This weekend-long event, held November 3-5, 2017, and officially called Voices in Aging: The Business of Aging had an enormous impact on me.

By intermingling thought-provoking keynotes with dynamic interactive sessions, this event challenged me intellectually. It also brought out both the team player and the leader within me, and it encouraged me to foster deep connections with others. It even brought me to tears at times.

Sponsored by The Society of Certified Senior Advisors (SCSA), who began planning for it over a year ago, it was indeed an awesome experience. I am so grateful to Judy Rough, Senior Director of Strategic Alliances at SCSA, for inviting me to apply to be one of the conference presenters.

Most of those in attendance were Certified Senior Advisors. People with this credential work in a wide variety of companies and programs that serve older adults. The rest of the attendees were folks like me – those who provide services to these dedicated professionals. Two of those professionals are in the photo above along with me: Suzette Cobb of Cobb Senior Advisors and Angela McCants of Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate are in the photo.

 

 I Found the Conference Rewarding Because:

  • The conference organizers did a tremendous job of keeping me and the other presenters in the loop. Judy Rough, my point person for the event, sent frequent emails with just the right amount of information.
  • About a month prior to the conference, each of the presenters doing shorter (15 minutes) talks like mine created a webinar of their presentation. These nine webinars will become part of the virtual conference offerings.
  • All through the conference, including during my final preparations for my live talk, SCSA staff was super helpful. They answered all my questions and provided me the tech support I needed before and during the presentation.
  • The space at the Westin Hotel in downtown Denver where the conference met was very conducive to its format. Being at this excellent venue, combined with the fact that there were only about 80 attendees plus staff, added to the intimate feel of the whole event. Plus, the food was terrific!
  • The structure of the event promoted interaction throughout the weekend.
    • The Friday night reception was open-ended visiting time.
    • Within each half-day block of time, there were opportunities for team activities.
  • The activity facilitators encouraged people to vary whom they sat with during each interactive session. That made it possible for each to have deep discussions with many people.
  • A special treat for me was being the scribe and spokesperson for one of the afternoon team activities. We used the format of the World Café, which promotes small-group discussion on meaningful topics with varying sets of people.

 

 How About You?

Please share about a conference you have attended (whether as a participant or as a presenter) that had a profound impact on your life.

 

About Joyce

Joyce Feustel helps people, especially those ages 45 and older, to become more comfortable using social media, especially Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and Twitter.

She works with business owners, business development professionals, leaders of nonprofit organizations, job seekers, consultants, and many others. Find her at www.boomerssocialmediatutor.com.