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How to Attend a Virtual Conference and Actually Enjoy it
Three ways to make virtual events worthwhile
When it comes to transitions over the last year, I feel for conference planners. It must take a herculean effort to translate in-person events to a fully virtual event in the midst of a pandemic.
One thing I’ve noticed is that purely virtual events tend to exacerbate existing conference problems. Minor tech problems are now critical, communication is harder, networking can be more awkward and engaging with the speaker next to impossible. When all is said and done, you may wonder: was it really worth my time and effort to sit in front of a screen listening to someone who doesn’t even know I’m sitting there?
Well, it depends.
It’s still important to learn from a diverse network and hear from perspectives beyond the group that you’re surrounded by on a daily basis. Rather than being content in an information silo, I still think virtual conferences and events are worthwhile for attendees, if you can make it work for you.
Speaking of challenges
Even in-person conferences can run into last minute tech issues. For virtual events, these blockers are now a stonewall, preventing people from accessing the event.
