Another Great Convention and this Time I was a Speaker

Several months ago I got it into my head that being a speaker at the next SWPP Convention would be a good idea. Why I could possibly think that I don't know. The pressure, stress, worry and anxiety leading up to this event was immense. I spent many hours thinking what an idiot I was for agreeing to do such a thing. What good could possibly come of it? This is work I didn't need and stress I didn't want.

But still I did it. I made the commitment, I would follow through. Although the snow of the preceeding days did bring me to the occasional day dream of severe storms that stopped the convention from going ahead.

No such luck however. So as I sat in the room awaiting the attendees with my biggest fear being that I would be one of the unlucky ones who had no attendees. At 7:20 the first person arrived to put his bag down before getting a coffee. 'Damn', I thought. Now I am going to have to do my talk to one person and I won't get to go to breakfast after all. But at least I could say I had someone turn up. Then a few minutes later one more turned up. And then another. Before I knew it the room was nearly full and it was still only 7:45. Where were all these people coming from and why did they want to see me?

Now a whole new worry came over me. What if I had nothing new to tell these people? What if they thought 'I just wasted 2 hours of my life listening to what I already knew'?

As it turns out, five minutes into my talk and all my worries disappeared. Apparently I do have something worth saying. I'm no different to these people. I am just a few years ahead of the game. In fact, just 5 years ago I was them, attending the very same convention and looking for inspiration and confirmation that this was indeed a profession worth getting into. I've not regretted it for a minute. And I most certainly do not regret the decision to be a speaker at this event. In fact, I see this as being a moment that is going to change my life drastically.

The overwhelming feeling of pride and accomplishment when I received several compliments and much thanks was incredible and worth every minute of stress. I really appreciate all the comments and the friendliness from both the groups. They put me at ease straight away and contributed to the success by asking great questions and offering some of their experiences as well.

So thanks to all those who attended. This experience has meant so much to me. I see this as only the beginning of something new and wonderful. 2010 is going to be a good year. And I am going to be a speaker again next year so I can tell everyone all about it. Well so long as they'll have me anyway.

Comments

Anonymous said…

This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

21 January 2010 at 15:45

I am Still Me: A Story about a Transgender Boy

Meet Leo. Leo is 15 and currently going through an epic transformation that has momentarily turned the lives of himself and those around him upside down. A mum who once had the daughter she always longed for is now coping with the realisation that she will be living the rest of her life with a son instead. When your child is born you have certain expectations of the typical life they will lead but most of us know and accept that it won't necessarily end up the way we imagine. Not every person wants to marry, have kids or be involved with the opposite sex. Most of us have come to accept this and can adjust to whatever comes our way relatively easily. But few of us have expected to have to deal with a change in sex. Its not that we've hoped it won't happen, but just that it never occurred to us that it might. This is a new adjustment that we as a society are being presented with today, just like so many others that have come before. When I first heard that Phoebe ...

Burbage Carnival 2009

For the past few years my husband and I have been attending the Burbage Carnival and remarking to ourselves at how much better it could be. The carnival seemed to be declining in recent years. Earlier this year I met someone (Harvey) who mentioned that he joined the committe. When I asked him why he said he had been remarking that the carnival could do with some improvements. The response he received was rather than complain why don't you join the committee and do something about it. Its hard to argue with that. The following week I found myself, along with my husband, at the Burbage Carnival meeting. And we've been attending (most meetings) ever since. With this being our first year we didn't want to dive in head first. We contributed where we felt we could but it was great to see that what little we were able to offer still made a difference on the day. We're now very much looking forward to seeing just how much of a difference we can make next year. I just hope it ...

5 Reasons you Should Consider Getting a Professional Headshot

Headshots, or profile pictures are becoming a requirement of so many tools we regularly use or reference today. From Facebook to Linked In, Instagram to Twitter and often any website that represents a company for which you work or own will have a place to include a photograph that is meant to show your audience who you are. And how you present yourself there will tell your audience so much about you. 1. A profile picture is your first opportunity for your audience to see you. Its often the first impression you make and we all know you only have one chance at a first impression. A professional photographer has the skills to show you in the best, most suitable way to give a great first impression. (These headshots were created for recruitment firm Optima UK who asked to have their logo placed behind them. I think it makes these headshots quite eye catching and they should do their job well.) 2. Using a professional to create your headshot will ...

Limited Edition Storybook Portrait Sessions

Well in the end I didn't take this promotion as seriously as was required in so much as I didn't allocate any budget for advertising. I relied only on the few posts on Facebook and as such I only did 2 sessions, which to be perfectly honest, was all I could handle this year given that I'd not properly planned for these sessions in an already busy time of year. However, what I did do proved to me that this is something that deserves proper attention and a concerted effort to push this promotion forward. I thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of it, from shopping for props, to the sessions and then the editing. I really love the fun that these sessions provide and the look of the finished images. Spring will see a second go at this special collection with plenty of advertising in the run up to our event. I will get another chance at shopping for additional props and tools to run this limited edition promotion and I can't w...

A Most Wonderful Portrait Session with 3 Lovely Ladies

This was a dream session for me. Not only did I have 3 beautiful young ladies, but they also brought with them a fantastic wardrobe and their very own hair stylist too (mum owns her own salon). So all the elements for beautiful portraits were there. And I was thrilled to get this opportunity. Its easy to think of having portraits when you have a new baby or when you get married or have a special family occasion where you get the entire family portrait done. But its less often that people think of having their growing children photographed. After all I suppose, they are photographed at school. I even do some of those school photographs. However, those portraits are made in less than a minute per child and they are assembly line style portraits while they are wearing their school uniform. They are never going to be as special as what can be created with unlimited time and outfit changes in the comfort of a private studio. Its in this environment that I can take the time to...

Christina Lauder Portraits

Search This Blog