User:Sixflashphoto/Thoughts after Wikiconference North America 2018

Thoughts after Wikiconference North America 2018

If you have never been to a wiki event before go to a meeting of your local chapter. My first conference was a fairly large one and it left me a bit overwhelmed on the first day. The first day I felt as though I still didn’t know how I could properly contribute to some projects but by the end I started to get my feet wet.

If you feel completely physically drained you’re not alone. I did. I had to take a couple days to myself after just to recoup some energy. That was a good decision on both ends, both to try and experience as much as I could while I could and to physically regroup for a few days after.

Take the opportunity to learn about and expose yourself to other wikiprojects that you may be unfamiliar with or may seem intimidating on their own. The people who would be best answering your questions are right there with you and will be willing to help you.

Find users you recognize or have similar interests and strike up a conversation. I ended up with ideas such as taking my camera to sessions with authors to expand commons collection of living people, an idea that probably wouldn’t have occurred to me otherwise.

If you are having difficulty understanding someone because of language difficulties or different accents a bit of very attentive listening and good intentions on your part to make sure you heard what someone said correctly even if it means repeating it back if you are really not sure will go a long way.

If you are taking photos and have to choose later on between which to upload, the one where you nailed the focus or the one where you got the moment you wanted correct, go with getting the moment. You can always go back through and upload the others later.

Manage your time carefully. I found there were a lot of sessions I wish I could have attended but couldn’t because of time conflicts. The presenters are willing to answer any questions you may have on the topic later if you catch them at a good time.

more to come...