How to 'conference' in the impact community

As SOCAP approaches, I’ve been receiving a good number of outreach and contact requests with some version question in common: “How do I make the most out of SOCAP”?

For so many of our participants, attending SOCAP requires a significant? commitment? of time, funding, focus and travel (not to mention being away from home during the busiest time of “conference season”).? So naturally, this question comes up.

As I myself fly into San Francisco to meet the rest of the SOCAP Global team, I feel compelled to share a few recommendations for those whose this is a first time at SOCAP and for those who have been with us before, but are wondering what to expect this year. Most of these are inspired by notes I have been taking in the last few months as we developed set of content sessions that speak to this year’s themes of trust and urgency.

Show up in authenticity:

SOCAP is the opposite of the traditional “industry” conference. In this sense, when you meet someone new, try to put away your elevator pitch, slow down your networking engines and drop the organizational script. If you are at SOCAP to meet those who can help you find a better way to do your work, connect with those who have more proximate leadership, experts who can guide you on how to measure your impact and yes, those who can fund your amazing work; well, then you are there to ask for help/support/collaboration.

Yet, when you show up as the polished, brochure version of yourself, then you are not really inviting support.

Try to establish authentic relationships as much as you can, and when you do, then take the risk of sharing what keeps you up at night, or the latest failure you learned from, or invite others to join you in thinking through a struggle. You will be surprised by how conversations that take those risks turn into bolder, stronger collaborations down the road.?

Bring your own resources to the table:

So much has been said over the years about the “dance” and power dynamics between funders/investors and? founders/social enterprises (you can now add LP’s and GP’s to that equation). Yet, SOCAP offers a moment suspended in time and place where all these actors of the ecosystem are together in a place where they all need from one another.? Knowing this, a universal equalizer in any new conversation is every actor’s availability to support the other. To be sure, this won’t overturn power dynamics; however, it will allow you to enter any new relationship in a condition where you know you lead with your value and will to put it at the service of this new partnership. Even better, I would suggest skipping asking people’s roles and affiliations. “What is the impact you want to have in the world?” is probably the better question to lead with. Followed by “How can I help?“

Find your fractal (or let it find you, it happens naturally!):

In a conference with thousands of people in attendance, it is normal to feel a bit overwhelmed. And (why not) lonely! However, if you pay attention, you will observe a phenomenon that happens naturally: you start running into the same set of 30-50 people. (You can seek this out by following the thematic track in the agenda that most interests you to start with!). This set of people, this is your fractal and it’s a magical group of peers, community of practice, conference friends or people with a common interest. I encourage you to take a chance and call for a picnic lunch together, an impromptu? meetup to get to know each other better, and even collect their contacts to have a debriefing zoom together. One beautiful fractal practice I’ve observed? goes as follows: Pick a place at lunchtime of the first day. Invite people you meet and are likely to have the same interests to meet you there. Go around in a circle and share what your objective is and who you are looking to connect with. Then, go around in a circle again and commit to help those in the circle achieve their objectives. So, when you cross each other in the hallways, it’s really nice to run into someone whom you know is looking out for you (and you for them!)?

Plan, but also, let serendipity happen:

Conferences have fantastic resources nowadays , including apps and databases of all participants. This is a really useful tool to identify specific people you want to meet, reach out and ensure you will have some time to introduce yourself and network. That being said, make sure you leave some time for serendipity. I know that this is a bit harder to do for Type A, planning personalities. However, you can also think of serendipity? as something you can ensure happens to you. For instance, if you are looking to meet someone interesting in the climate space, then attending a session on climate will increase the likelihood of running into someone that might offer you a perspective you haven’t seen before. In this sense, I encourage finding your right balance between attending content sessions, facilitated networking sessions and just standing by the coffee stand, striking conversations with fellow coffee-lovers. ?

Set time aside for homework:

For all the relaxing and flowing I have just suggested, this is a key one. The one where most people fall short. Create a good follow-up system and follow up. Set time aside to dedicate some time to do right by your promises of introducing someone, sending a link to a study, connecting to a future event or sending that updated deck. By the time the conference has ended, we will all have invested so much in building trust, that your best way to honor that investment is to pass the first test of trustworthiness. The social and environmental? challenges we face collectively? are too urgent for those follow-ups to wait.?

Finally, the simplest one: Please, enjoy! And, don’t forget? to send us your feedback. We have given it our best go this year, but we do so knowing that convening is an ever-evolving practice and we would love to hear your thoughts and ideas for how we might make it even better next year.

See you at SOCAP!

Impactfully yours,

Michelle