In this episode of the Animals and Aquatics in OT podcast, host Gina delves into the world of professional conferences in occupational therapy. She shares her insights on the importance of attending conferences, strategies for maximizing the conference experience, and tips for balancing conference attendance with other professional commitments. Gina also discusses funding options for conference attendance, self-care strategies for managing conference intensity, and tips for presenting at conferences. Whether you're a seasoned conference attendee or considering your first conference, this episode offers valuable advice for occupational therapist providers incorporating animal and aquatic therapy in their OT practice. Be sure to connect with Gina at the AHA conference, AOTA conference or at EponaAcademyCommunity@gmail.com
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(00:02):
This week on animals andaquatics and OT, we're going to
be talking about conferences.
Yes.
Conferences.
And that's about all I'mthinking about right now.
So I wanted to take just alittle bit of time and share
that information with you.
Now let's get started.
(00:36):
Welcome to the animals andaquatics and occupational
therapy podcast.
I'm Gina, your cohost.
Mom wife.
Private practice owner mamathree, adjunct professor at an
OTA program and probably a fewother things that I'm
forgetting.
And right now, one of thebiggest things that's going on
for us is preparing forconference.
(00:56):
Not just one conference, but twoconferences in March.
In fact, March is going to bereally busy.
And I think it's going to go byso fast.
And.
I just, I'm needing to get readyfor conference and thinking
about.
All the excitement that willcome along with it, all the
challenges that come along withpreparing for conference.
(01:18):
Of course the expenses that comealong with it.
And I thought just taking alittle bit of time with you
today to talk about like, whyI'm attending conference, how I
manage getting the most out ofconference.
And then hoping that if you'regoing to be at the American
hippotherapy, associationconference or at the
(01:38):
occupational therapy associationconference, that we can connect
at conference, because again,This time around I really want
to extend that invitation tomeet in person as much as
possible to connect.
To listen and find out what yourdoing with animals and aquatics
(01:59):
in your OT practice.
One of the important things thatwe think about with conference
is really being able to sayupdated with professional
development in our field.
And.
I think conference gives us anopportunity to catch some of
that excitement.
Again, from.
Other people who are doing whatwe're doing or learning about
(02:22):
some of the newest research andlearning how we can incorporate
that.
Into our niche area of practice.
When we think about like, Well,why go to conference at all?
There's a lot involved in it.
And.
What are we going to get out ofit?
Well, Let's just, let's take theAmerican hippotherapy,
association conference to startwith, since that's the one I'm
going to.
(02:43):
Soon.
And.
There are, there are so manythings to get out of that.
And it's really important for meto attend conference, not just
because I'm on the faculty.
But also that opportunity toconnect and network with others.
To find out what other peopleare doing.
(03:06):
And be able to incorporate someof that back.
Into what I'm doing with my ownclients or at the facilities
that I partner with.
I think that opportunitywhenever you can to attend a
conference that is specializingin your niche is really
important because it reallyimmerses you in that area for a
(03:29):
couple of days.
And let you get out of your,like day-to-day practice.
And then come back andincorporate the new things.
Now, one of the things I'vealways shared with people when
they attend conference.
And it's usually after they cometo one of my presentations and
they have some sort of dilemmain how they're going to
(03:49):
incorporate this informationwhen they get back to their home
base.
And I always say that's one ofthe great things about
conference, because it opens upthis door to say, This is
something new that I learned inconference, and I feel like it
would be really good toincorporate at our facility.
It would be really good toincorporate into my OT practice.
(04:10):
It'd be really good toincorporate into how we do
therapy here.
And it's not just you saying itto your team, to your
administrators?
It's conference.
Right?
And so it opens the store in away that it doesn't have to be
you bringing this informationback.
Now when we're at conference, wealso have this opportunity to
(04:33):
learn about new research, newtechniques, advancements in the
field that are going on.
And they can bring.
Both a lot of excitement and alot of relief, I think
sometimes.
When you see that other peopleare doing or struggling with the
exact same things that you areall around the country and in
some cases, all around theworld, And it can just bring
(04:56):
that sense of, I'm not the onlyone that, that is having this
challenge or.
I'm doing what other people aredoing too.
I'm on the right track.
So that exposure to a lot ofdifferent perspectives and
different approaches can bereally helpful and can be such a
value.
Of going to conference.
(05:18):
Now, when I go to the AOTAconference, it is a little
different.
I'm going to talk about that aswell in how I take that
information and then apply itbecause often there are maybe no
sessions at all on.
Nature based practice oraquatics or hippotherapy, or
incorporating farm animals.
(05:39):
Like the niche areas that I'mreally special-ed.
I specialized in.
Often, there's not a lot of.
Information in those areas.
The good thing is there is a lotfor the academic side of my
life.
So for the professor side, I candefinitely brush up on and learn
new skills and incorporate newtechniques into my teaching.
(06:02):
But I also think that.
I can take a presentation onsocial, emotional learning.
And.
I take like crazy notes when I'mat those presentations in
particular, because I need totranslate it.
And so I need to translate itfrom a clinical setting, into an
(06:23):
niche setting and.
I feel like that's part of myjob as a coach of other OTs and
OTAs is to be able to take thatinformation and then translate
it to our specific niche areas.
And that ability to take areally wide variety of
information in, and then look athow you could apply that or
(06:43):
create a program around it orincorporate those techniques and
or what needs to be modified touse it in our area.
I think those are some of thereal opportunities of attending
professional conference again,whether that's aha, whether that
is the AOTA conference.
And.
(07:04):
Like I said, I'm kind of rightin the thick of getting ready
and.
To really maximize yourexperience at a conference,
whatever conference you might begoing to is to think about
getting ready before conferenceand setting some goals for
yourself.
Of your purpose for attendingconference.
So if it's networking with otherpeople, if it's gaining a
(07:28):
certain skillset, What types ofinformation do you need to be
looking on the lookout for whileyou're at conference?
Are you going to be trying totake some short courses rather
than just introductory topics?
Are you trying to really broadenyour perspective on things?
Do you want to network withcertain people you want to be
(07:48):
introduced to certain people?
Those are really goodopportunities at conference.
To network or to talk to otherpeople who are at a university
near you.
Those are great opportunitiesfor conference.
So looking at the conferenceagenda, the sessions, the
speakers.
And really figuring out likewhat your flow is.
(08:09):
And I'm going to talk a littlebit about.
Getting like overwhelmed atconference as well.
I'm an introvert and conferencecan be really big and loud and
bright.
And there's a lot of sessionsthat I want to attend.
And of course, you're alwaysthinking about getting value for
the money that you're paying togo to conference, but also how
to keep it manageable, I thinkis important.
(08:31):
And then going through like yourtravel arrangements,
accommodations.
All of that.
I am the absolute worst at that.
I have literally showed up, liketo conference with like, just
the plane ticket.
Like I have my plane ticket,I've paid for attendance and
that's it.
Like, I don't have an Uber.
I don't have a rental car.
I don't know how I'm gettingfrom the airport to the
(08:51):
conference location.
And I'm just like, okay, I'llfigure it out.
When I get there, that's thekind of traveler I can be.
And it doesn't really bother me.
I can figure things out, but.
Certainly when I'm travelingwith family like that doesn't
fly.
If I'm traveling further away,it's probably wise, I would say
to make sure you have all youraccommodations figured out.
(09:15):
That way you're not worryingabout that.
It's not going to take time outof attending the conference,
which is what you're there for.
And then preparing any materialthat you want to bring to share
with others while you're there.
Now, one of the fever myfavorite things is bringing some
little token to give to peoplethat I meet or they just
(09:40):
surprise me in a particular way.
And I love having a littletoken, a little something.
To give, so thinking about that.
Networking piece, like how areyou going to connect with
people?
Are you bringing business cards?
Are you going to have a QR code?
Do you need to bring informationabout your private practice?
All that staff can be reallyhelpful in preparing for
(10:03):
conference.
Now.
I briefly touched on the expenseof conference and, looking at
these two conferences back toback, they're both in March.
It is definitely the budgetingpiece, is a big piece to it.
And.
There's a variety of differentways.
We can look at funding.
(10:24):
Budgeting it into whether it'syour own private practice or to
your employer, that you need tomaintain your continuing
education.
You have continuing educationrequirements for licensure.
If you're HCB certified or anHBCs, you need that continuing
education in hippotherapy, likespecifically.
(10:44):
So you can seek yourreimbursement rate for
conference expenses from youremployer.
And it's wonderful when youremployer will support you in
conference attendance.
So for the AOTA conference, myemployer.
As a professor, they aresupporting me in that.
So that way I can go along withour team and, be part of that
(11:08):
experience.
Now we can look for scholarshipsor grants.
There's not a lot that I've seenout there.
I don't think that's a hugearea.
For attendance also crowdcrowdsource, crowd funding.
And fundraising for aconference.
Now that definitely has a betterpotential because you're drawing
(11:29):
on, people who maybe alreadyknow you and support you.
But the biggest way that we alldo it right, is utilizing
personal savings.
Budgeting.
Strategies to cover that expensefrom within the business or
again, from your employer.
And it just really is part andparcel of doing business.
So knowing, for the Americanhippotherapy, association
(11:50):
conference that happens everyother year, So I just need to
budget that and I need to setaside that money.
And, having a rough idea of whatthose expenses are going to be
is important.
Not only do we have thefinancial side of things, but we
also have conference attendanceand are like financial losses or
(12:11):
professional commitments thatare coming with that.
And that means like additionaltime management.
So I need to time block ahead ofconference to batch things, make
sure everything is done.
Tidied up and ready to go.
And then I also need to timeblock after conference for the
things that I've missed out onand need to catch up on.
Planning ahead communicatingwith supervisors, colleagues,
(12:34):
clients, about time off the factthat there's maybe not going to
be any services or if someone iscoming in and covering for you
that they've had a chance tocome in and see the clients
ahead of time.
All of that goes into.
Managing conference attendance.
And when we think about.
What responsibilities you are,maybe not going to be handling
(12:57):
while you're at conference.
That can be really important,especially when it comes to
horse care or animal carefacility, maintenance, things
like that when you're not goingto be around for those.
Three days to a week forconference and.
You don't really want to begetting that call when you're at
conference that something isgoing on at home and I think
(13:19):
I've sat at enough breakfasttables to hear people trying to
deal with those calls or dealwith those client calls.
And it really does take yourfocus away from the purpose of
being there and being atconference.
So.
Thinking about how you candelegate those responsibilities.
For that time being while you'regone.
So somebody answering the phone,they're managing any, animal
(13:41):
emergencies, anything like that.
So that way you've planned forthat.
And you really can be focused onconference when you're there and
really get the best out of it,you can be making the most of
your conference experience.
When you're getting ready to goto the sessions that you've
signed up for your workshops.
(14:03):
And you want to, as much aspossible be present, be an
active participant.
If you have questions, stickaround afterwards, ask those
questions.
I certainly always love whenpeople come up to me afterwards
and ask questions.
Presenters are there to sharetheir experience, but.
Getting feedback from theaudience is the best, like one
(14:25):
of the best parts of presenting.
And that really helps you getsome confirmation on what you're
thinking, what you're planning.
How your thoughts fit into whatthe presenter is presenting.
And.
Take some time go to theexhibitors hall.
Looking see, support theexhibitors that are there.
(14:47):
Ask same thing, ask questions tothem, find out about what their
products are.
If they could help you in yourbusiness.
I think one of the things that Ireally enjoy about conference
and I make A priority to do itis to sit at different tables.
And to try to meet and talk withdifferent people.
It's super comfortable for me tohang out with the people I know,
(15:10):
but I know that I'm going togain much more insight and I'm
going to hit some of those goalsthat I've set for myself.
If I mix it up and I try to sitwith different groups at each.
Mealtime we have, and that justgives me such an opportunity.
So certainly it comes, sit at mytable.
If you see me at conference, Iwould love to chat with you.
(15:31):
When we get to those breaks atconference, we can think about
how we can incorporate breaksand self care.
Into managing how intenseconference can be.
Again for me.
It can be very overwhelming.
There can be sensory overload.
Fatigue is an issue.
It's that like, well, I'm onlyhere for a couple of days.
(15:51):
Like I want to stay up.
I want to talk to everybody.
We're going to go out to dinnerafterwards.
Like I don't want to miss out onthose opportunities.
Versus like, I'm just reallytired.
Okay.
And then any stress that comesup again, that could be stress
from home things that you'remanaging from a distance or just
the stress of learning a lot ofnew things.
So you want to take time to.
(16:14):
Take a break.
If you need to go back to yourroom and your room is on site
that's that can be a really goodthing, even if it's just like 10
to 15 minutes.
It can allow you to resetyourself.
Making sure that you're tryingto keep up some of your routines
that you have from home.
Staying hydrated, eating.
Getting enough sleep.
Those things can really go along way.
(16:36):
I always find the eating thing alittle bit challenging because
often you're kind of onconference schedule or routine.
And so.
I don't have access to food inthe same way that I would have
at home.
And that can be really tough forme.
I try to like sometimes I justpack snacks.
In my carry on.
(16:57):
So I have them with me.
Now.
If you're thinking about being apresenter.
Or you are presenting.
There.
I love presenting.
Absolutely love presenting.
And so this is actually one ofthe first years that I am not a
presenter, at least not that Iknow of, but I'm always good for
a backup.
(17:18):
I'm not presenting, but when youdo present.
It's great to come prepared.
Have that opportunity to get up,to speak to everybody.
Conference presentations thatare engaging in some way or
active in some way.
I think really help keepconference attendees attention
(17:39):
and having a real good startingand ending point.
And although it may seem thatyou are repeating things, if
you're covering topics more thanonce within your presentation,
often your audience is hearingit for the first time.
So when you're thinking aboutpresenting at conference, Take
some time run through yourpresentation ahead of time.
(18:00):
So that way, roughly how long ittakes you remember if you're
nervous and you're speakingquickly.
To take breaks.
Slow down.
It's okay.
If you don't know the answer toa question.
Just say, I'll get back to you.
That's really interestingquestion.
They actually have to look upmore about that.
(18:21):
Thanks for asking.
And it's not the end of theworld.
Right.
So practice your presentation.
You can do it in front of yourcoworkers or in front of your
family.
That way they can give you somefeedback and you can get the
timing right for it.
So as we went through today Ithought it was really important
(18:42):
to talk about preparing forconference, managing your
responsibilities at home.
A little bit about funding andhow you might pay for
conference.
And.
Looking at that schedule, makingsure you're balancing self-care.
The actual knowledge piece.
(19:05):
And then the networking piece.
So those things are really.
The three things I look at asI'm coming up on, like almost
back-to-back conferences here isI want to make sure I get
everything in.
Right?
And to me.
That's kind of everything.
And then.
I'm going to take thosepresentation, handouts, those
(19:26):
notes, those things that I have.
And that's when I'll reallystart to.
Pull that information togetherand then put it into practice.
And again, I have thatopportunity to come back and
say, this is something I learnedat conference.
I would like to try toincorporate it into our sessions
and get your feedback on it.
It might say that to families.
(19:46):
I might come to my husband, Ryanand say, Hey, this is one of the
things.
That I learned at conference.
I want you to take a look overthis and see if it's something
you think we could incorporateinto our private practice.
Like, what do you think aboutthis?
And.
As we have this opportunity.
And as you go to conference,Right.
This is a great opportunity topull in new knowledge and start
(20:12):
to figure out how you canincorporate it into your niche.
Now, if you're just gettingstarted and you've just listed
to our getting started series,that may be a bit of a bigger
jump to make of I'm just tryingto figure out how to get
started.
I'm not at that point where Ican incorporate and synthesize
those new materials in andthat's okay.
(20:34):
Okay too, because there, thereare people like me.
Out here.
That are doing that for you thatare getting those new.
Ideas and innovations and thentranslating them into areas that
are a niche practice.
And I'm really hoping that afterconference, maybe we can all do
a meeting together on some ofthe key takeaways, again, that
(20:58):
opportunity to connect.
And two.
Get questions and do some Q andA's or a hot seat after
conference would be somethingthat would be a lot of fun.
So.
I just want to thank you forlistening today.
And I hope this was helpful ifyou're going to be at
conference, be sure to reachout.
The easiest place to find me asan opponent academy, or you can
(21:21):
email me at opponent academycommunity.
At gmail.com.
It'll be in the show notes.
Thanks for listening.
See you next week.
This week on animals andaquatics and OT, we're going to
be talking about conferences.
Yes.
Conferences.
And that's about all I'mthinking about right now.
So I wanted to take just alittle bit of time and share
that information with you.
Now let's get started.
(00:36):
Welcome to the animals andaquatics and occupational
therapy podcast.
I'm Gina, your cohost.
Mom wife.
Private practice owner mamathree, adjunct professor at an
OTA program and probably a fewother things that I'm
forgetting.
And right now, one of thebiggest things that's going on
for us is preparing forconference.
(00:56):
Not just one conference, but twoconferences in March.
In fact, March is going to bereally busy.
And I think it's going to go byso fast.
And.
I just, I'm needing to get readyfor conference and thinking
about.
All the excitement that willcome along with it, all the
challenges that come along withpreparing for conference.
(01:18):
Of course the expenses that comealong with it.
And I thought just taking alittle bit of time with you
today to talk about like, whyI'm attending conference, how I
manage getting the most out ofconference.
And then hoping that if you'regoing to be at the American
hippotherapy, associationconference or at the
(01:38):
occupational therapy associationconference, that we can connect
at conference, because again,This time around I really want
to extend that invitation tomeet in person as much as
possible to connect.
To listen and find out what yourdoing with animals and aquatics
(01:59):
in your OT practice.
One of the important things thatwe think about with conference
is really being able to sayupdated with professional
development in our field.
And.
I think conference gives us anopportunity to catch some of
that excitement.
Again, from.
Other people who are doing whatwe're doing or learning about
(02:22):
some of the newest research andlearning how we can incorporate
that.
Into our niche area of practice.
When we think about like, Well,why go to conference at all?
There's a lot involved in it.
And.
What are we going to get out ofit?
Well, Let's just, let's take theAmerican hippotherapy,
association conference to startwith, since that's the one I'm
going to.
(02:43):
Soon.
And.
There are, there are so manythings to get out of that.
And it's really important for meto attend conference, not just
because I'm on the faculty.
But also that opportunity toconnect and network with others.
To find out what other peopleare doing.
(03:06):
And be able to incorporate someof that back.
Into what I'm doing with my ownclients or at the facilities
that I partner with.
I think that opportunitywhenever you can to attend a
conference that is specializingin your niche is really
important because it reallyimmerses you in that area for a
(03:29):
couple of days.
And let you get out of your,like day-to-day practice.
And then come back andincorporate the new things.
Now, one of the things I'vealways shared with people when
they attend conference.
And it's usually after they cometo one of my presentations and
they have some sort of dilemmain how they're going to
(03:49):
incorporate this informationwhen they get back to their home
base.
And I always say that's one ofthe great things about
conference, because it opens upthis door to say, This is
something new that I learned inconference, and I feel like it
would be really good toincorporate at our facility.
It would be really good toincorporate into my OT practice.
(04:10):
It'd be really good toincorporate into how we do
therapy here.
And it's not just you saying itto your team, to your
administrators?
It's conference.
Right?
And so it opens the store in away that it doesn't have to be
you bringing this informationback.
Now when we're at conference, wealso have this opportunity to
(04:33):
learn about new research, newtechniques, advancements in the
field that are going on.
And they can bring.
Both a lot of excitement and alot of relief, I think
sometimes.
When you see that other peopleare doing or struggling with the
exact same things that you areall around the country and in
some cases, all around theworld, And it can just bring
(04:56):
that sense of, I'm not the onlyone that, that is having this
challenge or.
I'm doing what other people aredoing too.
I'm on the right track.
So that exposure to a lot ofdifferent perspectives and
different approaches can bereally helpful and can be such a
value.
Of going to conference.
(05:18):
Now, when I go to the AOTAconference, it is a little
different.
I'm going to talk about that aswell in how I take that
information and then apply itbecause often there are maybe no
sessions at all on.
Nature based practice oraquatics or hippotherapy, or
incorporating farm animals.
(05:39):
Like the niche areas that I'mreally special-ed.
I specialized in.
Often, there's not a lot of.
Information in those areas.
The good thing is there is a lotfor the academic side of my
life.
So for the professor side, I candefinitely brush up on and learn
new skills and incorporate newtechniques into my teaching.
(06:02):
But I also think that.
I can take a presentation onsocial, emotional learning.
And.
I take like crazy notes when I'mat those presentations in
particular, because I need totranslate it.
And so I need to translate itfrom a clinical setting, into an
(06:23):
niche setting and.
I feel like that's part of myjob as a coach of other OTs and
OTAs is to be able to take thatinformation and then translate
it to our specific niche areas.
And that ability to take areally wide variety of
information in, and then look athow you could apply that or
(06:43):
create a program around it orincorporate those techniques and
or what needs to be modified touse it in our area.
I think those are some of thereal opportunities of attending
professional conference again,whether that's aha, whether that
is the AOTA conference.
And.
(07:04):
Like I said, I'm kind of rightin the thick of getting ready
and.
To really maximize yourexperience at a conference,
whatever conference you might begoing to is to think about
getting ready before conferenceand setting some goals for
yourself.
Of your purpose for attendingconference.
So if it's networking with otherpeople, if it's gaining a
(07:28):
certain skillset, What types ofinformation do you need to be
looking on the lookout for whileyou're at conference?
Are you going to be trying totake some short courses rather
than just introductory topics?
Are you trying to really broadenyour perspective on things?
Do you want to network withcertain people you want to be
(07:48):
introduced to certain people?
Those are really goodopportunities at conference.
To network or to talk to otherpeople who are at a university
near you.
Those are great opportunitiesfor conference.
So looking at the conferenceagenda, the sessions, the
speakers.
And really figuring out likewhat your flow is.
(08:09):
And I'm going to talk a littlebit about.
Getting like overwhelmed atconference as well.
I'm an introvert and conferencecan be really big and loud and
bright.
And there's a lot of sessionsthat I want to attend.
And of course, you're alwaysthinking about getting value for
the money that you're paying togo to conference, but also how
to keep it manageable, I thinkis important.
(08:31):
And then going through like yourtravel arrangements,
accommodations.
All of that.
I am the absolute worst at that.
I have literally showed up, liketo conference with like, just
the plane ticket.
Like I have my plane ticket,I've paid for attendance and
that's it.
Like, I don't have an Uber.
I don't have a rental car.
I don't know how I'm gettingfrom the airport to the
(08:51):
conference location.
And I'm just like, okay, I'llfigure it out.
When I get there, that's thekind of traveler I can be.
And it doesn't really bother me.
I can figure things out, but.
Certainly when I'm travelingwith family like that doesn't
fly.
If I'm traveling further away,it's probably wise, I would say
to make sure you have all youraccommodations figured out.
(09:15):
That way you're not worryingabout that.
It's not going to take time outof attending the conference,
which is what you're there for.
And then preparing any materialthat you want to bring to share
with others while you're there.
Now, one of the fever myfavorite things is bringing some
little token to give to peoplethat I meet or they just
(09:40):
surprise me in a particular way.
And I love having a littletoken, a little something.
To give, so thinking about that.
Networking piece, like how areyou going to connect with
people?
Are you bringing business cards?
Are you going to have a QR code?
Do you need to bring informationabout your private practice?
All that staff can be reallyhelpful in preparing for
(10:03):
conference.
Now.
I briefly touched on the expenseof conference and, looking at
these two conferences back toback, they're both in March.
It is definitely the budgetingpiece, is a big piece to it.
And.
There's a variety of differentways.
We can look at funding.
(10:24):
Budgeting it into whether it'syour own private practice or to
your employer, that you need tomaintain your continuing
education.
You have continuing educationrequirements for licensure.
If you're HCB certified or anHBCs, you need that continuing
education in hippotherapy, likespecifically.
(10:44):
So you can seek yourreimbursement rate for
conference expenses from youremployer.
And it's wonderful when youremployer will support you in
conference attendance.
So for the AOTA conference, myemployer.
As a professor, they aresupporting me in that.
So that way I can go along withour team and, be part of that
(11:08):
experience.
Now we can look for scholarshipsor grants.
There's not a lot that I've seenout there.
I don't think that's a hugearea.
For attendance also crowdcrowdsource, crowd funding.
And fundraising for aconference.
Now that definitely has a betterpotential because you're drawing
(11:29):
on, people who maybe alreadyknow you and support you.
But the biggest way that we alldo it right, is utilizing
personal savings.
Budgeting.
Strategies to cover that expensefrom within the business or
again, from your employer.
And it just really is part andparcel of doing business.
So knowing, for the Americanhippotherapy, association
(11:50):
conference that happens everyother year, So I just need to
budget that and I need to setaside that money.
And, having a rough idea of whatthose expenses are going to be
is important.
Not only do we have thefinancial side of things, but we
also have conference attendanceand are like financial losses or
(12:11):
professional commitments thatare coming with that.
And that means like additionaltime management.
So I need to time block ahead ofconference to batch things, make
sure everything is done.
Tidied up and ready to go.
And then I also need to timeblock after conference for the
things that I've missed out onand need to catch up on.
Planning ahead communicatingwith supervisors, colleagues,
(12:34):
clients, about time off the factthat there's maybe not going to
be any services or if someone iscoming in and covering for you
that they've had a chance tocome in and see the clients
ahead of time.
All of that goes into.
Managing conference attendance.
And when we think about.
What responsibilities you are,maybe not going to be handling
(12:57):
while you're at conference.
That can be really important,especially when it comes to
horse care or animal carefacility, maintenance, things
like that when you're not goingto be around for those.
Three days to a week forconference and.
You don't really want to begetting that call when you're at
conference that something isgoing on at home and I think
(13:19):
I've sat at enough breakfasttables to hear people trying to
deal with those calls or dealwith those client calls.
And it really does take yourfocus away from the purpose of
being there and being atconference.
So.
Thinking about how you candelegate those responsibilities.
For that time being while you'regone.
So somebody answering the phone,they're managing any, animal
(13:41):
emergencies, anything like that.
So that way you've planned forthat.
And you really can be focused onconference when you're there and
really get the best out of it,you can be making the most of
your conference experience.
When you're getting ready to goto the sessions that you've
signed up for your workshops.
(14:03):
And you want to, as much aspossible be present, be an
active participant.
If you have questions, stickaround afterwards, ask those
questions.
I certainly always love whenpeople come up to me afterwards
and ask questions.
Presenters are there to sharetheir experience, but.
Getting feedback from theaudience is the best, like one
(14:25):
of the best parts of presenting.
And that really helps you getsome confirmation on what you're
thinking, what you're planning.
How your thoughts fit into whatthe presenter is presenting.
And.
Take some time go to theexhibitors hall.
Looking see, support theexhibitors that are there.
(14:47):
Ask same thing, ask questions tothem, find out about what their
products are.
If they could help you in yourbusiness.
I think one of the things that Ireally enjoy about conference
and I make A priority to do itis to sit at different tables.
And to try to meet and talk withdifferent people.
It's super comfortable for me tohang out with the people I know,
(15:10):
but I know that I'm going togain much more insight and I'm
going to hit some of those goalsthat I've set for myself.
If I mix it up and I try to sitwith different groups at each.
Mealtime we have, and that justgives me such an opportunity.
So certainly it comes, sit at mytable.
If you see me at conference, Iwould love to chat with you.
(15:31):
When we get to those breaks atconference, we can think about
how we can incorporate breaksand self care.
Into managing how intenseconference can be.
Again for me.
It can be very overwhelming.
There can be sensory overload.
Fatigue is an issue.
It's that like, well, I'm onlyhere for a couple of days.
(15:51):
Like I want to stay up.
I want to talk to everybody.
We're going to go out to dinnerafterwards.
Like I don't want to miss out onthose opportunities.
Versus like, I'm just reallytired.
Okay.
And then any stress that comesup again, that could be stress
from home things that you'remanaging from a distance or just
the stress of learning a lot ofnew things.
So you want to take time to.
(16:14):
Take a break.
If you need to go back to yourroom and your room is on site
that's that can be a really goodthing, even if it's just like 10
to 15 minutes.
It can allow you to resetyourself.
Making sure that you're tryingto keep up some of your routines
that you have from home.
Staying hydrated, eating.
Getting enough sleep.
Those things can really go along way.
(16:36):
I always find the eating thing alittle bit challenging because
often you're kind of onconference schedule or routine.
And so.
I don't have access to food inthe same way that I would have
at home.
And that can be really tough forme.
I try to like sometimes I justpack snacks.
In my carry on.
(16:57):
So I have them with me.
Now.
If you're thinking about being apresenter.
Or you are presenting.
There.
I love presenting.
Absolutely love presenting.
And so this is actually one ofthe first years that I am not a
presenter, at least not that Iknow of, but I'm always good for
a backup.
(17:18):
I'm not presenting, but when youdo present.
It's great to come prepared.
Have that opportunity to get up,to speak to everybody.
Conference presentations thatare engaging in some way or
active in some way.
I think really help keepconference attendees attention
(17:39):
and having a real good startingand ending point.
And although it may seem thatyou are repeating things, if
you're covering topics more thanonce within your presentation,
often your audience is hearingit for the first time.
So when you're thinking aboutpresenting at conference, Take
some time run through yourpresentation ahead of time.
(18:00):
So that way, roughly how long ittakes you remember if you're
nervous and you're speakingquickly.
To take breaks.
Slow down.
It's okay.
If you don't know the answer toa question.
Just say, I'll get back to you.
That's really interestingquestion.
They actually have to look upmore about that.
(18:21):
Thanks for asking.
And it's not the end of theworld.
Right.
So practice your presentation.
You can do it in front of yourcoworkers or in front of your
family.
That way they can give you somefeedback and you can get the
timing right for it.
So as we went through today Ithought it was really important
(18:42):
to talk about preparing forconference, managing your
responsibilities at home.
A little bit about funding andhow you might pay for
conference.
And.
Looking at that schedule, makingsure you're balancing self-care.
The actual knowledge piece.
(19:05):
And then the networking piece.
So those things are really.
The three things I look at asI'm coming up on, like almost
back-to-back conferences here isI want to make sure I get
everything in.
Right?
And to me.
That's kind of everything.
And then.
I'm going to take thosepresentation, handouts, those
(19:26):
notes, those things that I have.
And that's when I'll reallystart to.
Pull that information togetherand then put it into practice.
And again, I have thatopportunity to come back and
say, this is something I learnedat conference.
I would like to try toincorporate it into our sessions
and get your feedback on it.
It might say that to families.
(19:46):
I might come to my husband, Ryanand say, Hey, this is one of the
things.
That I learned at conference.
I want you to take a look overthis and see if it's something
you think we could incorporateinto our private practice.
Like, what do you think aboutthis?
And.
As we have this opportunity.
And as you go to conference,Right.
This is a great opportunity topull in new knowledge and start
(20:12):
to figure out how you canincorporate it into your niche.
Now, if you're just gettingstarted and you've just listed
to our getting started series,that may be a bit of a bigger
jump to make of I'm just tryingto figure out how to get
started.
I'm not at that point where Ican incorporate and synthesize
those new materials in andthat's okay.
(20:34):
Okay too, because there, thereare people like me.
Out here.
That are doing that for you thatare getting those new.
Ideas and innovations and thentranslating them into areas that
are a niche practice.
And I'm really hoping that afterconference, maybe we can all do
a meeting together on some ofthe key takeaways, again, that
(20:58):
opportunity to connect.
And two.
Get questions and do some Q andA's or a hot seat after
conference would be somethingthat would be a lot of fun.
So.
I just want to thank you forlistening today.
And I hope this was helpful ifyou're going to be at
conference, be sure to reachout.
The easiest place to find me asan opponent academy, or you can
(21:21):
email me at opponent academycommunity.
At gmail.com.
It'll be in the show notes.
Thanks for listening.
See you next week.
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