It’s hard to believe re:Invent is over. If you’re like me, you’re suffering a little bit of post-re:Invent blues. There are plenty of blogs and videos recapping the conference, but not a lot of helpful information about how to maximize it after the fact. Filling gaps in the ecosystem is what we do here at BTS, so let’s get to it.
re:Cap
Before you lose sight of all of the things you learned, who you met, what things went well, and what things didn’t - take some time to do your own personal re:cap. Here are some action steps you can take:
- Jot down notes of announcements or sessions you were particularly interested in and want to learn more about. Sessions are made available on the AWS Events YouTube channel, so it may be helpful to link them from your notes if you want to review the sessions or share them with colleagues who didn’t make the trip.
- re:Invent is too big to get to everything. This is where other people’s/company’s recaps come in. Here’s a great article from AWS that goes through the major announcements. Many AWS partners also create recap videos or blogs. Simply use your favorite search engine (ours is currently Brave, in case you were wondering) and look for “AWS re:Invent 2024 recap.”
Re:trospective
Do a quick retrospective on how you navigated re:Invent.
- What do you think went well? In my case, I spent almost half an hour with Jeff Barr. Yes, he’s as nice and amazing as you have heard.
- What might you do differently next year? For me, I did a poor job of making a list of people I wanted to connect with. I thought I had it all in my head and connected with most of them, but as I got back and saw posts on LinkedIn, I realized that I missed quite a few.
- How did you do on your packing? For instance, I packed what are normally my most comfortable shoes, but they were a massive failure (I had a visible limp by Friday). It would be easy to forget that a year from now.
re:Connect
- Make a list of all of the people you met. Grab that stack of business cards and connect with them on LinkedIn. Make a list of all of your key conversations. From here, decide who want to chat with further and make a plan to meet with them. If you want to do that now, send an email or LinkedIn message. If you want to do so later on, put a reminder on your calendar.
- If you’re not actively involved in your local AWS Meetup Group, now is the time! These volunteer-run groups are great for continuing your learning on AWS and networking with the community. If you’re in an area without an active User Group, why not start one? AWS is providing incredible support to group leaders. BTS is involved with two groups and would be happy to make introductions to the right folks at AWS. Just shoot us a message.
re:Cover
re:Invent is INTENSE. Many of us were dealing with time zone changes and putting in 20-hour days. Show yourself some grace. Your brain is going to be a little foggy for a bit and then there’s the post-re:Invent blues I mentioned earlier. Go easy on yourself.
We hope this post was helpful and can’t wait to see you at an AWS Summit or re:Invent next year. While you’re here, we hope you’ll consider subscribing and sharing this blog with someone who might enjoy it.