Thursday Ramble: Professional Conferences

I can remember the first few professional conferences I attended, scouring through the agenda and parsing out every minute, scurrying from session to session, wondering who I might meet, what I might learn.  And at first there was much to learn.  Actually at my first conference I went in early to attend a pre-conference intensive, that was entirely filled with political speculation about a possible change in the law, that 23 years later change still has not happened.  I felt cheated, my time and my money, and all I got was political speculation.  

As time went on, my office policy changed my behaviour at conferences.  If I was speaking, they would always find money for me to attend, if I was not speaking, I could get maybe one conference a year.  And I loved traveling, so I started putting in proposals to speak.  I have long been comfortable speaking.  I learned that in teaching I learned more than I did as an attendee.  At first I would max out the number of speaking opportunities, scurrying like a rat from session to session stressing out.  Then I figured out that one or two sessions, had the same impact as five.  

I found that the sessions I attended were often the same speakers, sometimes the same materials as the year before.  After a while I had heard all of their jokes.  And conferences were in nice places. I started slipping out and seeing the sights.  By skipping a couple of sessions in an afternoon and I could make a visit to a Smithsonian museum, or go touch the Liberty Bell (yes I did with permission from the ranger on duty.)  

So I progressed to going to conferences, focussing on the session I was speaking at, and seeing a little of this and a little of that. A little networking, often the conversations in the hallway are more important than what is said in the meeting room.  The location of the conference, became as important as the agenda.  

And so it has developed, I go, speak, spend as little time as is needed to network or put in an appearance, and maybe listen to a speaker or two that really interest me, and spend time in the venue.  Just a walk around the block can make a huge difference in understanding a place.  

Actually the best professional conferences to attend, are your partner or spouses.  I have been to a dozen of them, and classists sometimes have conferences in amazing places.  Then your days are free to explore, to see, to do.  I spent the better part of a week "In College" at Oxford, while sweetie bear was off hobnobbing with his fellow wizards, and I was free to explore the Oxford campus, complete with conference credentials the backstage pass to one of the worlds great Universities. Oh and there was the tea party with the Archbishop. I kind of miss those days.  These days he is going with me to my conferences.  Along with a sweet little flightless bird, who put in an appearance last week at the Montreal Congress (convention center.)  

 

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