Attending a Conference, Part 1 (or How to Dual-Purpose a Conference)

In mid-October, the Entrepreneurial Women’s Expo will be held in my town. I was at first super excited to attend this conference and promote my event planning business. However, when it came to actually register for it, I started to doubt if I should go. This was mainly for a few reasons.

It costs money. Not a lot, but enough for it to have to be worth it. (Though coffee is included all day…)
The speakers sound good…but not like anything I couldn’t learn by reading and searching for information.
Would I actually find any clients or leads there? That was one of my main reasons to go.

Because I had initially been so excited about this conference, I still wanted to go. I was just really stuck about what to do. I ended up asking my friend what they thought. (A second opinion can be very helpful!)

The Discussion

I explained my reasons for wanting to go to EWE. Then, I discussed why I was nervous about showing up. Luckily my friend was able to give me some good insights. Out of the conversation, I got some new reasons why it might be good to go even if my concerns were valid.

I can network for Open Prospects. There might be people to interview and learn from on the entrepreneurship side.
It is still a really low cost event.
It might help build confidence to fight the “imposter syndrome.” I just need to get out there.

Double the Value

Out of all of these reasons, I think finding a way to use EWE to help Open Prospects is the most valuable. I had been looking at how I could benefit Events Everyday. Maybe I will find clients for event planning. However, even if I don’t I’m sure there are women at EWE who would want to share their story on Open Prospects. In that way, we can all benefit a little more.

Next time you have the opportunity to try something new, think about it. There may be benefits that you never thought of! Also, don’t forget to check back to see how the conference goes!