WordCamp – the name conjures up an idyllic scene in the deep woods fighting off mosquitoes, making smores, and discussing the attributes and origins of words. Although Idyllic (in beautiful downtown Milwaukee), WordCamp is an event where people gather to learn about WordPress, the open source platform that 20% of the world’s websites run on.
You don’t just have to be a web developer to get something out of it. Though I’d say two-thirds of everyone attending works in web dev, there are tracks for marketing, blogging and content, design, business, and user and general information. Basically, something for everyone, from the expert to the person just starting out.
WordCamp is a great community more than anything else. It’s a great place to reconnect with friends, meet new people, learn about WordPress, marketing, blogging and tons more, and give back to the community. And, that’s exactly what I did at WordCamp Milwaukee 2014.
Reconnect with friends: One of the first things I did, even before the event, was reconnect with people I met last year to confirm they were attending. Some were, some weren’t. On the morning of the first day I tweeted out to Tom Kepler, a web developer from the Chicago area who I met last year, to find out where he was. Once there, we had a great time catching up and deepening our friendship.
Meet new people: Throughout the day people would introduce themselves. I would too. You’d get to know each other quickly; “I’m a developer at so and so company,” or “I’m a freelance designer.” I introduced myself as a writer or partner at Glass Fish Creative, a business I’m just starting designed to help small businesses and entrepreneurs with their marketing. Many people shared their own stories of going out on their own. It was great to find out what everyone’s take was on freelancing and working for someone else.
There was also a great after-party down the street at the Hilton City Center. It gave us an opportunity to mingle with others we hadn’t had a chance to meet during the day.
Learn about WordPress: Session after session was filled with valuable information. Who knew non-profits could get free website hosting or that there are ways to make using public Wi-Fi safer?
Learning didn’t just happen during sessions; people were sharing ideas in between sessions, during lunch, in the Happiness Bar area (no drinking was involved, it was a room where experts were available to answer your questions about WordPress).
Give back to the community: During one session on non-profits, the speaker commented about a hackathon that took place the day before for a local group called My Sista’s KeepHer that helps young women find their identify through writing workshops. He mentioned that they needed help with content and blog posts. That was right up my alley, so I ended up writing a blog post, some other content, and fixing some SEO issues. In one weekend, they went from not having a website, to having one where they can spread the word and take donations. It felt great to give back and be a small part of that.
As I was leaving Sunday night, I walked out with one of the speakers I saw earlier in the day and told him how much I enjoyed his session. He asked what I was going to implement right away and I told him my brain was a little foggy and couldn’t think of anything right then. He mentioned that he had trouble focusing during the last two sessions of the day as well. That’s WordCamp, there’s so much to take in, in such a short amount of time that it’ll take a while to process it all, but what a great way to spend a weekend.
Are there any events that you’ve planned as part of your summer? How will you, or how did you, spend your time?
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