Which would you choose;
- Paying money to site quietly in a chair while someone reads PowerPoint slides and makes your chosen profession sound lame, boring, pointless.
- Chasing soap bubbles in the yard.
I don’t go to many conferences. Hardly any. I’ve even dramatically scaled back on the paid, professional events I attend. Yes, it’s because a toddler is far more exciting than most conferences or other professional-type events.
The MinneBar and MinneDemo events are the exception here. They’re invaluable in seeing who’s doing what locally. Plus, they’re informal, free, and full of infectious excitement. Just like a toddler.
Less like a disciplinary action.
Elsewhere:
“…despite all the odds against it, we actually are growing up.” – Dave Winer
I’m reading J Wynia‘s copy of Open Space Technology: A User’s Guide. While I’m only ~40 pages into it, the model for competing with a 2 year-old is already very clear.
Amen brotha.
Thats the spirit of my new biz –and the teaser site I just put up at http://www.playformation.com
It seems like conferences only provide affirmation about 3 things.
1) You really do know what is the right way to do things. Hearing someone else say it just helps solidify it in your head.
2) Everyone else suffers the same pain you do.
3) And in rare moments you learn something new, about 1 minute before the rest of the industry learns about it via twitter/blogs.
Hey Friend,
My last recruiter event (11th) we went to a structured unconference like MinneBar. It was awesome but took so much more time/energy to put on.
I wonder if events (like most of mine) are done the PPT way because they are easier to do?
I do not go to many conferences either. The best stuff (for me) happens in small groups, conversations in the hallway or listening in on someone’s chat.
This gets me to wondering how to do our next event…