I spent the last few days at a work conference (and hence not updating this site like I should!). These conferences — for anyone who’s never been — are ostensibly about sharing so-called ‘best practices’ (empty buzzword alert!) and learning about new products, procedures, and programs. They take place (generally) in stuffy, windowless hotels where you can’t get so much as a bottle of water for less than $4 and you have to wear a name tag CONSTANTLY.

Does that sound boring? I can see why it might. I can see why Gen Y might, given our increased desire to put Task Before Time, gravitate away from old-fashioned concepts like work conferences. On the surface, giving up three or four days of your week (and sometimes your weekend) to ‘work’ doesn’t seem overly appealing.

But skipping events like these is a big mistake, particularly for the young worker just getting started.

Sure, most of the workshops and keynotes are forgettable and sometimes painful. A lot of concepts are better introduced online than through a slapdash presentation, especially if that presentation includes a painful Power Point. There’s not a lot of real, marked advantages to learning about something this way. It’s rather dynamically old-fashioned.¹

But, despite surface appearances, these presentations aren’t where anyone finds real value in business conferences. The real value, in fact, comes long after the workshops and keynotes are done, and everyone gets off the stage. That’s when the networking begins.

‘Networking’ is a tricky word, because I used to think it meant making painful small-talk in a crowded room with someone whose name you keep forgetting (thank god for those name tags) and who you’re only vaguely interested in (mostly because you feel like you should be). That’s not real networking, mostly because it’s unlikely to have any kind of lasting impact.

No, real networking is loose and casual. It can involve jokes and stories and drinking and dancing. Sometimes work doesn’t come up at all, but that doesn’t matter. What’s important is finding people — who are involved in the same industry as you and thus (hopefully — if you’re doing this right) have the same passions as you. Do this, and you don’t just build a network, but instead make connections to people who matter and can prove incredibly valuable down the road.

Not convinced? Think of it this way. You’re Gen Y — you’re likely going to change jobs more than a few times in your life. And only 15-20% of jobs are advertised. Where do you think the rest of those 80% of jobs (and these are mostly the GOOD jobs) are found?

I think, often, they can be found at conferences.

So suck it up and go, Gen Y. In the end, you’ll be glad you did. You’ll get used to the buffet and, honestly, probably end up having a lot of fun. Make those connections as early as you can — it’s one of the best things you can do. 

Photo by Wonderlane. Licensed under Creative Commons

1. That’s not to say there aren’t great presenters out there, though — I’m speaking in generalizations here. [↩]

Tags: conference, networking