What I'm Learning at SXSW

This is my first SXSW, but as Lynne Johnson pointed out in the Blogging While Black panel, there's more color and estrogen here than ever. Thanks to Hugh for partnering with BlogHer and BlogHers to provide some thought-provoking panels. Some thoughts and experiences that I'd like to share from my experiences here at SXSW:

1. I have lost much of the drinking/partying endurance I built up in college.
2. Grown-ups regress when the booze is free.
3. The birds here are freaking crazy--I'm talking Hitchcock-like.
4. BlogHer is a model that others can use to develop a blogging group or platform--thank you Jason Toney for the shout out
5. And shout out to Jason for making a really good point about blogging while black: you can't wait for the attention to come to you--you need to seek opportunities to be seen. I couldn't agree more, and I apply that to the women's blogging community as well.
6. There is so much opportunity for computer hardware/software companies if they decided to focus on elderblogging. This isn't a market that won't use computers; they won't use computers that are too complicated. Whoever can create tools for seniors will benefit from a growing piece of the Blogosphere. Thanks to Ronni and to Lori Bitter at JWT's Mature Market Group for an awesome panel. I wish more tech companies were there to get the message.
7. Who's butt should we be kicking? That was the question in one of the BlogHer panels on Sunday, referring to why women may not have online profiles that match their contributions online. (Quick and easy translation: Why are more top ranking bloggers men?) My takeaway: This is the wrong question to ask. The right one is, how do we maximize our contributions online? All of the panelists reported speaking engagments, community building, book deals and other heavy hitting results of having a blog. That's hardly suffering.
8. Adults don't know anything: You would think anyway. I was blown away by the number of people who attended the panel BlogHer produced on teen blogging: Meet Judy Jetson--How Technology is Transforming 21st Century Teens. The crowd hung onto every word.
9. B-friend has all the power: I asked the panel in Bloggers in Love: Intimacy, Technology and Mask-Making if the fact that both partners were bloggers allowed them to be more transparent about their relationships on their blogs. I always thought that I needed to be careful when blogging about B-friend, because he doesn't have a blog, so I'd be abusing my "Power," so to speak, by publishing my version of our relationship. Derek Powazek made a great point: B-friend's  the one in power! He knows how you're feeling by reading your blog. I prefer to say he's more intuned  to my feelings--whether he opts to take advantage of this information or not. Still, point well-taken.

There should be a panel next time for "Mixed Couples" (one of us blogs, one of us doesn't), or as I like to say (one of us wields sarcasm, one of us doesn't). Could get ugly. But, hey, Ponzi and Chris worked it out, perhaps we could too.

Gotta run and do my Studio SX interview. 

Comments

[John]

I was in a few of the same panels as you and also got to see you interviewed at the trade show. I just wanted to say good job on that, and I also thought your comments were on point. Great site, too.

[Dan]

Jory

I'm sorry I don't have the time, wherewithall to attend events like this. It sounds really great: the energy, the edge of change that people are working at. I'm glad someone with your art and sensitivities is there to be heard and to stand in the fire for the future, you know, to stand up for the real possibilities. We all can help redefine society and make a better future viable, and your voice is critical to that work. Thank you, Jory.

[Donna]

Love the idea about mixed couples -- it's certainly been an issue in my relationship! (I know, you were kidding... but I'd be there!)

[Laura]

I agree with Donna that it's an interesting point about the "mixed couples;" up to this point I've been reluctant to blog about my relationship with Chris. I mention him here and there but don't write lengthy posts specifically about the dynamics of our relationship because I'm not sure what he'd think about it since he doesn't blog. Chris has been kind of on the fence about this "blogging stuff" since I started with it but he's a pretty good writer himself and has been warming up to the idea. We decided yesterday it would be an interesting experiment to each start an anonymous blog specifically to write about our relationship. We bought the domain name last night but I am not telling where it's at since the point is to be anonymous :) (Besides, there's nothing there yet to see!!) But I think it will be a great exercise for us to do as a couple, and that way the power scales don't tip in favour of either one of us since we're both doing it.

[communicatrix]

Ripley's-type factoid: those noisy-ass birds are called 'grackles' (or maybe 'grackels' or some other spelling variation--the local who hipped us didn't spell it).

If ever there were a perfectly named animal...

[Cinnamon]

First you should be congratulated on creating BlogHer and then working with Hugh to be included in this conference. For those of us who can't do two conferences, I was grateful to at least get a sample of BlogHer stuff.

And secondly, thanks for talking to me after the BWB panel. I was feeling really unsure about how things went afterwards and your comment kept me from being in a funk all night.

[TiffanyBBrown]

points 1 - 3 are spot on. especially point 3.

why were they still awake well into the night after all of the sparrows and such were asleep? and there were 100 in a tree at any given time. i don't get it.

and point 8 is really well taken. i've found that having a big (online) mouth gets you noticed.