This month, I wanted to share some experiences from conferences! I love conferences and look forward to the opportunities to travel around the country to spend time with other ADHD coaches and entrepreneurs, increase awareness of ADHD challenges, and finally meet some of my long-distance clients face-to-face. It’s like the social season of 19th-century London when the movers and shakers gather together in the city for debutante balls, elaborate dinners, and spectacular galas. They can be both exhilarating and exhausting.

My next conference will be the three-day 6th Annual International ADHD Coaches Organization (ACO) in Atlanta, Georgia. Then, I am off to Orlando, Florida, for Suzanne Evans’s four-day extravaganza, “Be the Change Event.” At both events, I will present on different topics, host a booth, and try to connect with as many amazing people as possible.

As much as I love conferences, they can be incredibly challenging for ADHD adults (and even for those who don’t struggle with focus, planning, or organization). Over the years, I’ve become a veteran of these trips and have developed some strategies to offset ADHD symptoms, so I enjoy and get the most out of these days. Here are some valuable tips and tricks that I want to share with you:

1. Do your homework. Many conferences post their speaker schedule online or provide tips on traveling to and from the airport. Researching before you arrive makes you more prepared and likely to notice important things, such as when you are speaking or if meals are included.
2. Book your hotel room as soon as you know you will attend to secure a place at the hotel where the conference is being held. The “conference rate” hotel rooms fill fast. You will save time and money by not having to travel back and forth (or get distracted by the scenery and miss your speaking time), and you will be able to sneak back to your room to rest if you get a break between sessions. Having quiet time to refuel will go a long way to helping you succeed with ADHD.
3. Bring a highlighter and a small notebook. When you get the schedule of events, please highlight the sessions you want to attend so you can plan your day and be reminded easily. The notebook is your ‘ADHD brain cheat sheet’. After you meet someone you want to reconnect with after the conference, jot down the information on your laptop. You can also keep track of tidbits of inspiration and knowledge you acquire. Both are ways to offset the information overload and distraction often accompanying conferences.
4. Wear comfortable shoes. No matter your role at the conference, you will be on your feet more than you think. Smiling and being your best self when your feet hurt is hard.
5. Wear layers. The temperature in the rooms throughout a conference varies greatly.
6. Bring a trusted sidekick. If you have a booth, having an assistant there can alleviate the stress of keeping track of sales receipts or other details and allow you more time to network with colleagues and clients.
7. Take your ADHD medication. If your conference is out of town for multiple days, see if your psychiatrist will write you a short prescription you can fill if there is an emergency.
8. Realize that you can’t clone yourself. If multiple sessions are running at the same time, you will need to partner with a colleague, divvy up the schedule, and share notes on what you learned. You can also take advantage of the options to purchase and review recordings on the plane ride home.
9. Decide what you want to get out of the conference. Your goal may be acquiring new skills, networking with colleagues, building your contact list, or interacting with clients. If you set your intention before you arrive, you will be in the right mindset and prepared to learn, connect, or promote yourself. But be flexible; these events often offer new opportunities, and you can move outside your comfort zone to discover great new ideas at conferences.
10. Bring your business cards! In fact, put them in your travel bags right now!
11. Be open to learning. You may be an expert in your field, but that doesn’t mean you can’t pick up something new. And you may be surprised where you learn it. Nuggets of life-changing brilliance can happen anywhere—even during a brief conversation on the elevator.
12. Especially at niche-specific conferences such as those in the ADHD field, everyone knows everyone. The traditional six degrees of separation is reduced to about two or three. It is a great chance to network and meet those you emulate…but it can also be a damaging place to gossip.
13. Sleep. As much as you can before and during the event. It may be tempting to stay up all night at the welcome reception—the energy and thrills of being there can be hard to walk away from. But remember, that’s just day one. Conferences are marathons, and you need to recharge and take extra care of yourself to get to the end in good spirits.
14. Bring nutritious, easy-to-pack snacks. Conferences can be exhausting, and having healthy snacks on hand, such as dried fruit and nuts, goes a long way to keep you energized and your ADHD brain focused. Another trick is to travel with a few packets of oatmeal and a disposable spoon. Breakfast is typically the most complicated meal to catch during conferences. Adding hot water, readily available in most hotel rooms, along with nuts and dried fruit, is a great way to start your day.
15. Finally, plan for a day of decompression when you return home. A sudden reentry back into your world could create exhaustion that defeats all the positive energy you experienced at the conference. It also helps to process all that new information with a clearer perspective.

If you have additional tips on conferences, especially ideas on coping with ADHD symptoms, please share them below.