These days, there are a lot of fantastic ways to learn new things and improve your abilities: you can read blogs, listen to podcasts, watch how-to videos on among others, watch YouTube and participate in webinars. Why spend time and money on a conference or workshop that can be held virtually?
If you have that mindset, you might be sacrificing one of the best chances to advance your skills.
Why then do people attend the conferences? We each have our own reasons for attending but my personal opinion is that conference attendance dramatically enhances both your professional and personal development, as well as provides you with tools and skills which you cannot be taught in-house or online.
Find out why you should go to live events and think about taking your staff to conferences for the reasons listed below.
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Present Your Ideas And Work To Others
One of the more evident motives for going to conferences is this: to present your work. It’s good practice in
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discussing what you do with a variety of people from comparable, connected, and/or entirely unrelated fields of the study As people may ask questions that cause you to rethink your project, giving a presentation will increase your self-assurance in your work and give you new insight into it. You have the chance to get feedback on your work from people who haven’t seen it before and might offer new insight at a conference.
Sharpen The Saw
The phrase “sharpen the saw” certainly predates Stephen Covey, but he includes it as his seventh habit of highly effective people.
The concept is that in order to improve your skills, you occasionally need to take a break from the “work” of your work. A blunt ax won’t be able to cut a tree nearly as well as a sharp one.
I always return from a conference with new ideas and approaches that make me more effective and efficient at work.
Avoid being the woodcutter chopping away at the tree with a dull ax while your rival chops it down in half the time with a sharp one.
or makes use of a chainsaw she saw being used at a conference.
Meet Experts & Influencers Face To Face
Even though you might not get to meet your business heroes at every conference, your chances are much higher if you’re in the same vicinity.
Sometimes it’s about sharing a business idea with someone you look up to, taking a selfie with someone who has influenced you or making a connection that could help you find your next mentor.
I remember at a Social Media Marketing World when I got a few minutes to speak one-on-one to Sally Hogshead, author of Fascinate and How the World Sees You, and ask her for some feedback on a new business venture I had launched.
From an online success summit, that could never have happened.
Networking Opportunities
Social media helps me stay in touch with my peers, both nearby and far away.” The only thing that can replace meeting someone IRL is doing so in person.
Good conferences offer attendees the chance to network, build new relationships, and strengthen existing ones. You might meet the ideal supplier or customer over coffee, lunch, or cocktails. You never know who you might meet at a breakout session who will become your next client or mentor.
Or perhaps your toughest rival will be seated in your seat if you don’t go.
New Tools
Companies frequently have tools to display that we haven’t yet seen, whether there is an expo floor or only a few tables near the coffee and muffins. We need apps that give us an advantage, such as making us faster or less likely to make costly mistakes.
Although these products can undoubtedly be found on their websites, it’s great to get a hands-on demonstration or have the opportunity to ask the company directly questions related to your particular business challenges.
Learning In A New Space
In the Dead Poet’s Society scene where Robin Williams made his students stand on a desk to gain a new perspective, do you recall that scene?
Or think about the numerous reasons why companies hold meetings off-site. It’s because it’s simple to get stuck in a rut. The same chair, office (or cubicle), or coffee shop can prevent us from thinking creatively and coming up with new ideas.
Even if it’s just a dingy old conference room at the Holiday Inn, getting out of the office and spending some time in a new setting can inspire us to come up with fresh ideas for expanding our companies.
Break Out Of Your Comfort Zone
Live events compel you to step outside of your comfort zone, which is related to the previous justification.
It’s simple to read a blog post in the comfort of your own office. If you’re not on the treadmill, you won’t get hot while listening to a podcast.) While your YouTube video loads, you don’t need to engage in small talk.
While some of us are naturally good networkers, it can be difficult for many of us to interact with others and attend live events. But breaking out of our comfort zones is just the type of action we need to take to break out of old ways of thinking that have got us in a rut in our businesses.
Bring a wingman (or wingwoman) if you’re dreading the thought of attending a conference so you won’t feel totally alone.
New Tips & Tactics
We mistakenly think we can access anything on the internet, which is a problem. Perhaps it is, but there is a deluge of information that is difficult for us to wade through or that prevents us from accessing the best information. A well-run conference will help collect fresh concepts to help us refine our strategy.
I distinctly recall sitting through a session while someone built a Facebook app in front of me to demonstrate what was possible. In a presentation by Steve Dotto, I recall learning about YouTube cards for the first time and how they would fundamentally alter how people watch videos online.
I’m sure that information was already somewhere on the web, but the conference helped cut through the clutter to deliver the best content for me possible.
Greater Focus
Learning old skills again is the antithesis of learning new ones. A few years ago at Agents of Change, The value of developing an avatar for your company and how it improved John Lee Dumas’s thinking were discussed. (You can hear an interview I had with John a few weeks later where we went into more detail about this subject here.)
A mastermind group was crucial to Pat Flynn’s success, and attendees of the most recent Social Media Marketing World conference learned how to set one up. (After that, I founded my own mastermind and most recently joined another.) Napoleon Hill wrote about masterminds in Think and Grow Rich, but the concept has been around forever.
I didn’t understand that they could assist me in expanding my business, though, until a chain of events culminated in Pat Flynn’s presentation.
The Energy Of Like-minded Individuals
Nothing compares to being in a room full of like-minded individuals. Others are prepared to take time off work to further their education. Others who aim to “improve” themselves.
When you sit in a classroom or auditorium, you realize that you’re not the only one who wants to develop your skills and contribute to your workplace or organization.
Regardless of how much activity there might be around a hashtag, that energy is missing from all online learning channels.
The Serendipity Of The Random Workshop
I was completely unaware of some of the best workshops and presentations before the conference.
I went to a memory-enhancing workshop at SXSW. (I thought it was fascinating even though it didn’t work.) Only because I was forced to attend a YouTube session at BlogWorld. (YouTube, in my opinion, was only for cat videos.) It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that it altered the way I promoted my company.
In fact, I did my own presentation on YouTube marketing at the following year’s Social Media FTW, the conference Before Agents of Change, I dressed.
Those learning opportunities had to be found by chance at a live event because I would never have looked for them online.
Expand Your Knowledge And Find Solutions To Problems
In your field, you’ll learn a lot of new information. These could include learning from thought leaders you may not have previously heard of, as well as new methods, tools, data, or techniques. You will be able to keep up with the research of some of the most well-known experts in your field as well as some of the up-and-comers. You can discuss what they are working on in-depth at conferences with these individuals, and they might even offer you suggestions on how to improve your own work. Unlike when reading journal articles, you have the chance to ask presenters questions about their work and the reasoning behind it.
Speak About Your Own Business
You have the opportunity to discuss your company in public at conferences. This can increase interest in what you’re doing and help you establish your brand and reputation. You can practice pitching your business and its services as a result, though. When you speak with prospects in the future, being proficient in this skill will be helpful.
Here are the top six justifications for going to a conference. Attending a manufacturing conference can help you learn about various aspects of the industry, keep up with the most recent trends, and network with hundreds, if not thousands, of other influential people.