The Worst Part About the Best Thing [278]

I just got back from the SAIS Independent School Brand Summit in Chattanooga, and I want to talk about something that I think a lot of us avoid admitting.

Getting there was miserable.

The airport was packed. The plane was packed. The whole process of getting from my house to the conference hotel felt like an endurance test. I'm not complaining. Okay, maybe I'm complaining a little. But here's the thing I keep coming back to.

The minute I sat down in my first session, the minute I started having real conversations with real people who do what we do, I forgot all of it. The cramped middle seat. The delayed flight. The overpriced airport sandwich. Gone.

There is something about being in person that we cannot replicate on a screen. I know we all know this. I know it sounds obvious. But knowing it and acting on it are two very different things.

I've been to a few conferences over the past several months, and each time, I leave with the same thought: I need to do this more. Not because the sessions are always earth-shattering (though some are). Not because I love airports (I absolutely do not). But because something happens when you're physically in a room with people who understand your world.

You let your guard down. You ask the questions you wouldn't type into a chat box. You hear someone describe a challenge that sounds exactly like yours, and for a brief moment, you feel a little less alone in this work.

And that matters. Especially for those of you who are departments of one. Especially for those of you who spend most of your days explaining what you do to people who don't fully understand it.

So here's my encouragement this week. Find something. It doesn't have to be a national conference. It could be a regional event, a state association meeting, or even coffee with a colleague at a nearby school. But make the effort to be in person with someone who gets it.

Yes, travel is terrible. Yes, your calendar is packed. Yes, your budget is tight.

Go anyway.

Thanks,
Brendan

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About Abi: Abi is a seasoned marketing and admissions professional, with over 6 years of experience working in-house and agency-side in the private and independent school world. A wannabe-graphic designer at heart, Abi has leveraged Canva for her teams and her clients to make workloads more efficient, elevate schools' brand consistency, and most importantly, have some creative fun.

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