Last year was my first Gnomedex conference. (It’s an annual event put on by Chris and Ponzi Pirillo and family, and is billed as a place where one might tap into the tech blogging world’s zeitgeist). After my experience last year, I changed the way I did business, and was immediately rewarded for my efforts. I also met great people, developed some close friendships, and felt all the way around educated. This year was even better.
You need to go to Gnomedex next year.
I’ll tell you that the quality of most of the presentations on the stage felt like the stuff I’d expect at TED. From Scott Maxwell who taught us what it’s like to drive the Mars Rover by remote programming to Amanda Koster who runs a unique garage, to the amazing Beth Kanter raising yet another year of college tuition for a woman in Cambodia, the stage was nearly always the scene of the most amazing ideas and speakers I’d seen anywhere.
The mix of topics, the quality of the presentations, the somehow “next generation” feeling of the audience all made me feel stellar and engaged the entire time. I got to meet lots of new faces, and finally connected with people I had yet to meet. I felt the sponsors were engaged and part of the community, especially Ann Finney from HP, who is now racking up quite a habit of being where the community events happen.
I have another post to write, but this one was just to say that I found Gnomedex to be the single-most valuable conference for me and my own personal and professional development that I’ve attended in the last 12 months. (In saying this, I realize that I’m rating it over my very own PodCamp Boston and several other events where I know and love the organizers. To you, I say, “I loved your events as well. They were also useful to me.”)
It will be interesting to see what comes next year, and I will certainly plan to attend. You should, too.
The next event I’m running myself is the New Marketing Bootcamp in Boston in a few weeks. I’m sure I’ll find ways to apply some of what I learned to that event.
(Another post coming later tonight).
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