My Experience at That Conference 2024

Hey everybody, I'm super excited to share with you the incredible journey of attending my first ever THAT conference in late July 2024 in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin. Not only was it my first time attending, but I also had the honor of being a speaker!!! YIKES! So let's talk about ALL of it and reflect on some of the best moments.

Day One: Arrival and First Impressions

Our adventure kicked off bright and early on Monday. My family and I headed to the airport for Jack's first flight. Despite some nerves due to his autism, his superpower, he handled it like a champ. The flights were smooth, and we had a chatty Uber driver who claimed to know the owner of Kalahari Resorts—I'm still skeptical about that.

Upon arriving at Kalahari, we were greeted by an impressive facility. It's a massive resort with a safari theme, complete with themed hotels, multiple restaurants, an indoor and outdoor water park, plus an amusement park. It's a fantastic spot for families and much more affordable than Disney World.

After a slight hiccup with early check-in, we settled into our room. I was eager to hit the conference floor, my nerves buzzing with excitement. We managed to grab lunch at the Wisconsin Brew Pub—decent food at reasonable prices—and took a lap around the property. Jack was stoked, though he missed out on Tom Foolery's. Next time, for sure.

I finally met Clark, the founder of that conference, and a friend I've been chatting with for about a year now. It was great to give him a hug and see him so composed before the event kicked off. After a day of meeting people and exploring, we called it an early night to prep for the excitement of the next day.

Day Two: Keynote and My First Conference Talk

Waking up at 5:30 a.m. in a hotel room with Jack proved challenging, but I managed to join a group of runners for a 5k run at Kalahari Resort. It was a beautiful run, and I met some inspiring individuals, including a man preparing for a 100-mile ultramarathon.

After the run, I brought breakfast back to the room for my family. The day began with Clark's inspiring opening words, followed by Kent C. Dodd's keynote, which Jack and I caught a glimpse of before watching the rest on YouTube.

The afternoon was reserved for my talk on community building. Despite some nerves and equipment malfunctions, it went incredibly well with an engaged audience and valuable questions. The experience was a testament to the power of authentic community building.

Post-talk, I was buzzing with adrenaline. Dinner with my family was followed by quality time at Tracy's Lounge, a space for attendees to unwind and connect. It was a day filled with deep conversations and new friendships.

Day Three: Rest, Reflection, and More Insights

Choosing to skip the morning run, I opted for a workout at the fitness center and some extra sleep. Breakfast was followed by Mark's talk on being intentional with every moment we have here on earth, which moved me to tears and resonated deeply.

“Sometimes your aren’t born into your whole family.”
        -Mark Techson

Lunch led to a peaceful afternoon at the poolside with Jack and Rachel, away from the overstimulation of the water park. Later, I attended Sarah Shook's talk on colors and participated in a podcast with Tracy and Rob from This Dot, where I also co-hosted an episode with my friend Nate Emerson.

After Sarah's talk and the podcast, I enjoyed a really good pig roast dinner with everyone from the conference. It was great to see everyone enjoying themselves. One thing that was also going on was the live stream that Andrew and PJ were doing on the main stage, with lots of audience interaction. The energy was just really fun and entertaining.

I hadn't mentioned the hallway track yet. This conference was more than just a tech event. It was a journey filled with personal growth, family involvements, and professional milestones—from Jack's first flight to my first conference talk. Each step was a memory etched in time.

That conference also rented out the entire indoor water park for us, so we got to have private access, which was very nice. I did go on a couple of water slides, which was pretty entertaining. Not much for publicly shared water spaces, but having it be a smaller group of familiar people made it more inviting. That was at 9 or 10 p.m. I hung out for a bit and then went to get some more rest.

Final Day: Reflections and Goodbyes

On the final day, Thursday, I woke up and worked out in the fitness center. The final keynote was by Clark's personal therapist, June Syndesi Kramer. Her talk on mental health was impressive, showing that the keynotes didn't just apply to tech.

Following that, I went through the booths and hung out with friends. I had Jack with me most of the morning, and he was really stoked to collect all the stickers from the vendor tables. I then went to Chris Nowicki's talk on managing life and frameworks for better efficiency. He had a great list of resources for everyone to explore also!

We were planning on leaving that day. After Chris's talk, I wandered around to say goodbye to everyone. It was bittersweet. These are my friends, and it's not just about tech. Tech brought us together, but it's the people that make you want to be in tech.

My first tech conference is hard to articulate. You can't tell people what it's like; you have to experience it. You have to see your friends, have the talks, and listen to the talks about life, about being better people. And all of those things circle back to making you a better developer.

It's a great opportunity for families, with a whole family track with Legos and different activities for the kids. Jack loved the Lego room.

And for those not into the conference, there's pools, water parks, and a spa—Rachel got a massage one morning.

I definitely want to go back next year. Loved my time there and am really honored that I was asked to speak. Thanks for checking out my little recap, it genuinely can't do this event justice, go check out the links and get connected with myself here and THAT conference and get involved.

<p>"It's about tech, and its not about tech."</p>

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