It was a year of conferences and workshops for me. From nearby places like Boulder and Fort Collins to faraway destinations like Austin, Chicago, San Jose, and New York – my world was a whirlwind tour of conferences that stimulated the mind (sometimes) and inspired the heart (all the time).

Like most stories, I can’t help but start at the beginning. The first conference I went to – on the first weekend of 2009 – was Chicks who Click. It was my first public appearance as the Crocs social media guy and it started with a bang. I didn’t know too many people in person there – I think just Gwen Bell – but instantly I connected with online friends. The list of IRL friendships that started at CWC is amazing: Wayne Sutton, Lucretia Pruitt, Jen Fowler, Barbara Jones, Doyle Albee, Denise Smith, Amy Turn Sharpe, Kit Seeborg, Aimee Giese, Zena Weist…ahh, the list is so long, I know I’m forgetting people so I’ll just stop and apologize to those that I forgot. Heck, I even kind of dated someone I met at the conference – so that should show how amazing it was. Needless to say, these personal friendships that were cultivated from the online world have powered so much of the great things that have happened to me over the past year. It was amazing and has to instantly top the best conference of the year for me.