Every year for the past three years we have had the privilege of hosting over 100 writers on a local college campus. This year we went to my husband’s alma mater, the University of Maryland, to hold the BlogU conference.
BlogU is about having fun while creating a sense of community. We built this conference on the philosophy that “a rising tide lifts all boats.” The founders of BlogU all believe that any time one blogger achieves a high level of success, it is good for all of us, so we should constantly be trying to build each other up. In any field, when you look around and see the person to your right or your left achieving goals you set for yourself before you reach those goals, it can be hard not to be a little jealous or see those people as your competition. This year’s conference theme was Be You and we tried to focus on each person’s individual strengths and how we can use those to achieve our own goals, while realizing that other people’s success in no way diminishes our own.
My favorite part about our conference is that the attendees always tells me how surprised they are that they learn so much.
I will always be a teacher at heart, so education is the foundation of BlogU. Our sessions are not just successful people bragging about themselves and their own stories. Every BlogU session gives practical tips and tricks and applicable advice, and our attendees walk away with real world knowledge.
This year’s keynote speakers were Deva from My Life Suckers, D.J. from Thoughts from Paris, and G.G. from All the Many Layers. Each of them did a great job delivering a unique perspective about how their own stories are very different from each other and success means something different for each one of them.
I didn’t get to as many sessions as I would have liked, but I was part of the on-site team and working behind the scenes to help things run smoothly. (Although I was having some stomach issues on Saturday and had to bow out for a while.) It’s a physically and emotionally exhausting weekend, but SO worth it. I love spending three days connecting in person with the people who live inside of my computer for the rest of the year.
BlogU is also becoming pretty infamous for our over-the-top themed parties. This year’s theme was a Big Tacky Wedding, complete with plastic flamingos and camoflague wedding dresses.
Check out a few of the winners from the costume contest!
I am so glad that I was able to be a part of BlogU for the third year in a row. If you think you might want to attend next year, or if you want to get a jump start on the learning and take our online class, then head over to bloguconference.com for more details! Also, be sure to check out what the other attendees are saying by checking out their posts below.
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