My First Tech Conference

Three days ago I attended the first tech conference of my entire career. As someone new to technology field I had little to no idea as to what to expect from my first Silicon Slopes Tech Summit conference. I am very happy to say that the speakers ended up leaving me very inspired and motivated to continue pursuing my career in product design. What stood out to me the most was the Adobe Women in Leadership session track.

The first session I attended was on igniting a career in design by Melissa Garon and Tania Erin. They began the session in the most unique way possible by encouraging people in the audience to interact with other by beginning the conversation with, “if you really knew me…”. What was so great about it was that the conversation could either be intimate or simple small talk. I came out with 6 valuable lessons from this session.

1. Careers are not linear
2. When applying for a job, don’t worry if you don’t meet 100% of the requirements. In fact, you only have to meet 70% of the requirements to apply. So go for it.
3. You don’t need the title as long as you’ve had the experience.
4. When you know your why, your what becomes more impactful
5. Self-awareness is critical to you going far in your career and relationships

The second session I attended was on achieving peak productivity through better focus by Dr. Sahar Yousef. “The presence of a smartphone reduces brain power, even if it’s not yours and even if it’s off,” she began. I was astounded to hear the way she described the phone at such an intimate level where the phone is no longer just a piece of technology. Instead, “it is a piece of connection to everything you care about. Your phone tells you that you matter. As humans, we love causation. We know that if we send a message out we’re most likely going to get one back. We anticipate messages that make us feel valued and important.” The worldwide problem people face is how to do more in less time with distraction being the #1 effectiveness killer.

How can we become superhuman in a time where our phones dictate how we spend our time throughout the day and can even leave us feeling unsatisfied because we ended up not getting important tasks done? She strongly recommended to do the following:

1. Schedule your time intentionally. Instead of saying,“I’m going to get a lot of work done in three hours today”, turn off your phone and put it as far away as possible from you. Then write the 3 to 4 most important tasks you need to get done for the day. Then you can break your day up into chunks- 1 hour for math homework, 1 hour for this project, and so on.
2. Eliminate distractions. One of the distractions that kills time are emails. Don’t keep the email tab open as you are getting work done. Set a time for when to check it. Finally, if there’s one type of email that you know you frequently send out, make a template. It’ll save you time.
3. Don’t be a tab hoarder. If you’re someone who loves to have 10+ tabs open at once, stop. Only keep tabs open that you need to get the task completed in front of you.
4. Try time-blocking. You’ll work faster and be more efficient if you take 5-minute breaks. Go for a walk, get a drink, eat a snack.
5. Design your day. Calendar block 3 peak hours for cognitively, high-value work. Use your peak hours to your advantage and get the high priority tasks done. That way you’ll end up feeling like you accomplished a lot for the day and can do the least demanding tasks at a later time.

The last session I attended hosted by Adobe was on becoming a better you by Lauren Walker, the Chief Supply Officer for Young Living Essential Oils. Something that I found critical to making workplace environments not only in tech but in all areas, is the danger of the word “girls”. According to Walker, “this words categorizes us in a way that makes us ineffective and categorizes us in a way that makes us feel less than, not equal to.” I appreciated her talk about becoming better than we already are, because she emphasized the importance of challenging ourselves. “If you’re not challenging yourself throughout your life and your career, you’re not really growing.” So what did I learn from this session? Well, here are a couple of the takeaways;

1. Be a kid. Allow yourself to be vulnerable and don’t be scared to ask questions if you don’t know the answer to something.
2. Courage starts from who you are and what you have to offer.
3. Don’t let anyone take your power away from and discourage you .
4. Be your own CEO. You are in control of your life. You have the power to make decisions and you have the opportunity to create change.

My final takeaway is that the Silicon Slopes Tech Summit in Salt Lake City taught me that growth is infinite. I learned that leadership is something we can practice in our everyday lives by being kind to those around us and using our skills and knowledge to empower others. The women who led the sessions I attended were some of the most powerful and compassionate individuals I’ve encountered in my career. I am grateful that I had the opportunity to learn from some of the most knowledgeable and charismatic leaders in the tech industry and it is a moment in my career that I will cherish for a lifetime.