I made it through my first blogging conference, but just barely.
A friend had suggested I attend BlogU, an annual bloggers conference in Baltimore, to help prepare me for marketing my book later this year. I signed up early, but then put it on the back burner until the day before the event.
Book editing, photography exhibit preparation (my first one ever landed on the weekend before the conference and another one is scheduled for the weekend after), and website redesign were already too much for me to do everything well, so I let BlogU go until hours before my departure.
Many of the other participants were busy networking weeks beforehand, sharing their links, out-funnying each other, posting multiple times a day on the BlogU Facebook page.
My website was getting a facelift, so I waited until just a week before the conference (when the new site went live) to step into the fray. It was really loud there so I retreated back into my safe little world.
The challenge for mindfulness writers publishing on social media is that we value and protect stillness in our lives. Our happiness is linked to stepping out of the fray and appreciating where we are in this moment. We do what we can to avoid drama and to quiet the crazy-making voice in our heads.
The blogosphere isn’t very conducive to these priorities.
Believe me, I wasn’t always like this. I used to be the loud, funny, often screaming drama-feeding mommy with a glass of wine in her hand. I just wrote a whole book about how I finally found peace and contentment in my life, so all I’ll say here is that, a few years ago, I would have been much more “fun” (to outsiders) at the BlogU conference.
The irony is, the theme for the Saturday night party was “Middle School Awkward.” At 8 p.m. the night before the conference, I went to the thrift store and found some high-waisted, wide-legged jeans and a peasant blouse (late 1970’s middle school). It wasn’t a cool hippy peasant blouse, but a just-off-the-fashion mark wannabe peasant blouse.
My awkwardness was further enhanced by my being 20-30 years older than most of the other people there. They all cheated, since none of them looked authentically awkward. Even the girls dressed in their Catholic school uniforms looked cool.
I got a cup of wine to try to look like I fit in, but I didn’t actually drink it since my oncologist told me that alcohol increases my risk of breast cancer recurrence. Yay.
Fortunately I had found a small clan of equally awkward — and thoroughly lovely — women from my generation. None of us have huge blog followings (which made us even more uninteresting). Terri writes about coping with the tragic loss of her son four years ago. Tracey writes about renewable energy. I write about how to incorporate mindfulness into our daily routine. And Justine, whom I had looked for but didn’t meet until the closing gathering, has a gorgeous blog called LiveNowandZen — right up my ally.
I came to think of us as the island of misfit toys. None of us came out of the conference with any prizes. All of us were overwhelmed. But we were all supposed to be there for one reason or another. Justine and I spent a luxurious, effortless afternoon together at the Baltimore Aquarium (the photo’s from the jellyfish exhibit) and had crab cakes at the waterfront before she flew back to Colorado. Establishing that connection was worth every penny of the conference.
For me, personally, the workshops taught me how much I still have to learn. With so many online marketing strategies to absorb, how does one do it without being connected all the time? How can I be an example of mindful living when I’m connected all the time? I can’t, so I won’t.
The good news is that I’m now comfortable with not doing and having everything all at once. Multitasking is a myth. It’s scientifically proven that our brains can only do one thing at a time. And there are only 24 hours in the day.
I will continue to protect chunks of my day for grounding myself, whether it’s through meditation, photography, connecting with nature, or exercise.
And I will pull out one thing at a time from the heavy file of BlogU information I’ve brought back. First on the list, Pinterest. (Thank you, Anna Luther! I started your online course before the conference so didn’t take your workshop there, but meeting you in person inspired me. Pinterest’s capacity to promote my writing and photography work at the same time appeals to my former economist self’s quest for efficiency.)
Hats off to the BlogU organizers for offering such a wide range of workshops and networking opportunities. Your passion, energy, and sense of purpose (“a rising tide lifts all boats”) made a difference in the world!
If you enjoyed today’s entry and are not yet a subscriber, sign up above for free delivery of new posts to your email inbox. (I promise to never share your information.) Social media likes and shares are always appreciated as well!
Terri says
Dear Martha, I am still smiling from our great conversations. Thank you for the link to my blog and kind words, I am very humbled and grateful. Hoping we can connect sometime over the summer for a long, lazy lunch. Wishing you many gentle and peaceful moments my friend.
Martha Brettschneider says
Terri — thanks for being my date at the awkward party! I was so jealous of your white go go boots. If and when we meet for lunch, you must promise to wear them again. And perhaps you’ll have your new tattoo by then. Looking forward to continuing our conversations… ;-)
Ashley Alteman says
Martha, I wish that I would have had an opportunity to meet you. I, too, was a bit overwhelmed as there were so many faces to place and so much information to absorb. I think I am going to do as you wrote–take one thing I learned at a time and apply it accordingly. This was also my first conference and I feel like I could sleep for at least three more days. :)
Martha Brettschneider says
Ashley you are so sweet! I know exactly who you are (having just checked out your awesome website). You’re the Angelina Jolie double (as in, one of the totally cool kids at the party). You couldn’t do awkward if your life depended on it! Looks like you’ve been doing amazingly well without the help of a conference, so keep on keepin’ on, girlfriend. The world needs your energy and passion! Thanks so much for saying hello. And good luck catching up on sleep! ~ Martha
Stephanie says
I am glad that you were there and that you “found your tribe” and were able to connect with a group of women who are in a similar place with their writing and life experience. I hope that the connections that you made turn into life long friendships because, beyond just networking for business, that is truly what BlogU is about.
Martha Brettschneider says
Thanks, Stephanie. The conference was a great learning experience on a number of different levels. Although my tribe at BlogU was pretty small, the quality of it far aways the quantity. What was really interesting was being witness to how woman across the spectrum of ages and world views are employing the technology to meet their different objectives. That’s empowerment.
Uncustomary says
I’m really loving reading these wrap-up posts and seeing that any nerves we had before we headed to BlogU were pretty much calmed by the general awesomeness that was this experience! I hope to see you again next year.
Uncustomary Art.
Martha Brettschneider says
Thanks so much Mary. I agree, it’s great to see that so many participants had a positive experience. Good luck putting all that new information to work for your blog!
Linda Roy (elleroy was here) says
I really enjoyed chatting with you at lunch on Saturday. I’ve been to a bunch of conferences, but this was my first time at BlogU, and I can tell you that your choice of BlogU as a first conference was an excellent one! They’ve set the bar pretty high!
Martha Brettschneider says
Good to hear from you, Linda. And thanks for the perspective on the conference. I got lucky that Anna Whitney Donaldson recommended this one to me. Now to put it all to work! Good luck meeting your blog goals!
Margaret Roach says
“I can’t, so I won’t.” Love it. Exactly how I feel. I can’t, so I won’t (thank you very much, world).
Martha Brettschneider says
Thank you, Margaret, for understanding. As always, you are my role model. Still not sure how you wear so many hats — author, blogger, speaker, online marketing/WordPress consultant, podcast host, solo maintainer of 5 acres of organic gardens, and probably more things I don’t know about — always meeting the highest standards of excellence. Though it doesn’t sound to me that you say “I can’t” to too many things, it’s nice to hear that you do from time to time. Can’t thank you enough for your wise guidance these past few months.