Date: Fri, 11 Apr 1997 13:45:44 -0700 (PDT) From: owner-doc-talk@quake.net To: doc-talk@asgs.org Subject: doc-talk Conference Tips ======================================================================== DOC-TALKER ADVICE ======================================================================== Oona Schmid asked for conference tips. We present responses from several more doc-talkers plus Oona has submitted a summary of the tips she received. Thank you Oona. ========================================= Fellow graduate students: A few weeks ago, I posted a query about how other graduate students coped with feeling awkward and uncomfortable at conferences. Many people wrote with lots of helpful advice! I thought that I would summarize some of the themes which showed up in several responses and some of the specific advice that I received, such that others might enjoy the great hints and support that people sent. Unfortunately, I had to do some selecting - --but I want everyone to know that I found their message helpful and that I appreciate everyone's time. Thank you, Oona Schmid. -------- People were very reassuring about feeling awkward. That in itself was great to read. Many others feel ill at ease, or had at one time, even some battle-scarred veteran conference-goers! People suggested giving it time, reminding oneself that feeling uncomfortable was okay and appropriate, and might even be seen as an empowering position. Some of the specific advice people sent was: --Send an e-mail to scholars you know you want to meet in advance. Ask them about a recent publication or their interest in your current research. Sometimes they'll ask to meet you at the conference! --Prepare a question ahead for someone important that you know will be at the conference. --Stay in the main conference hotel whenever possible. --Take the initiative and introduce yourself. Be a good host. Introduce others around you. --Be socially generous. Invite others along, bring them into conversations, introduce them to colleagues, connect them to someone of common interests. --Remind yourself that young scholars are important to a conference. We bring cutting edge research to the field. We're a breath of fresh air. We remind big scholars of how far they've come! --While listening to presenters, try to look wise--frown, nod, take notes. If appropriate in your field, maybe punch in some numbers on a calculator and shake your head sadly... ;^) --Accept any invitation to eat with a group, especially gatherings of "more important people," that may or may not occur. --Remind yourself schmoozing is important and okay. Check out other people's nametags, you want to know who they are. Let them see your nametag so they can identify you. --BE KIND. Everyone is in this together. =================== From: mgoodman@bu.edu (Michael Goodman) Dear Oona, I read your doc-talk message and thought you might appreciate this message I once received from another mailing list prior to attending my first major conference. I'm not sure what your field is, but if its a social science related discipline ( I'm a sociologist in training ) I'm sure some of the wisdom will translate well. For the record the following was written by Dan Ryan, a fellow grad student at Yale University. Good luck! - -------------- I have some notes somewhere on "how to enjoy a convention" that include the following (completely unedited and unexpurgated): o Never pass up an opportunity to go out with a group to eat, especially in favor of a gathering with "more important people" that may or may not occur. o Don't let yourself get cynical about schmoozing. This IS what the meeting is about and that's not a bad thing. It is quite common for newbies and beginners to feel left out because they don't know too many people. A common response to this feeling is to express disdain for how "it's all just a big reunion of people who don't care whether a nobody like me lives or dies." That's true. The secret, though, is to know that that IS all thatit is and the only reason you feel that way is because you don't know too many people yet. Give yourself some time. Quickly slipping into the defensive wall- flower frame of mind is a sure recipe for prolonging the period in which you feel like you don't know anybody. o Related to this, don't get too turned off by nametag gazing. It is what people do at these things. Yes, people will check yours out, discover that you are nobody and then move on. Some of the folks doing this are real ass-kissing idiots who are just looking for famous people to kiss up to. Don't sweat it. Don't let the turkeys get you down. Think about this sociologically. You have a gathering of several thousand people from one profession. Most of them work in middle of nowhere places with two colleagues, one of whom they loathe. They spend all year teaching the writings of other people (some of whom are their heroes) to 19 year olds. Some of those heroes are walking around the hotel. Of course they're looking at the name tags. Alternatively, here you have a gathering of several thousand people in the same profession. Profession and job is one of the most common categories for sorting the people in one's world. If everyone around you is in the same profession, you need some other status markers to help you order the crowd. Look at the nametags. o Remember that it's OK to engage people in serious conversations about what they do, what they think about, etc. This may be the only time all year where you don't have to explain what sociology is or that it is NOT the same as social work to the person who says "oh, my brother is a social worker." o Don't worry about money -- that's what plastic is for. In the end, you are going to spend more than you intended; no use wasting emotional energy fretting about it o Stay in the main conference hotel whenever possible. The idea of staying with a friend who lives just twenty minutes outside of town is almost always a bad one. o Recognize and celebrate the fact that the most important and enjoyable part of the annual meeting is the stuff that occurs OUTSIDE of the sessions. o After you've heard your fourth or fifth poorly presented paper on poorly thought-out research, remind yourself that the speaker teaches for a living and wonder how someone who talks in front of groups 4 to 8 times a week can fail to have ever gotten good at it. o Upon checking in, locate the health club or fitness center in your hotel and see what their hours are. Then look around to see if they have a decent breakfast buffet in one of the restaurants. Next, scan through the index of the program to see if there is anyone you absolutely don't want to miss a talk by. Draw a little time chart and note where these talks are and when. If you're not doing anything else, you can try to catch them. After this, make a list of all the people you want to say hello to, have a meal with or meet. This roster is your main task list for the meeting. o Remember that everyone else is feeling like they don't know anyone too. o Always remember the first law of socializing: act like a host. This means taking the initiative and introducing yourself to others. It means keeping in mind the people you know and have met so that when you meet someone new, even if your interests are a million miles apart, you can always say "Have you met so and so? You should. I'll introduce you when I see you together." And then, when you do, they'll possibly be grateful for the intro, but definitely remember the service. All of this is based loosely on good network theory: weak ties are all -- be one whenever you can. o If you have the opportunity to introduce someone big and someone small, do it by asking the big person if they've met the small one, not vice versa. It's a wonderfully pleasant way to go against the standard status inequalities. o Be as socially generous as possible. It almost never "costs" anything to invite someone along, bring them into a conversation, introduce them to a colleague, connect them to someone of common interests, etc. and these things (a) are always remembered, and (b) go around and come around. o Buy some books. o If you're giving a talk, just tell us what you did, why you thought it was interesting and what we should remember about what you found out or showed. The point of the talk is to help me decide whether I might want to read your work or not. o If you are giving a talk, do not read your paper. Do not fight with the organizer over time. Do not be convinced that the audience will be enthralled if only you can get this one last point in. Do not edit out whole sections on the fly as you notice time running out. If you find yourself falling in love with your own prose, exercise caution. All of these things will serve only to make you look inept, unprofessional, immature and uninteresting. o Don't join your nutso colleagues in the mad rush to grab books at a discount as the book exhibits close. The behavior of some folks at this moment is truly embarrassing -- best not to join them. o Remember, you are going to spend a few days with 3 or 4 thousand people who are, perhaps, better at analyzing the social world than participating in it. Be kind. We're all in this together. Michael Goodman (mgoodman@bu.edu) Department of Sociology Boston University =================== From: Emily Parkany Even when you're not done with course-work, conferences are important for not just meeting people, but to learn the "latest" in your field and, hopefully, to motivate your own research (get ideas from others and/or be convinced that you can do it better). Don't be intimidated by the "big names" in your field. If they brush you off, then approach the younger people that have jobs you aspire to. Most people encourage questions related to their presentations--even a couple of days later in the hall. I make a point of asking everyone (in elevators, crossing the street between hotels, waiting in lobbies, air- port shuttles, etc.), are you here for the _____ conference? Often they are and it's fascinating to learn why they decided to come--it's likely that you have something in common and it's a face to smile at across the room. Even if they're not affiliated with the conference, you'll probably have a chance to explain why you're in town and it will make it that much easier when you talk to someone at the conference. =================== From: Sheilah During the time I have been working on my PhD I have attended several conferences. I am lucky because my advisor is well known in the field and she has introduced me to several other people at conferences. I have often joined her or someone she has introduced me to in the bar during the evening after the conference meetings have ceased. You just have to jump in BUT don't be pushy. Yes they may know more than you and they may have loads more experience but they don't have your take on things. You may be able to give them a new slant on things. At one conference I was able to approach someone whose work I admire and discuss possible joint research with her and yes it felt wonderful when I realized I had held up my end of the discussion without making a fool of myself. Another time, I joined in a discussion of textbooks and actually had opinions and suggestions that the others (professors) had not thought of, or so they said. My advice is jump in and after a couple of experiences like I have listed above it will be easier. Sheilah Coffey (almost ABD) ========== From: David Atkinson Most new grad students go to the symposia and visit the posters to get a feel for their own research. Most nearly finished students spend their time hob-nobbing looking for a job. And there's everyone else in between. As a new student, pay particular attention to posters and presentations that were presented well, so that when it's your turn to present (do it as much as you can - you can get plane fare that way as well as become a familiar face) you can make a good one. I also note the posters that are constructed to be easy to travel with and post. And be sure to talk to the poster presenters - - it's good to talk to people about research! ========================================================================= DOC-TALK produced by ASGS: Publishers of THESIS NEWS, The reference bulletin for students working on a thesis. =========================================================================