Brookhaven community leaders will have a chance to hone theirleadership skills and hear some of the top speakers in the fieldFriday at Easthaven Baptist Church.

The Brookhaven-Lincoln County Chamber of Commerce is bringingthe Advance Maximum Impact Simulcast (MIS), a satellite broadcastof a live gathering in Atlanta of 10 motivational speakers, toBrookhaven at a minimal cost for symposium attendees.

“The chamber of commerce wanted to bring a top notch leadershipforum to our rural area – something cutting edge that’s not evenavailable for towns not even three to four times our size,” saidChamber Executive Vice President Cliff Brumfield.

Brumfield said since an actual event of that nature is costprohibitive, community leaders found a way to broadcast the all-dayevent by satellite. It is scheduled for 8 a.m. until 3 p.m.

“Using the simulcast format, we can take part in this livesymposium where some of best known leadership speakers present keyideas for best practices for business people, managers, marketers,etc.,” he said. “Ideas that not only make great management sense,but also are rooted in proper ethics and correct morals.”

The event, which organizers are calling the SouthwestMississippi Leadership Symposium, will feature renowned authors,businessmen and leadership experts whose main objective is to helpencourage business leaders and help grow their influence.

“These are the authors of the books you have been hearing aboutand haven’t taken time to read yet,” said Brumfield. “Also, whatbetter way to spend a spring Friday in Brookhaven than to come outand learn some key points you can take home to improve yourbusiness, management skills, and personal life as well?”

The Southwest Leadership Symposium will be held at EasthavenBaptist Church, which is the only facility in the area with thetechnology to host such an event.

Event organizer Kenny Goza said Easthaven officials are glad tooffer their facilities as a venue for the event.

“We’re excited about the chance to host it, because it’s goodopportunity to improve leadership in the workplace,” he said.”We’re hoping we have a good turnout.”

Goza said more than 100 tickets have been sold so far, andtickets are still available both from the chamber of commerce andat the door. Brumfield said those who can clear their scheduleswill gain great insight from the seminar.

“First of all, this will be the most productive Friday you’llprobably have in this half of 2008,” he said. “And secondly, thespeakers will be presenting great insight into topics that businessleaders need to be aware of anyway.”

The lineup for the event includes Nike innovator Kevin Carroll,MIS founder John C. Maxwell, “Fast Company” founding editor BillTaylor, Table Group President Pat Lencioni, Chick-Fil-A PresidentDan Cathey, “Visioneering” author Andy Stanley, professionalexecutive coach Valorie Burton, CBS Sports analyst Spencer Tillman,”The Traveler’s Gift” author Andy Andrews, and ESPN collegebasketball announcer Dick Vitale.

Some topics that will be covered are things such as “The Game ofLife,” “Three Signs of a Miserable Job,” “Mavericks at Work,” and”Leadership Goals,” among others.

Goza said the conference will be a good learning experience notonly for people in the workplace, but also for everyday life.

“It’s an opportunity to improve the skills of your employeeswhen it comes to business leadership, but it also encourageseveryday life application,” he said. “I think everyone can benefitfrom it, just in their life in general, just to be encouraged.”

Brumfield said the teleconference has garnered statewideattention.

“The Brookhaven-Lincoln County Chamber has been hailed by theMississippi Economic Council as being cutting-edge in thisproject,” he said. “This is something that is unprecedented forchambers our size.”

The cost to attend is $45 per person, which includes lunchprovided by Trustmark Bank. More information on the event may befound at www.maximumimpact.com/mis.

Questions about tickets and times can be directed to theBrookhaven-Lincoln County Chamber of Commerce at (601)833-1411.