Did I screw up this conference?

[Anonymous]

Most conferences everyone is looking out for themselves — and you have no currency since you aren’t bringing business to them.

A jobs fair they are looking for staff so you get more engagement because you are the currency.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Have you been to a conference before? I am not sure what you were expecting.

You seem to think everyone there would be focused on you and become instant friends and clients or partners.

I think your perception of a conference is off. You were only there for 4 hours.

OP here. Sorry, I meant on the first day, I did 8 hours, and the second day, I did 4 hours.

I have been to several conferences before. There were two major differences:

(1) All the others had a full agenda of different talks, panels, etc with valuable, practical knowledge. This brought a lot of inherent value. Also, this format opened up lots of natural openings for talking (chat with people when you are going between rooms/events, sit down next to someone new each time, go to talk to the speaker after and connect with others who are also waiting to talk to her, etc). I could spend part of the time listening and learning, part of the time talking, so it was a nice balance.

At this one, it was lots of generic inspirational talks and a bit of entertainment, so I got no value out of the talks. It wasn't just me - the vast majority of the attendees were not listening to the speakers at all.

Also, it was just one room, you put your stuff down at a table and you are there all day with the same 5-7 people.

(2) At the other conferences, I could find other people who had come alone, did not have a bunch of private meetings, and/or were open to chatting. At this one, the vibe felt totally different. Everyone was running somewhere or on their phone or in a tight group.

[Anonymous]

So it was a crappy conference. I’m not sure why you’re taking it as a personal failure rather than realizing it just wasn’t the right conference for you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So it was a crappy conference. I’m not sure why you’re taking it as a personal failure rather than realizing it just wasn’t the right conference for you.

I think it was because I ran into some people I knew, and they were like "OMG, what a day! So many meetings with Congressmen and Senators - gotta run to my next one!" Or "Oh, have to dash, I have this private lunch with the conference organizers." They weren't showing off on purpose, I guess I just know some impressive people and I have impostor syndrome since I'm in my first c-level job and fell into it kind of randomly.

[Anonymous]

You didn't research the guest speakers, vendors, and others in attendance? The agenda didn't list the topics?
That should've been a red flag to skip (sounds disorganized).

I'm kinda confused ...what exactly were you/are you trying to aim for?
Was this supposed to be educational (learn about the latest XYZ in your field)?
Or
Networking (trying to bring in clients?)
Growth? (Looking for investors?)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So it was a crappy conference. I’m not sure why you’re taking it as a personal failure rather than realizing it just wasn’t the right conference for you.

I think it was because I ran into some people I knew, and they were like "OMG, what a day! So many meetings with Congressmen and Senators - gotta run to my next one!" Or "Oh, have to dash, I have this private lunch with the conference organizers." They weren't showing off on purpose, I guess I just know some impressive people and I have impostor syndrome since I'm in my first c-level job and fell into it kind of randomly.

Ok. Looks like you're on the right track.

Executive coaching is popular now. Maybe if you like having someone to hold you accountable for your personal development goals, that could help you.

A crappy conference is a crappy conference.

[Anonymous]

Sounds like you met a few new people and exchanged contact information, with the idea of future follow up. So now you have an opportunity to reach out to those people if and when it would be useful to you. That in itself seems like a partial win at least for the conference overall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So it was a crappy conference. I’m not sure why you’re taking it as a personal failure rather than realizing it just wasn’t the right conference for you.

I think it was because I ran into some people I knew, and they were like "OMG, what a day! So many meetings with Congressmen and Senators - gotta run to my next one!" Or "Oh, have to dash, I have this private lunch with the conference organizers." They weren't showing off on purpose, I guess I just know some impressive people and I have impostor syndrome since I'm in my first c-level job and fell into it kind of randomly.

I've never been to a conference where no speaker names were given in advance.

But can you follow up with one of these people who had lots of meetings and say "it was great to see you at the conference. Hope your extra meetings went well! I realize I need to plan better for the next one because ((full in the blank, but very briefly)). Do you have any tips?"
?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So it was a crappy conference. I’m not sure why you’re taking it as a personal failure rather than realizing it just wasn’t the right conference for you.

I think it was because I ran into some people I knew, and they were like "OMG, what a day! So many meetings with Congressmen and Senators - gotta run to my next one!" Or "Oh, have to dash, I have this private lunch with the conference organizers." They weren't showing off on purpose, I guess I just know some impressive people and I have impostor syndrome since I'm in my first c-level job and fell into it kind of randomly.

The world is burning and Congressmen and Senators are shmoozing with executives? Smh