There’s no getting away from it. We’re getting to the point in January where we start to remember the list of resolutions we made, in the first bright-eyed days of 2017, and wince a little.
Yoga routine lapsed back into namaste-in-bed? How’s that daily cycle commute going since it started raining solidly? Statistically, most of us have broken our well-meaning promises by now, and are starting to slide back into our old habits.
But fear not: there’s a super easy way to instantly halt that sense of creeping failure, in an incredibly efficient (and tax-deductible!) fashion. Self-improvement? Travel more? Grow your business? Invest in yourself? Simply book onto a conference and, boom: all of a sudden you’re totally winning at this “new year, new you” thing.
To help get you inspired, here’s a quick run down of eight interesting events that you might like to check out in the first half of this year, neatly matched to the resolution you may or may not be keeping…
Resolution #1: Act like an owner
Solution: Owner Summit
Location: San Diego, USA
Date: February 20-22, 2017
Cost: $1,450 USD
Acting like an owner is one of the principles that all Shopify employees try to abide by — but what if you’re already in the driving seat; looking to take a firmer grasp of the reigns in 2017, and needing a little hit of inspiration and empathy from those who find themselves in a similar position?
Check out Owner Summit, a mix of traditional talks, camp sessions, and one-on-ones to help fire you up. They’re also going one better than most conferences, and putting their money where their mouth is in terms of diversity; $100 of your ticket price will go to the awesome non-profit organization Girl Develop It, which provides affordable programming in web and software development for adult women..
Resolution #2: Beat my creative slump
Solution: The Meat Conference
Location: Edinburgh, UK
Date: March 4, 2017
Cost: From £69
After the lull of the holidays, then a steady build up of the very best of intentions, a lot of folk report feeling a little flat in terms of creativity during the early part of the year. If you find that you’ve returned to the office, and struggled to live up to your “back with a bang” ambitions, an event like The Meat — “a day of stories and insights to inspire, light a fire, and level up your creative career” — could be, quite literally, just the ticket.
Promising a single track format of talks and a great crowd of like-minded creatives, all set against the backdrop of the historic, cultural Edinburgh, this could be the shot-in-the-arm you need to get things moving again.
Resolution #3: Understand my customers better
Solution: Habit Summit
Location: San Francisco, USA
Date: April 5-6, 2017
Cost: From $675.00USD
Perhaps 2017 is the year that you’ve resolved to get to know your customers better, be they the users of your websites, the clients that you work with, or the consumers of your products.
When it comes to this element of your business, it’s incredibly easy to fall back into the same patterns of research and development that you’ve always relied upon. But if you’re keen to dig a little deeper, then considering an event like Habit Summit could be just what you need to ring-in some changes.
Expect hands-on workshops, coupled with speakers sharing best practices and learnings in consumer psychology, design, and behavioral science.
You might also like: Working On-Retainer: Why the Survival of Your Development Business Rests on Long-Term Clients
Resolution #4: Get more hands-on with UX
Solution: UX In The City: Oxford
Location: Oxford, UK
Date: 20-21 April, 2017
Cost: From £396
Located in one of the world’s most inspiring and beautiful cities, UX In The City: Oxford is a great option to explore if you’re looking to enhance your UX understanding this year.
Billing itself as “a community-driven, practical user experience conference,” you’ll leave with new ideas and skills to improve your user experiences, an increased professional network, and memories of many useful conversations.
There’s also the option of an additional workshop for those seeking a really deep dive.
Resolution #5: Supercharge my Shopify Partner status
Solution: Unite
Location: San Francisco, USA
Date: 20-21 April 2017
Cost: $499 USD
Of course, if your resolutions are specifically commerce-focused, there’s really only one event to head for this year.
After an incredible debut in 2016, Unite is back, and bigger and better than ever, with endless opportunities for learning, connecting with the Shopify Partner community, and getting ahead of the curve by hearing about the latest developments. Experience two full days of product announcements, industry insights, and community building with Shopify Partners from around the world, set against the ridiculously beautiful backdrop of the San Francisco bay and bridge.
Resolution #6: Overhaul your website
Solution: Now What? Conference
Location: Sioux Falls, USA
Date: 26-27 April, 2017
Cost: From $199 USD
If you’ve promised yourself that you’re going to get back to bare bones with your tired old website, and are wondering, “now what?” — you may have just answered your own question.
Coming up for its fifth consecutive year, the Now What? Conference has a strong focus on content throughout, so if you’re planning a big overhaul, this might be the spring clean that your brain needs before getting down to business.
Offering a format that combines talks with more practical workshop elements, this event promises “two days of notebook-busting, pencil-scribbling, brain-exploding content.”
You might also like: 10 Stunning Ecommerce Websites to Inspire You in the New Year
Resolution #7: Nail user engagement
Solution: From Business To Buttons
Location: Stockholm, Sweden
Date: 27 April, 2017
Cost: SEK 5,999 (roughly $700 USD)
If you’re looking for a practical boost to your user engagement skills this year, why not get the ball rolling in one of Stockholm’s most historic breweries? From Business To Buttons promises attendees the definitive low down on how to generate business value, by creating great user experiences, and looks to have put together an impressive line up, with a few surprises still to be revealed. Mike Monteiro’s workshop, “Presenting Work Like Your Life Depends On It,” looks like it will be especially useful.
Resolution #8: Overhaul my brand
Solution: The Brand Stylist Retreat
Location: Santanyi, Majorca
Date: 22-25 May, 2017
Cost: £2580
Where to start? With its incredible surroundings, this retreat-style event crushes your brand overhaul, yoga quota, and Instragram following resolutions in one strike!
As you’d expect from someone so brand-aware, the whole retreat is perfectly styled, beautifully scheduled, and practically focused. With “an opportunity to take a break from the day-to-day grind to reflect, recharge, and reinvigorate your business” — doesn’t The Brand Stylist Retreat sound exactly like the start to 2017 that you envisaged?
You might also like: A Year of #PartnerPicks: Inspiration for Your Next Ecommerce Project
Your ticket to fresh beginnings
So there you have it — just a handful of the many exciting event options waiting for you out there, across the globe.
Strike while 2017 is young, while that sense of boundless optimism is fresh, and when it’s still vaguely acceptable to wish folk you’ve not seen in ages a happy new year.
Register for your passes and get those flights booked!
