How to win at conferencing

She was right in the front. All three times.

This week was the annual PRSA International Conference, the largest PR conference in the country. I gave three different presentations. In each one of them, this lady named Karen sat in the front row.

When I opened it up for questions, hers was the first hand in the air. One time after I answered hers and about four others, there was a lull. After waiting politely, Karen asked another one.

In one of the sessions I invited people to draft pitches on the fly and come forward to share with the crowd and get feedback. Guess who was first in line?

I admired her thirst for knowledge, and I assumed she was making a career transition and was just starting out in media relations.

After the third time, I had to talk to this person. Her full name is Karen Thurm Safran, VP of Strategic Partnerships at iD Tech. And guess what else?

She’s been pitching for 17 years! She’s placed stories in the New York Times FIVE TIMES. This year alone, she has been in Fortune TWICE.

I was really impressed that she’d be that aggressive about professional development when she had already accomplished so much. And I told her so. She seemed surprised I’d say that. “There’s so much to learn, I want to make the most of every opportunity,” she said.

In retrospect, it shouldn’t be surprising that Karen’s attitude toward learning goes together with a stellar track record of success. One causes the other. Especially today, when media relations is changing so fast.

Whether you attend conferences or get your professional development through other means, go all in. Soak it up. If you treat learning as background noise while you’re working or otherwise multitask, your capabilities will be likewise second-rate.

Unless you’ve got a big mutual fund or a chest full of gold buried in your backyard, your career skills are your strongest financial asset. When you invest in honing them, the payoff comes via raises, promotions, and better business opportunities.

My next stop on the conference circuit is the PR News Media Relations conference in DC. Hopefully there will be many Karen-clones :).