Get Connected Calgary. My 3 Big Takeaways

Bye Bye Calgary.  It’s been a great 4 days.

I’ve just left the Intuit Get Connected Conference in Calgary.  You would think that with the number of conferences I’ve attended this year that they would be old hat for me, or that I wouldn’t walk away having learnt anything new.  But honestly, that is so far from the truth. So I thought I would share what I get from these conferences.

Here are my 3 Big Takeaways from the Get Connected Calgary event:

#1 – You need a tribe.  We are all pretty much on our own in this industry.  Whether you are a solo bookkeeper or accountant, or even if you’re like me, with a team.  At the crux of it, we are all pretty much navigating this new cloud journey on our own. That’s why you need to create a tribe.  A group of people who are also on this same journey. They may be at the same stage as you, they may not. But they get it. They get the excitement about where this industry is going.  They get the fear you feel as you feel as we travel into this uncharted territory together. They also get the challenges of having to learn new ways of doing things. These conferences are where you meet those individuals for the first time, and where you continue to solidify those relationships.  I’m so fortunate to have an amazing group of people who I’m proud to call my tribe and who I know have my back.

#2 – There’s always new stuff to learn.  This industry is changing so rapidly that every conference introduces me to something new.  I was at Get Connected in Vancouver less than 4 months ago, but in the last 3 days, I learned about new functionality that didn’t even exist when I was in Vancouver.  Yes, it’s moving that fast! I also get the opportunity to hear about new features that are coming out in both QuickBooks Online and from the App partners, which helps me serve my clients better and remain at the forefront of this technological revolution.

#3 – You get the opportunity to Pay it Forward.  You may have heard me say that my personal and business mission is To Educate and Empower.  At these conferences, you’ll invariably find someone who isn’t as far along this journey as you are.  That means that you are provided with the opportunity to share what you’ve learned with someone else and help raise another person in our industry.  And, quite honestly, for myself, there is no better feeling than watching someone’s fears disappear from their face when they realize they aren’t alone, or when the light bulb goes off and they get it. You can do that for someone at these conferences.

(And if you’ve returned from the Conference, excited about all you want to try and implement, AND have no idea where you can possibly find the time, I’ve got the answer for you there as well.  Here at Kninja we have just released a new video course on Taking Back Your Time.  My partner, Steve shares how you can earn back one hour a day which adds up to two full weeks each and every year.  He’s done it himself, so is speaking from experience.) It’s another opportunity for us to Pay it Forward, as the course is completely free and you can find it right here – Take Back Your Time.

So, there you go – my 3 Big Takeaways from the Get Connected Conference.  If you’ve been sitting on the fence about going to one of these events, – you must be uncomfortable 🙂 – jump down and join me.  

And if you do see me at a conference, please stop me and share your biggest takeaway, as I’d love to hear it.

Copyright: jewhyte / 123RF Stock Photo