LTNY - To Go or Not To Go

Believe it or not, I have worked at iCONECT now for over a decade, and during this time I have been to LTNY 6 times. This year marks my first time staying home since 2011. Let me just say I love NYC! I don’t want to live there, but I could visit 3 to 4 times a year and have a great time every time.

However, this year things have changed for me personally. I have been a foster/adoptive parent for a few years now and this October I finally got a foster placement - a little girl. She is 3, and is a welcome addition to my family, even if the threes are way worse than the so-called terrible twos. With her best interests in mind, I have decided to stay home this year…but I am wondering already what I am going to miss.

Here is what I know I am going to miss:

• Seeing and catching up with clients, partners, and friends that I haven’t seen since the last Legaltech show in New York.
• Attending the sessions that my peers present.
• Playing the game – spot the tchotchke collector - you know these people, the ones with bags and bags of free stuff.
• Checking out all the cool new stuff that is coming to market.
• What juicy gossip will make its way around the tradeshow floor after the first night/party.
• Special bonding time with my peers at iCONECT that I don’t see every day.

Here is what I am not going to miss:

• Standing on my feet for hours a day. I don’t do this in my normal day and it is painfully obvious after standing on the floor for the first hour.
• Trying to remember what I talked about with the guy with the blue shirt, 4 people ago. I swore I’d remember but I didn’t make a note.
• Waiting at the end of the day for the elevator at the Hilton to take me to my room so I can lay down on my bed and rest my feet.
• Trying to find somewhere to eat lunch at 4 PM because the booth was so busy with demos.
• The desert-like conditions in the ballroom that make me crave ChapStick® and water from the little cone cups.

So you can see there are a lot of PROS for going and a few for staying home - and one very important one for me, my little girl.

Since I am staying home, we had a spot to fill, and this year we have decided to send Bryan Miedzinski from our awesome Support department. Bryan, too, has worked at iCONECT for years, and some of you have probably spoken with him when calling Support. Bryan is strong client advocate and he gives 110% every day at work. So yes, I am rewarding him with tradeshow duty! But let’s remember it is tradeshow duty in one of the most interesting fun-filled cities in the world, and he has never been.

Over the last few weeks, I have tried to arm Bryan with what I know about surviving Legaltech: have a water bottle, bring gum/mints/candies to help with the desert effects, wear your most comfortable shoes, eat when you can during the day, and when the day is done look at your To Do in NYC list and check something off that is totally awesome. I have made quite a dent in my To Do in NYC list, including seeing the Statue of Liberty, going to the Top of the Rock, seeing some wonderful plays with A-list stars in them, going to some great LTNY parties, eating at great restaurants, and my personal favorite attending a Rangers game at Madison Square Garden.

So while I will miss the Bright Lights Big City of NYC, I am happy to pass the torch off to Bryan this year. He will be a great addition to the booth, and he will get to meet some of you face to face for the first time, cross some To Do’s off his list and experience New York City! So come by our booth (1402) and meet Bryan, then post your comments below to let me know what cool technology I missed!