April 2009

image by Cheri Parr

There are many reasons to get out onto the conference circuit: business strategy, learning about the new innovations and the new ideas.  I think the finest “return” from my attendance at a variety of social media conferences over the last ten months has really been the connections.  I guess I could use the word networking, but in my mind that term falls short, and here’s why.

Monday night I was invited by Judy to attend a gathering at Enso’s in Half Moon Beach.  The tweetup not only brought the two of us together, but about a dozen other folks in that community.  Many had not met before.  The Coastsider put up this great album of the event.

The interesting thing, and this happens time and time again, meeting in person those we come to know through the social media platforms confirms the value of the relationships.  There is so much to talk about.  Time simply flies.  Now when Judy and I interact moving forward we have this shared experience to anchor our friendship.

Last night again:  Sarah Kennon and I had a few hours of conversation over at the W on Third Street in SF.  I learned a great deal about the interesting work that’s happening over at FORA.tv.  Again, the natural affinity that emerged through a sense of shared interests over the last few months flowered into one of the finest constructive dialogues I’ve ever been a part of.  Together we explored the “what if’s” concerning the future of these tools.  The shared vista that we arrived at will now guide my activity in this space. In fact, I’ll never think of the tools in the same way and my sense is that Sarah I will be able to collaborate to share that vision with all of you over the next few months.

Why I share these specific instances amongst the hundreds of folks I had the pleasure to meet this week: neither Judy or Sarah attended the Inbound Marketing Summit I attended.  Instead, I let them know I’d be in the area to see if a get together would be possible.  By knocking on the door of possibility, the ephemeral sense of connection we gain using these tools can transform into so much more.  As Chris Brogan said at #IMS09, “Don’t forget the real world.”

{ 3 comments }