Getting the Most Out of a Conference Six Steps to Reducing Information OverloadJanelle Hailconference attendance, tips, strategies
You were excited to attend a conference, filled your extra
luggage with tons of material and attended so many sessions that
you have brain overload. Now that you're home, you're tired,
overwhelmed with too much stuff, and you toss the stack of papers
in the corner, hoping to get around to sorting your notes and
materials when you have time. Only because you have more pressing
things to do, you never have time. As a conference attendee who has
attended dozens of conferences, I finally designed an organized
plan of action that will energize and revitalize the enthusiasm you
had when you initially arrived at the event.
Step 1. Advance Planning
Familiarize yourself with the conference. Go online and run off all
details of the conference to set up a list of sessions you wish to
attend. Look at last year's conference information and order some
of the tapes or CDs to acquaint yourself with the best speakers
that pertain to your topics of interest. Observe who returns each
year as speakers (those are the veteran speakers who everyone loves
to hear). If the current year's speakers have books, go to the
bookstore and find out if they pique your interest. Some Web sites
offer the names of attendees from last year. If you have access to
their e-mail addresses, contact them and ask which sessions were
the most valuable to them. By the time you get to the conference,
you will be in control of what course of action you want to
take.
Step 2. What to Take
Travel as light as possible, but don't forget to throw in an
umbrella and raincoat. It's a help to get the weather forecast on
your computer before you leave so you don't have to second-guess
the weatherman. If you can take your computer, it will be helpful
for transcribing your notes while they're still decipherable. Be
sure to take a supply of medications should you run into some
difficulty. Take a bottle of water on the plane. It will help with
jet lag. And drink water all during the conference instead of
coffee and soda. This will keep your energy level up. Your mind
gets stimulated at a conference, so pack a journal to write your
thoughts in. Throw in a few energy bars for emergencies and some
comfortable shoes. Alternate wearing the shoes from one day to the
next and your feet will thank you. Did I say travel light?
Step 3. Travel Day
Arrive at the conference a day early if possible, to recover from
jet lag and to get an early morning start at the conference the
next day. Upon arrival, settle into your room as soon as possible.
Complete the unpleasant task of unpacking quickly. To avoid
wrinkles, bring your own travel hangers so you can hang up all of
your clothes. Strike out on a mission to acquaint yourself with
your surroundings. Pick up your registration packet and identify
the rooms where meetings will be held. Also, find nearby
restaurants, pharmacy, shopping, sightseeing points and other
places of interest for your off-time and in case you want a
diversion from conference activities. I have heard so many
conference attendees say on the last day, "Oh, I didn't know that
place was so nearby."
Step 4. The First Day of a Conference
Make a beeline to the freebie table to collect everything you even
think may be of interest. Before leaving the conference, read
through everything you've collected, and sort out what you don't
need to take home. Take some post-it notes to attach to key
information and a yellow highlighter to capture key thoughts. Check
out the book table early for the books you know you want to take
home. Make careful notes of tapes or CDs you want to purchase.
These materials will give you take-home value that will last for a
long time. Be prepared to allocate some of your spending money for
them. It may be easier to have these materials mailed to you
instead of carrying them home in an extra suitcase since the
airlines now limit the number of carry-on and checked baggage you
can take. And, it will save you the wear and tear of toting extra
luggage around.
Step 5. How to Take Notes and What to Do With
Them
Write your notes on the right side of a spiral binder and reserve
the left side for your "To-Do" list. Jot things on your To-Do list
as your mind is stimulated by note taking. At the end of each day
or near the end of the last day of the conference, consolidate your
To-Do lists into one compact one, assigning an A-List to the most
urgent short-term projects, B-List to the important short-term
projects, C-List for research and D-List for long-term projects. By
the time you get home, you'll have a complete plan of action that
requires little brainpower to initiate. Ah, the pleasure of marking
things off your lists. Step 6. Take a Break
The biggest problem you may face at a conference is trying to
attend every session from early morning to late at night. It is
impossible to pack it all in. Don't hesitate to take breaks. If you
can, stay at the hotel that hosts the conference. When your energy
level dips, excuse yourself for an hour. Go to your room, take a
hot bath (yes, in the middle of the day even though you had one
that morning), get undressed and take a power nap. This will
revitalize you and allow you to continue for several hours beyond
your normal limit. Take walks outside if possible. Go to the hotel
health club daily. Do anything that will keep your body
invigorated. Have some quiet time alone for reflecting each
day.
The Conference is Over
What a satisfying feeling to end the conference knowing that you
have increased your skills and source of knowledge. You can now
return home refreshed mentally, physically and spiritually. And,
you have a plan of action that can immediately propel you forward.
Janelle Hail is an award-winning freelance writer and speaker.
She is founder and CEO of the National Breast Cancer
Foundation, an organization dedicated to saving lives through
breast cancer education and providing free mammograms for
underserved women. To contact her, e-mail
[email protected].
