Are you ready for BlogHer? A primer
by Cheryl, posted on July 6th, 2011 in Blog Events, BlogHer
It is one month til BlogHer.
Which means only one thing: my second annual One Month Til BlogHer post.
I know you’ve been waiting.
Last year, I wrote about the 10 things I discovered I was supposed to do at my first blog conference.
And now it’s my duty to pass along all my knowledge to you, first-timers. Because I see your tweets and your posts. I know you’re nervous. I feel your panic.
I’m here to tell you the truth. The real deal. The sitch.
Ready?
1. No one cares what you wear. Okay, that’s not entirely true. The only thing people notice is inappropriateness: Pajamas to sessions. Prom dresses to parties. Oh – and shoes. We all love cute shoes. But we secretly giggle when you take off those ridiculously high heels after five minutes. Because there’s a LOT of walking. And standing. The wedge heel is your friend.
2. No one is looking at the size of your ass. So stop staring at it so much as you try on every single thing in your closet. Or in the dressing room. You don’t need a new wardrobe. Seriously. Sessions are casual. And it’s San Diego, where babies are born wearing flip flops. Bring capris. Skirts. Casual dresses. Jeans. Also, pack a light sweater. Air conditioning is annoying.
3. You are not alone. You worry: no one will talk to you. You’re a social dork. You’re not good at small talk. Guess what? Lots of bloggers feel exactly the same. Smile. Introduce yourself. Ask about their blogs. People love to talk about themselves. If you try and someone blows you off? Tweet about them. Then move on to the next new person.
4. Bring lots o’ business cards. Make sure they have your name (uh, someone *might* have forgotten that detail last time) on them, your blog name, URL, twitter handle, phone number, possibly Facebook page. Don’t be a hoarder. Even if the most annoying person on the planet asks for your card, smile and give it. Even if you’re sure she’s just going to use it to clean her teeth. You just never know who SHE knows.
5. You don’t need all that swag. I don’t know if it will be as excessive as it was in NYC, but half our room was taken up by products. It was ridiculous and it made me feel incredibly guilty because I needed none of it – and there are so very many people who did. We left some in the room for the maids to keep, gave some away, packed a bunch in our suitcases and then shipped some home. One tip: DO NOT pack a large bottle of shampoo in your suitcase. I don’t care what to-die-for brand it is. It will open and spill over every. single. thing. in your suitcase, including the beautiful silk shirt you borrowed from your friend and your brand-new dress. Did you know that soap stains? I do now.
6. Get out of the hotel. Seriously. You won’t miss anything. Go have lunch or dinner with your friends. Breathe fresh air. Feel the sun on your face. Or, if it all gets too overwhelming, take an hour and hang in your room. But not for too long. We WILL hunt you down and find you.
7. Squee. Go ahead. You know you want to! You’re going to see women you’ve tweeted with forever or whose blogs you’ve followed and FINALLY you get to meet them. The sound that will come out of your mouth will, of course, be The Squee. Embrace it. There is nothing like a big juicy hug. Even if you’re NOT a hugger (I’m talking to YOU, Mrs. Sluiter!) you’re still getting one. On a related note, don’t forget to pack your deodorant.
8. It might not be like you expect. You have big plans. You so do! You’re going to network like crazy. You’re going to connect with brands. You’re going to squeeze every drop out of each session. You’re going to get invited to every party. I hope you do. Really. But you won’t. Because there are going to be 3,000 people there. You can’t possibly meet everyone you want to. I have found that unless you are a review blog, many brands don’t want to waste time talking with you. The sessions can be great. Or not so much. Many of the parties you won’t even hear about til after. And you know what? It’s okay. It is. You might be surprised the most valuable thing you learn is about yourself – and not about everyone else.
9. It’s okay to miss your babies. We all miss our babies. But take advantage of having time just for yourself without feeling guilty. Your babies would totally want you to have that glass of wine. And that one, too. Also, that large hunk of chocolate cake.
10. It’s going to be fine. Really. Better than fine. So relax. Don’t take it all so seriously. It’s a bunch of (mostly) women getting together. We all do the same thing, more or less. We put our words out into the Internet and we hope someone reads, is touched, laughs, cries, feels not so alone. It’s important. But it’s not life-or-death. It’s blogging. Also? You look fantastic. You really, really do.
What are YOU most nervous about? Let me talk you off the ledge! Also, in case you’re not following me (!!) on twitter yet, click on that little icon over on the right side. Then tweet me at @mommy_pants and I’ll be happy to meet you and squee you!
Tags: blogher, it'll be okay, your must-read guide
manish2010 Says:
Cheryl Reply:
July 6th, 2011 at 12:28 pm
They have mouthwash at the front desk.
SO hope you come out!
xo
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