We’re 5 days away from Creative At Heart Round 2, so I definitely have conference on the brain! My amazing staff and I are finalizing the timeline, packing up SWAG and other details and finishing up all the other last min to-dos that keep popping up. I am SO EXCITED for the second C@H and can’t wait to meet so many incredible ladies (and gents!) in a few days!!:)
There are so many incredible conferences, workshops and retreats out there… when you’re a boss lady looking to grow & educate yourself & your small biz, it can feel overwhelming to look at all the options!! I thought I’d help by giving you a few tips for finding the right conference… while I might be biased to C@H, I promise these tips can help you when thinking about ANY conference, not just Creative At Heart!!
– Ask yourself: what do you hope to learn? There are a wide variety of conferences out there, and while some of the content is going to overlap, you need to understand WHY you want to attend in the first place. Are you looking to gain practical content? Do you need hands-on learning to refine your craft? Do you want to hear from a variety of speakers or one for a more intimate experience? Write down why you want to attend a conference in general, without thinking of one in particular. This will help you do the next step!
– Look at your budget & understand the value of the experience. When I first started looking into conferences to attend, I was shocked at how expensive they are!! Then I started to realize that conferences in our industry ARE more expensive, that’s just the truth of it! So I had to backtrack and look at how much I was able and willing to spend. Now, I have an “education” portion of my budget and I highly suggest you do the same! Look at your profit after expenses and decide what you are able to put towards your education. It is worth the investment, friends!!
– Research your options! Now that you know what you hope to gain from the experience, start looking for the best fit. One of the BEST things to do is to look up your mentors in the industry, and see if they are speaking at any conferences or if they host any themselves! You already look up to them & love them, so chances are the conferences they speak at or host are going to be incredible!! You can also look up conferences in your area, then expand to other areas you love!
– Make a Wishlist. I have a “bucket list” of conferences/workshops I would love to attend one day. Maybe it’s the incredible content I know is being discussed or the rave reviews I’ve heard from other friends, either way I have a few conferences I would absolutely LOVE to attend!! I know it’s not practical or budget friendly to attend them ALL in one year, so I made a list of conferences to “keep an eye” on and hopefully in the next 3 years, I will check them off the list!
– Don’t just go because everyone else is going. This is key, friends. It’s easy to feel peer-pressured when several industry friends are attending an event! But you need to go for YOU, not them! This goes back to point #1: asking yourself what you hope to learn & allowing that to propel your conference choice. This is an investment, and you want to make sure it’s a good one. Going just to go is not going to help you. You need to go with the right intentions to ensure the best experience possible!!
xo!! kat
(( Photo from Creative At Heart Conference Round 1 in January ))
