I'm kind of excited.  I have been asked to join the brilliant  in Austin next month for SXSW, an incredibly huge gathering of individuals who crave almost anything new and/or innovative.... Music, Film and the reason I am going: Tech or "Interactive" - as it is called...

I am thrilled to be attending and to have an opportunity to learn about what's new and what is on the horizon for technology, new communication, and social media.  Though officially launched in 2006, this conference is where Twitter was "discovered" and really took off in 2007.  Hard to believe it has only been four years.  Talk about taking the communication world by storm.  They seem to have taken a page out of Facebook, as far as exponential growth. 

The first conference I ever exhibited / attended when I came to this industry was a California-based health care human resource event in Sacramento.  Vendors gathered in a small exhibit hall that housed about thirty to forty booths.  And it felt like an all out attack when those exhibit doors opened.  It has changed a bit, but not much.  Back then, it felt like a Wild West shootout, now?  It just feels like home.

I'll be attending the Xceptional HR-hosted Tweet-up on March 11, as well as a couple other private events while in Austin.  Please let me know if you plan on being there, it would be great to kick off conference season IRL with as many friends as possible.  And of course, I'll be there writing and tweeting consistently.

Seize opportunities for that face-to-face.  They are around, even if it is your local Chamber of Commerce luncheon or a chapter for a specific professional organization.  You just gotta look, review, and commit.
The commitment is always the hard part.  Just like life, eh?

by rayannethorn