WEBVTT - Going to a conference? Do this.

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning. This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is about how to make conferences a better

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<v Speaker 1>use of your time. I've gone to a great many

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<v Speaker 1>conferences over the years, and when I was first doing so,

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<v Speaker 1>I would often get frustrated by the whole experience. I'd

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<v Speaker 1>spend a lot of time studying the conference booklet trying

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<v Speaker 1>to figure out which panels to attend. I'd finally choose

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<v Speaker 1>one that looked most helpful, and then it would be

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<v Speaker 1>how shall I put this boring. I might get one

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<v Speaker 1>or two insights sitting in a ninety minute session, and

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<v Speaker 1>that's better than nothing, But I couldn't help feeling like

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<v Speaker 1>I would have a higher rate of insights per minute

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<v Speaker 1>by skimming a book. And since I'm an introvert, reading

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<v Speaker 1>a book often feels more appealing than dealing with crowds. Plus,

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<v Speaker 1>reading a book is cheaper than flying somewhere and getting

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<v Speaker 1>a hotel room. But then at some point I realized

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<v Speaker 1>conferences aren't just about the panels. You need some content

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<v Speaker 1>to justify an event, which is good for me because

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<v Speaker 1>I now make my living giving speeches at conferences. I

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<v Speaker 1>also know that inviting people to be on panels is

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<v Speaker 1>a good way for conference organizers to make sure a

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<v Speaker 1>certain bigger name people in any given industry attend, But fundamentally,

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<v Speaker 1>the main point of a conference is to bring people together.

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<v Speaker 1>A conference gives you a chance to see people in

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<v Speaker 1>person that you only know virtually, or to renew face

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<v Speaker 1>to face ties with people you don't see frequently. Real

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<v Speaker 1>relationships can be built with only occasional interaction, but that

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<v Speaker 1>occasional interaction is very important. The week this episode first airs,

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<v Speaker 1>I'll be attending the American Society of Journalists and Authors conference,

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<v Speaker 1>where I'll say hello to some people I haven't seen

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<v Speaker 1>in person in three or four years. But when we

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<v Speaker 1>do see each other, it will remind us of what

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<v Speaker 1>we like about each other. It will nudge us to

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<v Speaker 1>work together on things in the future. I'm excited just

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<v Speaker 1>thinking about the projects that might happen. If you recognize

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<v Speaker 1>that conferences are about strengthening relationships, then that gives you

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<v Speaker 1>permission to approach the whole thing differently. You don't race

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<v Speaker 1>out of a conversation in the hallway to get a

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<v Speaker 1>better seat for a panel, because most likely the conversation

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<v Speaker 1>is a better use of your time. But over years

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<v Speaker 1>of interviewing successful, well networked people, I've realized that the

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<v Speaker 1>real breakthrough and using conference time well comes from planning ahead.

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<v Speaker 1>It's great to bump into people in the hallway, but

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<v Speaker 1>it's even better to make sure you know you're going

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<v Speaker 1>to see the people that you want to see. So

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<v Speaker 1>before you go to a conference, study the list of attendees.

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<v Speaker 1>Some conferences published directories in a conference app, but if not,

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<v Speaker 1>you can do some detective work. Call your friends in

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<v Speaker 1>your industry and ask if they're going, Ask who else

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<v Speaker 1>from their organizations will be going. Post on industry discussion

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<v Speaker 1>boards or Facebook groups that you're going, see who else

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<v Speaker 1>is too. Look through the list of presenters and sponsors

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<v Speaker 1>and figure out who you've engaged with online or met tangentially,

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<v Speaker 1>figure out who you'd like to get to know better.

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<v Speaker 1>Then figure out how you can make this happen. One

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<v Speaker 1>option is to set up lots of coffee dates. You

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<v Speaker 1>could park yourself in the convention center or hotel Starbucks

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<v Speaker 1>and set up coffee dates all day long if you wanted.

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<v Speaker 1>Feel free to schedule these close together, because unlike job interviews,

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<v Speaker 1>it's totally fine if they overlap. An overlap is actually

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<v Speaker 1>kind of nice because it allows you to introduce people

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<v Speaker 1>to each other, and the odds are good that if

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<v Speaker 1>you wish to know too people better, they'll probably like

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<v Speaker 1>each other as well. Of course, you might not know

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<v Speaker 1>some people well enough to set up individual coffee dates,

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<v Speaker 1>and some people don't like committing to certain times. They

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<v Speaker 1>want to leave themselves open to opportunity, and at a

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<v Speaker 1>conference that's understandable. So a good way to make it

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<v Speaker 1>get together more casual is to organize a happy hour

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<v Speaker 1>where people can come and go. You and one or

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<v Speaker 1>two other people commit to being at a venue during

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<v Speaker 1>an early night of the conference, maybe even the night

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<v Speaker 1>before it starts, so you can get a jump on things.

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<v Speaker 1>Then you all invite people to swing by. Some will come,

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<v Speaker 1>and you'll get to know them better. You'll find out

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<v Speaker 1>what they're working on and what they hope to get

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<v Speaker 1>out of the conference. You'll have friendly faces to keep

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<v Speaker 1>looking out for during the entire event. Some people you

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<v Speaker 1>invite won't be able to come, of course, but organizing

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<v Speaker 1>an event gives you a reason to reach out to

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<v Speaker 1>them if you do bump into them later at the event.

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<v Speaker 1>You'll have the feeling of knowing each other virtually. Your

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<v Speaker 1>face to face meeting is almost like a second connection.

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<v Speaker 1>In any case, if you've organized a happy hour where

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<v Speaker 1>you're pretty sure five people you really want to get

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<v Speaker 1>to know better will drop by, and you've set up

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<v Speaker 1>four coffee dates, you won't worry about whether any given

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<v Speaker 1>panel is a good use of your time or not.

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<v Speaker 1>You already know the conference will strengthen your relationships. Anything

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<v Speaker 1>you learn in a panel, it's just a little bit extra,

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<v Speaker 1>much like that free water bottle you snag from the

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<v Speaker 1>exhibit hall. So today, think about any upcoming conferences or

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<v Speaker 1>professional development events. You're going to think about who you

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<v Speaker 1>could plan to get together with, figure out how you'll

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<v Speaker 1>make it happen. And if you've got a strategy for

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<v Speaker 1>making good use of your time at conferences, please let

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<v Speaker 1>me know. As always, you can email me at Before

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<v Speaker 1>Breakfast podcast at i heeart media dot com. In the meantime,

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<v Speaker 1>this is Laura. Thanks for listening, and here's to making

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<v Speaker 1>the most of our time. Hey, everybody, I'd love to

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<v Speaker 1>hear from you. You can send me your tips, your questions,

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<v Speaker 1>or anything else. Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook,

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<v Speaker 1>and Instagram at Before Breakfast pod that's b E the

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<v Speaker 1>number four, then Breakfast p o D. You can also

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<v Speaker 1>shoot me an email at before Breakfast podcast. At i

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<v Speaker 1>heeart media dot com that before Breakfast is spelled out

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<v Speaker 1>with all the letters. Thanks so much, I look forward

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<v Speaker 1>to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is a production of

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