Getting creative

When times get tough, entrepreneurs need to get creative.

Industry conferences and seminar can be expensive, but they are also great ways to network and stay abreast of what's the newest trends. In tough economic times, our marketing budgets can't always support the ticket price. However, many conferences will let you attend if you volunteer some hours to the conference.

For the cost of a couple of hours of your time - you still get to network, you still get to be seen by your peers, you get a little closer to the event organizers and you haven't drained the bank account.

Making lemonade . . .

Last weekend, I headed off to an industry conference. I checked online and the flight was on time. But when we got to the airport, there was a three hour delay. Apparently, thunderstorms were blanketing the East Coast. Ugh!

I took a seat at the gate and contemplated my fate.

Unintentionally, I took a glance around the waiting area. As you can imagine, there were many disgruntled passengers milling about. Across the way sat a industry colleague, who I did not know that well.

I went up and introduced myself. We had met at a function last February, so we exchanged pleasantries and grumbled about the delay. He in turn introduced me to his boss, who I had not met before. I suggested we grab some coffee to pass the time.

We talked about the industry, we talked about projects and we talked about how we could work together. Next thing we knew, they were calling our flight. When I returned to my office on Tuesday, there was a message waiting to schedule a follow up meeting.

So the next time life hands you lemons and lots of free time – NETWORK!