First time attending SXSW! (and visiting Austin!) March 7-11 2013
What an experience! The flights were great- no ear wounds this round. I think my body is getting used to the pressure finally. This city was great, I can see why some people call it the best city in the US. I can't say the same for the people, simply because most people I met were not from there and were SXSW attendees themselves. From my understanding, a lot of Austin folks hit the road when SXSW comes around to avoid the nonsense. It is BUSY. The panels I went to were great. I'm unsure if I employed the best strategy, though. I went to topics I was interested in and thus not sure if I gained 'new' information. Maybe I should have gone to panels I had no knowledge of? Either way I'm convinced there is no right way to go about the festival. It's physically impossible to attend every lecture, event, panel, party, meet up, etc. Thousands of things are going on all during the same time frame so you pick and choose and commit to that plan. I didn't look ahead at the schedule until I got there and it worked out for me. Everything I stood in line for I was able to see. Loved, loved the digital anthropology lecture I sat in on from the folks over at Oglivy CommonHealth. And the experience vs ownership panel with Rent the Runway owner. Jason Silva was mind blowing- and I'm still digesting his talk and the one about electricity giving you superpowers? It was one of those things I need hands on interaction with to fully grasp the concept because it was pretty out there. Neat- but very complex.
I am also wrestling with if SXSW was the greatest networking place for me to go to. I'm not a partier, never been a huge music fan, and in any loud situation it's difficult for me to hear well. I think my expectations fell a little short, but I don't think my actions helped. Hopping from panel to panel and in and out of taxis/shuttles is exhausting and extremely germ infested. I had a heavy load of work to get done on my shoulders while I was there and that stress weighed down on me a lot. I couldn't fathom the idea of actually getting sick this season. I started feeling under the weather by Sunday afternoon and I needed to listen to my body. I can't live in a go-go-go atmosphere, after three days my body said enough!
If I went again there would be two options. One- not pay my way. It was expensive as F*CK for me to get there and I wasn't even able to stay the whole time. My employer would need to send me, and they could trust I won't just get wasted the whole time. Win win! Or, I would go to Austin and not register- and just enjoy Austin and the lively city scene during that time. Not everything going on you need to be a SXSW attendee for.
So I give the trip a B-
For pictures from the trip, see my public FB album:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151560542888023.1073741825.626408022&type=1&l=f3c04a15a0
And for my daily outfits from the weekend check out my other blog:
http://realgirlwardrobe.tumblr.com/