Given that we are a conference on cognitive science our opinion might be biased, but we think that no matter what field you are in, it’s very important to attend professional conferences! Heck, you should be able to cover the price of admission with all of the money you will save by using this GreenGeeks coupon. But you really need to look at attending professional conferences as an investment in your business and yourself. Here are just some of the reasons why you should attend conferences.
Networking
This is by far the main reason that you should attend conferences. Have you ever heard the expression “It’s not what you know but who you know”? Well, it’s true, and a great way to meet a lot of people in your industry very quickly is to attend a conference. You never know who you might meet that could end up being an excellent source of referrals, a customer, a mentor, a partner, a supplier, or who knows what else. Especially if you don’t tend to meet a lot of folks in your area that do what you do or you work online, you need to make an extra effort to make contacts in your field. They can lead to collaborations, partnerships, and job opportunities.
If you’re not typically good at introducing yourself to strangers, remember that everyone else at the conference is looking to make contacts and is in the same field so you have some common ground. It might feel scary the first time you walk up to a stranger and introduce yourself, but it gets easier the more that you do it, I promise!
Professional Development
Most conferences will offer presentations and workshops around enhancing a skill set or learning new ones entirely. If you are in an industry where the technology or science is progressing all the time, you need to actively be keeping on top of new developments. Or it might be important to stay on top of trends in the market. Workshops at conferences are also a great way to learn from folks who are at the top of your field that you might not otherwise have the opportunity to work with.
Inspiration and Motivation
I think this is an often overlooked benefit of attending conferences, but it’s perhaps the most important one. Even if you are doing something that you love, when you do basically the same thing day in and day out you can get into a bit of a rut and start to lose some of your passion. Going to a conference, meeting new people, hearing from those that are at the top of your field, and perhaps traveling to a new city are all things that will shake up your daily routine and give you new insights and perspective. There is also something to be said about the energy of being with a group of people who all want to nerd out over the same things that you do. If you’ve been feeling a little blah about your work lately, then a conference might be just what you need.
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