As we are now just over 6 weeks away from #ACE19 and super excited about hosting you all in our home town of warm, sunny Brisbane, you will in the coming weeks receive a few (!) emails from us about the conference …. So apologies in advance for #conferencespam

As association executives, part and parcel of the job is many nights away from home, many days out of the office, an abundance of functions and too much food (or is that just me?) so the prospect of attending another event can sometimes seem too hard. Let me take a few minutes to remind you of the value of having a whole bunch of people just like you in the same space at the same time.

It reminds you why you do what you do.

I remember the first time I attended the American Society of Association Executives annual meeting and feeling a real connection to a much bigger picture than my day to day job. Hearing the stories of so many individuals working across so many professions and industries reminded me of the collective impact of this sector and why I was so proud to be a part of it.

The value of a random connection

Admittedly I am an extrovert, so I never mind having a conversation with someone I don’t know, but events such as ACE put you in a situation where you are able to meet people you ordinarily wouldn’t and you can make a connection with someone that could dramatically impact how you approach a situation or a problem or who knows someone who does. Also you might just meet that person that will facilitate the next step in your career.

Answers to what keeps you up at night

Chances are some of the things that keep you up at night about your role will be the same as someone else and a conference should provide you with at least one “ah-ha” moment of how to solve or approach a pain-point. It might be directly from a speakers presentation or by having a conversation with someone over a drink at a networking session but getting a different perspective is often a thought starter to approach something in a different way.

Give yourself an advantage

You don’t know what you don’t know, so stepping outside of the everyday, forging connections, listening to a speaker from outside of the sector, having a conversation with someone inside the sector, seeing a new a product or service all give you an advantage over someone who doesn’t. That in my opinion is the real value of what a conference can bring.

I hope to see you in Brisbane in June. Register here #deliberateplug

Toni