Blissdom 2012

Have you heard of the Blissdom Conference? Until very recently, I hadn't. Blissdom is a conference for female bloggers to connect with each other, learn skills and tips to build their business and their blog, and encourage each other. Blissdom is in it's 5th year and is held in Nashville every year.

My co-worker Kellie and I had the opportunity to go to the conference this year to meet people and share Blood:Water Mission with them.  I'll admit that we were both a little skeptical that the whole thing would be a giant girl fest-- a little too much for us! And unfortunately, we weren't able to go to most of the conference.  But we did get to hear the opening keynote session and meet some wonderful people and I was so impressed by how the conference was run, especially for one that is no older than it is.  Blissdom took place at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel and when we arrived, we were greeted by friendly staff and handed this ginormous bag of goodies!

Whoa!! (Blissdom has awesome sponsors!!)

After we registered, we grabbed some breakfast and found a seat for the keynote session.  I am so glad we got the chance to hear from Jon Acuff.  You may know him as the guy behind Stuff Christians Like.  He has also worked with Dave Ramsey and he is an author, speaker, and social media guru.  The guy is hilarious. I loved what he had to say- I thought that it was extremely relevant for people.  That's right- not just mothers, bloggers, women, but anyone who works, or has a family, or has ever tweeted or been on Facebook.  That's most of us, right?

Bad iPhone pic. :(

Here are some of my takeaways from his talk:

• Figure out your dream.  You're not the only one who hasn't figured it out yet.
• Never compare your beginning to someone else's middle.
• Instead of asking, "What do I want to do with my life," ask, "What have I done that I loved?" Instead of discovery, think of it as recovery.
• Make time for things that matter.  Use time that others in your family don't need (aka when they're not in the house or asleep).
• You will disappoint people. Learn to disappoint the right people.
• Ignore the voices: both external and internal.
• 90% perfect and shared with the world reaches more people than 100% perfect and stuck in your head.

I can't say enough good things about this guy and all the wisdom he had to share. Go read his blog. Follow his tweets. Buy his books. That is all.

After hearing from Jon, we watched video messages from Zac Efron and Oprah. Yes, OPRAH! Then it was time to mingle and meet some lovely ladies before we had to head back to the office.

My co-worker Kellie and me!

I wish I could share more, but all I can say is that if you ever have a chance to go to Blissdom, you should! Also, big thanks to Alli Worthington for the opportunity to attend Blissdom and share Blood:Water Mission with our new friends. Alli is one of the amazing Bliss Chicks behind Blissdom and she is one talented lady!