Finding inspiration in the details
I’ve been away from the blog for a few weeks. Vacation was extremely relaxing and fun. I came back refreshed, jumped back in to work, celebrated my 6th wedding anniversary and found out that our next child will be a girl. Needless to say, a very exciting May.
As I write this, I am on a train home from An Event Apart in Boston. I’m feeling all giddy and inspired (and pretty tired). I’ve got some new ideas for things to discuss, but want to share a couple of quick thoughts on conferences and what project managers can get from non-PM specific conferences. Part of this comes from the fact that there was really only one presentation that directly related to project management. But, really, PM is a part of everything, so I found inspiration in the details. At a very high level, these are my takeaways on attendance:
Keep up with what is happening in the industry. Knowing what excites your colleagues will excite you. I don’t code and I can’t design. But I love to learn. And at least being aware of what is happening in other practices helps me immensely. It's sort of like reading the news...it's hard to have an intelligent topical conversation if you have not taken the time to inform yourself on current events.
Take away what you will. By this, I mean that there are nuggets to apply to project management in almost every well-organized talk. Almost everything in your life can be applied to principles of project management, or even simpler, your life.
Other Conferences?
Do you attend any conferences or workshops that inspire you? Please share! I’d love to know what’s good for web project managers.