I recently attended the SMPS Virginia Conference in Norfolk, VA. Bonus, I had never been to this city! What a fabulous conference, venue, and city to be in. It had been two years since they hosted the conference, and the attendees were glad to be back in person. I was selected to present “Networking Sucks,” and the session was placed RIGHT before the evening networking event. The planning committee intentionally scheduled it this way, so attendees could immediately implement the things they learned during the session.
Networking is something many of us could improve upon, even those of us who are extroverts and enjoy networking. Over the last two years, we’ve gotten a little rusty. Networking can be fun and easy with practice…like anything else. You can check out a couple past blogs about networking, “Networking is a Naughty Word”, “5 Steps to Effective Networking in the AEC Industry”, and “Network 101: Back to the Basics”.
The planning committee did a fantastic job of putting the conference together. As some of you may know, I just completed a three-year planning commitment for SMPS MVRC. I know how much work conference planning is and how much time they take away from your real job. Great job to the committee and all their efforts!
Although I didn’t get to attend the entire conference, the networking event and session I attended were great. Attendees were engaged and asked lots of questions. Everyone was super friendly. I almost felt like I was back in the Midwest! I could be tempted to move there! I was able to meet tons of new people and also reconnect with a few people I hadn’t seen in years. One evening a group of us went out to dinner for seafood, then visited a local watering hole. That was a ton of fun!
If you haven’t attended a conference in awhile, sign up for one today. There is a new energy among them, and people are excited to be back together again. I hope to see you at a future networking event! Make sure to check out the events I post in the newsletter below and sign up today!
