature event highlights, industry news, helpful event planning information, inspirational stories and a few videos that will offer you some peace of mind if you’re having a bad day. So, don’t worry about being bothered by twitter-like posts such as, “I just ate a bagel here at Starbucks…wish they gave me more cream-cheese.” Nope, not gonna happen. All kidding aside, Facebook finally started catering to its corporate members who wanted to utilize the benefits of their vast network without the distractions of their social network pitfalls. With the introduction of Business Profiles and enhanced filters, Facebook is now a must-have tool for the 21st century entrepreneur.
Next up is Skype. Even though I’ve been traveling internationally for a few days, my clients (and family) love that MMP utilizes Skype communications to keep in touch. Back in the day, being able to check in with the office via e-mail was cool. When cell phones began offering international and global plans, making a call was even cooler. In 2010, not only can you stay connected, you can be the coolest person in the crowd by video-calling your friends, family and business associates. Did I mention that it was free? Did I mention that all you need is a laptop with a high-speed connection? Bonus, it only takes 5 minutes to set up an account and I haven’t gotten any related spam since I’ve been using the program for the past month.
Special thanks to my good friends, John Walter and social media guru, Andy Ebon, for the inspiration and the little social media kick in the butt.
2010 Begins With ‘Perfection’ for Nicole & John at The Villa
You know you’re in for a special wedding reception when the bride sends her dress all the way to China to get some custom work done. Not only did Nicole look gorgeous, she and her husband, John, were smiling from ear to ear the whole night. At the end of the evening, Nicole summed up the day she’d been dreaming about since she was a little girl with this highly illusive and sought after bridal phrase… “It was perfect!” What a nice way to start off the New Year.
If you tuned in to the TLC channel last year and watched the hit show, Masters of Reception, you’d be familiar with The Villa in Mountain Lakes and Frungillo Catering. The Frungillo family is well known in the special events community and deserves its stellar reputation. It was an amazing experience.
John and Nicole were an ideal bride and groom. They brought a lot of joy and happiness to their own celebration. From the initial phone calls to the e-mail exchanges to the final design session at their home, John and Nicole were committed to making this one of the best days of their lives; fortunately, their family and friends had the same game plan. When you bring that much positive energy to a first class venue and put some of the industry’s finest professionals in charge, simply let nature take its course and enjoy the ride.
I was delighted to work with The Villa’s expert banquet manager, Joe’l Falco. We’ve teamed up several times over the past decade and it always resulted in a stellar event. When the menu was finalized and the special details were confirmed, Joe’l and I designed an event timeline that enabled us to produce a seamless blend of hospitality and entertainment for all of the guests.
Capturing the once in a lifetime moments throughout the day was one of the best photographers in the business, Dave Kotinsky, from Visionmasters. His work is all over the MMP website and the MMP blog. I appreciate his photographic artistry. Special thanks to Dave for providing the photos for this entry.
Among many highlights, one of my favorites was when John and Nicole presented the bouquet to John’s grandparents, Lester and Erna. After playing Unforgettable by Nat King Cole and At Last by Etta James, we determined that out of all the couples on the dance floor, Lester and Erna were together the longest… over 50 years! As Nicole handed the bouquet to Erna, a collective “aww” could be heard from the sentimental crowd. I asked Lester and Erna if they had any advice for the newlyweds and Lester said, “be flexible.” Then without missing a beat, Erna replied, “I’m usually right.” It was a classic Kodak moment. To top it off, we went on to play Lester and Erna’s wedding song, Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White. The look on Erna’s face was priceless. As a result of the detailed planning session two weeks prior, we already knew who the longest married couple was going to be. 
With the help of John and Nicole’s Sherlock Holmes-like investigative research; we had Lester and Erna’s wedding song cued up so they could experience the joy of their first dance as husband and wife one more time. I love my job.
We finished the night with one of John and Nicole’s favorite artists, Michael Buble. Their guests enjoyed Michael’s version of Save The Last Dance For Me for their grand finale and then The Best Is Yet To Come for their goodbyes, hugs and kisses outro.
Perfect indeed.
Samsung, The Venetian, and MMP Kick It Up A Notch: BAM!
Do you want your event to look like this next year? Samsung Celebrates at The Venetian
What happens when you take one of the most successful companies of 2009 and mix it with one of the best venues on the east coast and then sprinkle in some award-winning entertainment? In the words of Emeril Lagasse,… “BAM!!!”. Not only do you “kick it up a notch” and transform your ordinary annual gathering into an extraordinary Holiday Gala, your guests “feel the love” and experience a festive, elegant and unforgettable evening.
We’ve been teaming up with Samsung Electronics America since 2003. Over the years, it’s been very exciting to see their company earn the #1 spot for mobile phones and T.V’s here in the United States and the #1 spot for D TV’s worldwide. If you’re not impressed yet, at a time when many companies cut back and saw their numbers plummet in 2009, Samsung had the best quarter in the company’s history and their stock price went to an all-time high.
The Best of Both Worlds, Live Musicians and DJ Entertainment
If your company holds it’s own, or like Samsung and some of our other VIP corporate clientele, actually manages to increase growth and raise the bottom line in the new economy, there are usually a few people you want to show your appreciation to. I’ll give you a few seconds to guess who those special people are……. BAM! That’s right. You answered correctly. Your employees… The TEAM. The executives at Samsung know this and agree with Steven Covey, “Always treat your employees exactly how you would treat your best customers. “
So when it was time for Samsung to celebrate another year of success and hard work, we helped them produce a black-tie Holiday Gala fit for royalty.
The Viennese extravaganza begins with a bananas foster presentation
If you haven’t been to the new Palazzo Ballroom at The Venetian yet and would like to practice saying “wow,” and walking around with your jaw continuously dropping to the floor, schedule an appointment and check out the stunning decor, architecture and ambiance of The Palazzo. From their never-ending cocktail hour selections to their Viennese stations that would impress Willy Wonka himself, The Venetian combines delectable cuisine and first-class hospitality for all of their guests to enjoy.
So Samsung had the right place and the right people (nearly 700) ready to go. The only ingredient left to add was the right entertainment. A recipe like this demanded MMP’s Best of Both Worlds “Winter Wonderland” package. It combines the classic DJ entertainment element with live musicians and multi-media visuals. The entertainment and production team consisted of a Master of Ceremonies, an on-site Event Manager, DJ, 2 Dance Floor Motivators, Guitar Player, Saxophonist, Percussionist, and an Audio-Visual technician.
Service Awards Presentation
This package was designed for the discerning client who wants the best of everything; the presentation and musicianship of a live band and the excitement and flexibility of a professional DJ and Emcee. Samsung also wanted to personalize their event and put the spotlight on their guests. They produced a custom DVD presentation which included a special appearance by Beyonce, they gave out numerous Service and Recognition of Excellence awards, and had photographers on hand to take candids of their happy guests which we displayed on our big screen and dual plasma T.V’s. (Which of course were manufactured by Samsung.) 
It was an exceptional evening of entertainment and hospitality. We look forward to teaming up with Samsung and the Venetian again next year and producing another successful collaboration. BAM!
How does Samsung keep the company morale high? Happy team members.
As a side note, not only is it important to take care of your employees, you have to recognize their spouses, significant others and families as well. If Zagat was to rate Samsung on how well they take care of the people that take care of them, they’d get a 30. Yesterday, we performed at the company Headquarters for all of the Samsung kids and family members. It was a blast. Everyone enjoyed cookie decorating, face painting, photos with Santa, interactive games, dancing, a luncheon and gifts for all.
Special thanks as always to Carlos and the staff from the Venetian for their professionalism and to Evan Santi, from Urban Plantscapes, for the fabulous floral arrangements that adorned the ballroom.
Encore Gallery:
