Y’all! I didn’t mean to have such a gap in blogging, especially after that mic drop of my last post regarding my mom’s birthday. Life has been a little bit crazy since, especially with preparations for Alt Summit! I cannot believe it is less than a week away. If you’ve been around here for a while then you know that I went last year (you can check out my recap here), and it really changed the way I looked at and thought about my business! I returned home from Alt ready to do things I had only talked about doing (for years) and did them quickly, too.

Now that I’m in the pre-Alt homestretch, I took a little time to think about why I’m so excited to return this year, and I decided to share that with you.

The Energy All Around

If you’ve been to a blog conference, then you’ll understand the silent humm of energy that fills a space. However, I believe that Alt takes it to another level. Even if you attended Alt, not a creative at all, but just surrounded by others, you’d feel the vibe. It would excite and entice you. It would spark your curiosity. They say that a smile is contagious. OK, well if you’re surrounded by hundreds of them, chances are you’re going to crack one too. Maybe a laugh as well? I’m just about out of creative energy juice from last year’s Alt, so I’m excited to refill my cup!

The Change of Scenery

“But, Kachet, you travel all of the time.” Well, if you look at last year’s travel calendar, I am behind:), but for realsies, I am looking forward to it. The change of scenery goes beyond picturesque Palm Springs and the colorful Saguaro Hotel. Alt is different. I’m looking forward to the change of scenery amongst other bloggers and other creatives from different parts of the country, in a really cool spot…with some really good food.

The People

I made so many great friends at Alt Summit last year and I am looking forward to reuniting with them. Some I’ve kept in close contact with and others I’ve kept tabs on through social media. I am also excited to make new friends and create some great connections with people that I can collaborate with this year. There’s a lot to go around; it’s all about who you spend your time with. I’m also looking forward to getting to know some of the Alt sponsors better. A lot of them are different than last year and it’s a great opportunity to learn more about their brands and what they are looking to get out of Alt. It would be great to connect with some that align with not only my values but also with yours (since I’ll be creating content for you to enjoy).

The Challenge of Being a Speaker

I kept a close watch on my inbox when Alt announced that speaker applications were open. It took me a while to finalize my application but I made myself apply. I told myself I had a chance and I reinforced that fact by telling myself, I had nothing to lose and everything to gain. So, I applied and a couple of months went by and guess what? I got an email reply to my initial pitch email, that opened by saying, “Hi Kachet. Congratulations! You’ve been selected as a speaker for Alt Summit 2018, happening February 26th-28th in Palm Springs, California.” The first thing I thought was, “Well, I’ll be damned.” They ACTUALLY chose me! Ha! Now, I have to get myself together and SPEAK. I’m really proud of the fact that I did something that was a little bit scary, and that I’m actually following through with it. My anxiety has been higher than usual these past few months over life in general, and what seemed to be weeks and weeks away is now less than one. By this time next week, my session will be over and I’ll be there to enjoy the rest of the conference. In case you’re wondering, YES, I’m nervous, but I know that I’ll deliver, and I’m happy to be speaking with Amy, whom I met at last year’s conference. It’s gonna be good!

A reason to wear more than yoga pants every day

Look, I really love dressing up, but I really hate it too. I’ve defaulted to a uniform lately: my favorite INC leggings, black or light blue skinny jeans, an oversized sweater, and boots.

And repeat.

Alt will force me to wear some fun outfits and share some stylish flair that’s been a little bit dormant. The weather in Palm Springs only helps. It’ll be low 70’s and sunshine, baby!

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Follow along on Instagram for ALL of the scoop next week. I will be going live many times during the event.

xo