Conferences can be hit-and-miss. It’s easy to go through the motions on autopilot and find the experience lacklustre. Earlier on this summer, I attended one that started out lacklustre, but then became memorable, and I realized there’s a lot one can do to influence the outcome. Adam, the lurking third autodidact, has spent a good portion of the last six years going to lots of conferences, and has made something of a study of the process. Here are his brain pickings on the topic, combined with my own.

#1: Be bold early

The sooner I go beyond my comfort zone and start initiating conversations with people, asking questions, etc, the better. Managing to do this early means I’ve gotten over my hesitation to initiate interactions. This makes the rest of the event more interesting and enjoyable.

At the beginning of a conference, everyone is open and looking out for who is new and interesting. This is a good time to jump in confidently with both feet, and meet as many people as possible. It’s easier for things to unfold in interesting ways if I make connections early. As the conference goes on, people tend to hang out with the people they’ve already met, so it’s harder to break into new groups and get to know people.

In my experience, there’s often a split second of least resistant when meeting someone new. This is the moment of an interaction where it’s natural to strike up a conversation or introduce myself. If taken, this often leads to ongoing interactions in a fun and natural way, but if I hesitate due to timidness, that moment of least resistance passes and often doesn’t re-present itself. I can still strike up a conversation with this person, but it’s less natural and can seem forced.

#2: Do your homework

Most people don’t, so this immediately makes you the smartest person in the room.*

Even prosaic knowledge, like where the different sessions happen and who is leading them, and how to get to the nearest coffee shop, makes you useful to those around you.

*= some conditions apply

#3: Ask questions in sessions

This is a great trick for making people aware of your existence, and makes it easier to meet people afterwards, because they’ll already recognize you. It also tends to be more fun for the presenters if the audience is engaged.

Tip: sit near the front in plenary sessions, because otherwise the presenter might not notice when you put your hand up with a question and will just call on people who are near the front.

#4: Put yourself in an open, curious mindset

Put yourself in an open, curious mindset and wander around meeting people, especially at the beginning. This tends to lead to meeting superconnectors who will then superconnect you to the whole conference ecosystem, leading to interesting stuff.

#5: Follow your nose (and the interesting people)

When you go to a conference, be prepared to think and act fast: with so much going on, decisions often have to be made on the fly with limited information.

On the first evening of an event I was at, I received three different dinner invites. I hadn’t been expecting any of them, and wasn’t prepared to evaluate and jump, in the one- or two-minute window where the opportunity was open and presenting itself. As a result, I ended up staying on campus that night and eating almonds and canned fish out of my backpack.

In addition to following your instincts, one tactic is to follow the most connected and interesting people you’ve met so far, in hopes that they’ll end up where the spontaneous and interesting opportunities are, which they likely will, since they seem to be both magnetically attracted to them, and create them around themselves.

#6: The most interesting parts aren’t usually in the planned sessions.

It often seems the highest value outcomes don’t come from the planned conference sessions. They come from extracurricular activities, unplanned moments, and connections that get made in and around the other activities. Try to remember this, keep some open space available, and look for these unscheduled opportunities.

#7: Be present and alert

Conferences are coincidence magnifiers, the more present and alert you are, the more fun and interesting (and educational) they can be!

#8: Sit with different people

Once you’ve met a group of people you’re starting to get to know and get along with, it can be easy to leave it at that, spending meals and free time hanging out with the same folks. Try to mix this up a bit, and sit with different people some of the time. This way you’ll increase your surface area.

The same applies if you’re attending the event with other people from your own organization. Spend some time with them, but also branch out for new impressions and connections.

#9: Follow up

This habit will set you apart immediately, and give you the option for ongoing collaboration. In my experience, even if you exchange contact info with someone at a conference with the intention, on both sides, of keeping in touch, the follow-up rate is very slim.

I suggest bucking the norm and taking a few minutes when you get home to reach out via email to anyone interesting you exchanged contact info with, and with whom you’d potentially like to keep in touch. This doesn’t mean you’re tied to a long-term correspondence, but it leaves the door open for future collaboration.

Conclusion

Let’s recap. To turn the conference dial from lacklustre to amazing:

• Be curious, positive, and kind
• Be active rather than passive
• Increase your surface area
• Lean into the awkwardness of proactively connecting with new people. It can lead to wonderful opportunities!

Conferences can be life changing, but like many things in life, it all depends on what you bring to it. I hope these techniques help you to get the most out of, and bring the most value to, your next conference or event!

P.S. Most of these tips also apply to life in general.

Thanks to Manda Aufochs Gillespie and my fellow autodidacts for conference-going tips, and helpful feedback on early drafts of this post.