How To Convince Your Boss To Let You Go To Conferences

Frame it like a big opportunity for the company—because it can be!

Attending conferences can be a valuable way to accelerate relationships, build trust, supercharge team spirit, keep your company relevant, and stay current with industry trends.

My experience attending ETHDenver 2023 was a PERFECT example of that. I am confident that participating in the conference (and the many side events) will greatly accelerate the success of Gitcoin (the main organization I contribute to) and my own career.

I want you to have similarly transformative experiences like the one I just had in Denver. But the problem is, many bosses don't understand the value of conferences in the age of remote work.

Here's how to convince yourself and the leaders on your team to let you go to the next big conference as part of your job:

1. Explain that face-to-face meetings can accelerate relationships 10x faster than trying to build those relationships online. I made about 10 new close friends and 50 new warm acquaintances in just two weeks. There's 0 chance that would have happened virtually.

2. Explain that there are certain relationships that just can't be built online. Many people just can't trust someone unless they've partied with them or had coffee with them. I am one of those people.

3. Explain that in-person team retreats are an unbeatable way to build esprit de corps. Being able to interact with team members only through Zoom and Discord almost inevitably chips away at the sense of team spirit felt between members. A great team retreat can reinvigorate that spirit—a spirit that is essential for the team to function well and achieve its goals. I swear that the Gitcoin Team Retreat before ETHDenver breathed new life into the organization.

4. Explain that conferences can be essential for a company staying relevant in the eyes of industry leaders. Your competitors may zoom ahead if you skip the conferences where tons of valuable partnerships can be formed.

5. Explain that conferences can help your company stay current with industry trends. Conferences can be a great way to stay up-to-date with industry trends and best practices. You never know what inspiration you’ll get for how to level up your company through watching a talk or chit-chatting with a fellow industry member.

6. Explain how you will learn new skills and meet new industry colleagues who will help you do your job better. You will learn a lot by attending talks and discussions. And you will also benefit from having new relationships with peers in your role niche (e.g. crypto lawyer, crypto marketer) to bounce ideas off of when you get stuck.

By attending conferences in a strategic and effective manner, organizations can significantly accelerate their success, as well as the career growth of individual team members. Conferences provide a unique opportunity to form valuable partnerships and gain inspiration on how to elevate your business to the next level, ultimately contributing to the achievement of both personal and organizational goals.

My experience at ETHDenver is one of many case studies that demonstrate how true this is.

If you think you can use a conference to take your company to the next level, be sure to share these benefits with your boss to convince them to send you to the next big conference.

I am super bullish on well-run conferences for builders. When we break through into a new golden age for humanity, there's no question in my mind that certain conferences will have played a huge role in making it happen.

I'll see you in my next post (and the next ETHDenver-level crypto conference 🫡).