ATTENDING A CONFERENE ONLINE


By Doug Dunn

 When attending a large event online people often ask how it compares to the live event. I actually got more value from Landmark Worldwide's online Conference for Global Transformation than the live conference last year in Hollywood, California. That doesn't mean I enjoyed being in my own living room more than the Ray Dolby Ballroom in Hollywood, Los Angeles. By the way, while writing this I happen to be watching a film called Alex in Venice (2015) which I expected to be about Italy. No, it is Venice, LA and I've just spotted two places I remember from my visit last year; a bridge over the Venice Canals and the Skate Park. I definitely enjoyed last year's conference experience. But did I get more value?
Photo credit: D Dunn Venice Canals, LA


What I see now, with extra time to reflect and write about this year's experience, is that what is created and shared is more important than the method of presentation. What is important is what I got, what we all got from the event. All 900 participants.


I will share what I got but first I want to say why I found it more value being online. Firstly, l listened more than usual. I didn't get distracted by checking out the people sitting around me. I didn't have any thoughts about who will I go to lunch with or hang out with for dinner. All there was to do was listen, take some notes and be present. Secondly, I shared more than in the live event. There were many small group 'breakout sessions' which made it easy to share openly and freely. Also the presenters were all outstanding, perhaps making up for being online, but I think it was due to the 'listening' created throughout the three day event.
As a result I think we all got more than we might have at the live event. But next year I have registered for the live Conference in LA and aim to bring that same level of sharing and listening, but still enjoy the hanging out part as a separate experience. Oh, and what I got was hearing about the Foundation for Climate Restoration from its founder Peter Fiekowsky and his daughter Eric Dodds both committed to restoring the climate to pre-industrial levels by 2050. And I got that he is accountable for that happening and will make it happen out of his commitment to the planet and the need for goal setting.
The other thing I got was something I declared at the Conference. I said I am curious about exploring the practice of love in various ways of communication.  Creating an intimate space for listening in one-on-one conversations, bringing love to guiding someone through a task and to generating acknowledgement.  I am also taking on bringing love to online meetings and events. Here's the 'poster' video presented by Fatima Lemas that inspired me: The Practice of Love. 


The film I was watching just ended showing scenes of Venice in LA by night. I never got to see that last year!

Doug Dunn has a Software Training background having worked for 30 years in London. Now living in South Devon, he devotes time to writing, astronomy and  tennis. He wrote Being on the Moon in 2012 and enjoyed collaborating with the authors of Human Crossings – 9 stories about refugees published in 2019. This year he published a report in Landmark Worldwide’s Conference for Global Transformation Journal highlighting the benefits of writers working together. You can email Doug on dgdun@aol.com.


This blog post and its content is copyright of Doug Dunn, 2020. (c) All rights reserved.

Comments

  1. Cláir Ní AMay 25, 2020 at 9:42 AM

    It sounds like a completely different manifestation of the conference, Doug. If the conference reverts to being a physical experience next year, will you be more aware and more focused there? It could be interesting to compare and contrast experiences.

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