Conferences

Nothing like saying you are going to do something and then life happens and family comes first. I would have maybe posted this Monday or even yesterday if Doodle hadn’t been sick. She’s been coughing for several days. Running a low-grade fever a couple of times. Through all this I realize just how blessed we are that she’s hardly ever sick. So that’s why the tips are late. I know you’ll forgive me!

I’ve written, edited, and re-written this post a million times in my head. Every time I feel the need to preface it by saying you might not be like me and my husband may not be like your husband. I really hate to get into comparisons, so please don’t compare yourself to me because God made us all unique and similar. My official preface to this post would have to be, take what I say with a grain of salt and 3 cups of sugar. Not sure what you do with the salt, but the sugar will give you a good start to some southern sweet tea!

I’ve actually written some pretty good things in other posts about preparing for conferences — not just BlissDom. I have gone back and looked, and this one is a really good one … Maybe you click. Maybe you don’t. Seriously, go read it. I’ll wait {insert some upbeat, worshipful, inspiring music here}

Back? Good. Seriously stop stressing the clothes and whether or not you’ll make a friend. I don’t care who you are, you’ll make a friend. I say that with a lot of confidence because I know that if you’re reading my blog? You’ll make a friend or ten at BlissDom. I know some wonderful ladies going. Ones I wish I could hug their necks and listen to them talk all night. Some of them big bloggers, but they don’t know it — or at least they don’t act like they know it. Last year I wrote Angels at BlissDom and I think everyone is going to be back at BlissDom this year. So be on the lookout for those ladies. I know they’ll make you feel welcome.

Here’s another great post I wrote last year — What I learned about me at BlissDom. {insert more music}

Back? Ok, yeah. I know that’s a lot of reading. So you just want the highlights? Well, here are my highlights with another preface or ten — I’ve been working from home for 10 years now. I’m used to spending all my days interacting with people through email, messaging, Twitter and Facebook. Duck is not only my husband, he’s my best friend. We really enjoy going and doing things together and I don’t do the typical “girls night out” thing. Not only is he my best friend, he’s the worrier of the family, and generally he likes the standard schedule. When I’m gone? There’s no such thing as a standard schedule. So if you are anything like me, and/or your hubby’s anything like Duck — read along

• Pray. Start now. Pray for the travel. Pray for your family to survive you being gone. Pray for what sessions you should go to — what parties you should go to. Cover the whole thing in prayer. Seriously.
• Don’t stress the clothes. I don’t remember what anyone wore last year. DO pack comfy shoes. We didn’t have to walk a lot last year, but Opryland is considerably bigger than the hotel we were in.
• Know your bloggy purpose. If you don’t know for sure what your bloggy purpose is, keep these thoughts in the back of your mind while you’re there. Think on them. Once you know your bloggy purpose, decisions start to become a lot easier. Just writing for family? No ads. Writing about your interior design passions? No Ragu ads (tip straight from The Nester herself) or rather control your ads. Writing a frugal blog to help supplement income? Ads out the wazoo.
• Make some kind of business card with your name, email, twitter handle, and blog address (at a minimum). Even if you are just writing for family? You’ll make friends who you want to exchange info with and keep up with after BlissDom. Wanna be really cool? Include your picture. I’m horrible with names/faces and sometimes I wish I could see a picture.
• Look at the sessions ahead of time. See what fits into your bloggy purpose. Are you looking to become a better writer? Or are you looking to increase your income with ads? Knowing your bloggy purpose will help make the decisions easier. See a pattern yet?
• Schedule breaks for yourself. Quiet time. Short periods of time where you can refocus. I’m used to listening to music all day not hearing a gazillion conversations going on at once. It takes brain power to process that much information. Trust me. Don’t get overloaded. Take a break.
• Take a few snacks with you. I know there will be food there. I’m strange though — some of it honestly is a bit too fancy for me. Also sessions will inevitably run late no matter how well they are planned out. I typically need to eat *something* every couple of hours. When you’re used to working in the next room from your snack drawer, you might be a little spoiled. On top of that, if I miss that certain window of opportunity to get food — I get extremely a little cranky, ill and sick feeling.
• Let your family know when/how often you will be calling and then keep that time — no matter what. Even if you *just* talked to them 4 hours ago and don’t have much to say now — they may want to just hear your voice and know you are still alive. Remember, they are sitting at home with time on their hands. They aren’t experiencing the new stuff you are — meeting new people, going to exciting sessions, flying on airplanes, etc. Just do whatever you have to do to make yourself stop for a minute and call. This will probably sound like a no-brainer, but when you get there and take in so much information? Your brain may just disappear … or rebel … trust me on this. Setup alarms on your phone. Be sure you take into account the time difference (because your cell phone will automatically change to Nashville time!).
• Forgot to add my other tip — check out the Blog Hop here and add your blog. Get to know attendees before-hand!

I think some of the other posts you’ve probably read by now contain other good tips. What you haven’t read the other posts? Check them out! Link up your posts below and feel free to copy the code and put this on your blog!

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