The Invitation to SHIFT is a GIFT: PopTech 2019

An invitation like this to shift is a gift. PopTech, a conference in its third decade, is about exponential momentum. A momentum created by diversity of content that yields no one person as the expert, rather all persons are knowledge-seekers about the issues of our times.

Speakers, performers and attendees came to share and contribute. Share what they’ve gathered. Unafraid to present hard truths and unsettling feelings about an inhumane history, a violent present, and an unknown future; always balancing with a compelling call to action and an underlying optimism rooted in humanity and hope for solutions. No longer can we sit idly by, hoping others rise to address issues with urgency. It’s going to take all of us to effect change. It’s going to be uncomfortable. It’s going to be worth it.

PopTech was a crash-course from passionate people who shared just enough story and data to spark action with staying power. We are all thoughtfully dangerous, informed advocates to challenge the naysayers and the status quo. And as of October 26, we are free to move about the country.

With over 40 speakers and presenters over three days, the content and emotion were a lot to take in and process. I found myself back home on Sunday with my family, sharing some of what I experienced with new emotions rising to the top. Images of humanity in its most raw and provocative states, particularly revealed in Nusrat Durrani and Davy Rothbart (17 Blocks) films, will remain etched in my memory always.

#SpeakersInSix

To process a bit more, I tasked myself with a Speakers in Six challenge to piece together six words about each speaker’s share. The format comes from SixWordMemoirs, a format I learned about at a Bush Foundation OTA conference in September 2014 from its creator Larry Smith. It’s hard to shake the six-word vibe after you catch it, so beware. On the upside, I’ve found it a meaningful, creative way to capture the essence of people and ideas. Especially useful for recapping a conference of this size and scope!

All the Recaps

In other forms of conference recaps, I was thrilled to tune into Moran Cerf’s daily PowerPoint recaps at the beginning of each day. He honed in on the random minutia of speakers’ TEDTalk-style presentations by connecting ideas in entertaining fashion. Kudos, Moran! At the conference’s end, we heard from James Bergman. James took the stage to present us with a poetic spoken word recap that lives on in every attendee as a deep, emotional way to tap back into the PopTech experience to SHIFT.

SHIFT

At the heart of PopTech was the 2019 theme: SHIFT. What does it take to shift? Why does it matter that we do? The word shift has many compelling definitions PopTech creators most likely considered. This version: to move or cause to move from one place to another, especially over a small distance, stands out to me. 

PopTech, a convener of corporate-types, social workers, caused-based advocates, is not grounded in any particular industry or theme. It exists to shed authentic light on the global challenges of our time. It does so in such a way that attendees have critical base level information and inspiration on so many fronts, which equates to confidence. Additionally, the sheer make-up of diversity in attendees and industries sparks new cross-connectivity between people and issues, where I often see the most creative innovation take hold. In essence, PopTech created the perfect storm for confidence and connectivity to combine and cause a SHIFT.

As for the distance referred to in the definition, the shift may be small for each individual. But that’s enough to make it actionable and meaningful to build to that exponential momentum I mentioned earlier. My takeaways from each presenter are in column format in my PopTech notebook. They answer what small shift can I make in my personal life? professional life? based on what that speaker shared. I’ll be posting about a few of them on my business FB and Instagram pages over the next few months and can’t wait to see how 250 PopTech 2019 Grads from across the country bring their small, but impact-driven shifts into their communities and the world.

Consider the Connectivity: Cause SHIFT

In a return to connectivity, I created a framework to consider and articulate the actions I plan to take. I grouped speaker talks into topics and themes to discover the priorities along with the intention behind the action. I'm sharing it on my blog to start a conversations with other attendees and I look forward to mapping the SHIFT.

-- This post also published at Sparktrack Events.

-- We were made to move. Evolve. SHIFT. Thank you to the amazing team that intentionally created PopTech and made it such an incredible experience. Thank you also to the Bush Foundation, their vision to support scholarships for innovators in MN, ND, SD is so valued. As a result of this funding, this particular cohort of 50 will continue to connect and bring these ideas in new forms into our region.