I am guilty of photobombing. Yup. I do it with participants in my classes or presentations, as the evidence above shows*. And you should too. Why photobomb?

1.     Most participants experience a tiny bit of speaker worship  - if you are any good at public speaking – and yet are too timid about approaching you. They love the idea of having a photo with you, but don’t want to ask. They are afraid you might see it as an inconvenience or beneath you. Photobombing gives them the bonding moment they were looking for and a memento of your time together. It also gives you a chance to get to know them better and find out if they have questions or needs you haven't addressed. 

2.     Photos with happy participants can help in your marketing efforts. You can use the photos to accompany blog posts or to tweet to followers, encouraging them to register for your next event. So after photobombing someone else’s picture, be sure to ask them to email you a copy. 



*I'll admit that I usually ask permission.

Each of these books has sparked some wonderful ideas for me, ideas which will improve my personal and professional life. I'm going to pay it forward by sharing one idea that jumped out at me today.

Nudge : Improving Decisions about Health, Wealth and Happiness, by Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein

• Research shows that "People become more likely to conform when they know that other people will see what they have to say."  As a presenter, I frequently use a backchannel chat for my participants to share ideas. Backchanneling allows everyone to see each other's comments. Based on this research, this tool seems even more powerful for bringing about change. If you are not yet using a backchannel, consider BackChannelChat or TodaysMeet.

For more ideas, check out my book, Caffeinated Learning.