Well the LSS 09 conference is next week...and as I am packing my bags and getting ready to go I have been reflecting back thinking about what really worked well for me last year and what I might do differently this year to make the conference productive and useful as well as enjoyable.

OK, so I admit I am a 6-sigma kind of guy and am always looking for ways to make things better...and of course, I always look at process as a key to improvement.  So in addition to making sure I have packed enough clean pairs of sox to last through the conference, I am reflecting on ways to improve the overall experience.

One thing I did well was think about the conference as an entire experience first, and then looked at the tracks within the conference that would be interesting.  I settled on two of the tracks rather than trying to cherry pick accross all the various sessions so that I could get in great depth for a particular focus.  I am not suggesting this is a good strategy, but it is a strategy that I found useful.

The other thing that I found very useful was to introduce myself and engage with as many of my fellow participants as possible.  I had prepared a series of two or three questions to ask and got some terrific ideas and tips from people that I spoke with.  It is clear that attenders are smart, experience and knowledgeable and very willing to share their thoughts.

So, those are two ideas that helped make my experience productive.  I invite readers to share their ideas, also.

See you in Phoenix

Russ, 2009 BlogMeister