Thread by @TessaRDavis

I thought I would never run another in-person event again.

But I was wrong.

Here's why you should get out of your pyjamas and go to an actual in-person event:

After DFTB20 was postponed due to COVID, it was a financial millstone around our necks.

I started to believe we could get everything we needed online.

We shouldn't bother with the risk of in-person events any more.

I was mistaken.

I spent last week hanging out with my tribe at #DFTB22.

Seeing our community face-to-face was a thing of beauty.

I now feel:

• Connected
• Energised
• Inspired

Online learning IS wonderful in many ways:

• We can do it in our pyjamas
• We can connect globally
• We can dip in and out
• We avoid travel
• It is cheaper

It’s easy to slip into thinking that we never need to attend any events in person again.

We've tried different ways of connecting people at our online events:

• DMs
• Discord
• Text chat
• Speed networking software

They all have a place, and as long you have a committed faculty, you CAN build community this way.

But it's still not the same feeling as seeing each other in person.

It's easy to forget what life was like pre-pandemic.

Online learning has become second nature.

It is ONE way to learn, but it is not THE BEST way to connect.

https://twitter.com/doc_bipolar/status/1564910432208445440

So here's what I'd ask you to do:

• Attend at least one in-person conference this year
• Get back into that awkward feeling of networking, it's a beautiful thing

Meaningful learning can happen online.

But meaningful connection is best done face-to-face.