After a last day with a workshop at Erik Spiekermann’s letterpress workshop, beyond tellerrand Berlin, which was the fifth one in Berlin, comes to an end. I am sitting in my hotel room on the bed and emptiness and loneliness, next to a sad feeling hit me. As I run this event for quite a while now, I know that this is happening and what keeps me up right now are all the lovely things many, many people said to me during and after the event. Thanks so much for letting me know that you appreciate this show and have fund at what I have created. It is pure joy for me, especially when I know that so many people take something with them. I am also sad as this was the final edition in the Admiralspalast, but I am doing my very best to find a good a nice new home for us in Berlin next time!
A wonderful home for five beyond tellerrand editions in Berlin
I remember, when I was on the hunt for a venue in Berlin in 2013, when I made the decision to run a second edition and I came into the Studio of the Admiralspalast. I was not too impressed, I have to say. Well, considering my Capitol Theater Club, which I learned to love over the three years before adding Berlin, it was … well … different. But then, after the first Berlin show kicked off and went so smoothly and great, I started to really like the place. Despite being in the third floor (many stairs, I know) and having not as much exhibition space as in Düsseldorf (which I loooove!), it has a good vibe. I also always liked, that there was no stage. People are sitting on a staircase-like seating and look onto the stage-area from above. With this, this natural border – which the stage is – is lost and puts speakers and attendees automatically and physically on the same level. During the five shows in Berlin, many people came to me and mentioned, that they like those random conversations with the speaks that happen, as they leave their seats for a drink or fresh air and bump into the speaker on stage. One of those lucky accidents that happens when running an event like this, I guess.
Now, after this year’s beyond tellerrand in Berlin, this is going to be history. Thanks to the staff at the Admiralspalast, especially Ingo, Markus and Antonia! I had a lovely time with you and there.
Our home for the next seven or eight hours on our way to New York
But right before Berlin kicks off, I am hopping over to New York quickly to be with the SmashingConf team. Also I use this chance, as we have a Autumn school break in our area in Germany, to bring my two oldest kids to New York for the first time – exciting times ahead. I am very much looking forward to the New York Conference, I love New York, but I must not forget, that I have just a little more than two weeks left to sort out everything that is left for Berlin … and that is still a lot!
Looking forward to meeting you, whether it is in Berlin, in New York or anywhere else where …
I am humbled and thankful once more. Thanks a lot for your trust in my beyond tellerrand events. Early birds went fast again and I‘m sorry for those who did not get one. Looing forward to another show in Düsseldorf. But: Berlin first ;)
I have already stated in my Munich Wrap-Up from last January, that it is likely that this year no beyond tellerrand in Munich in 2019. Well, I have really enjoyed organising and running Munich’s edition a lot and I will definitely be back, but as you can see from the announcement of Düsseldorf and the ticket sales for Düsseldorf starting next Monday, there won’t be a January(!) edition.
Jeremy Keith is speaking so much, I can easily say he is one of the old rabbits (hehehe … in Germany we say someone “Ein alter Hase”, if he is around for a long time – I think “to be an old hand” is the English term for it) is in the event landscape and he is one of the people you are able to learn a lot from.
In this post Jeremy shares how he starts to prepare a new talk and I found many similarities to how I start doing this. Mostly starting on paper is what I also do and what helps me to sort the many loose ideas and sketches I have in my head. Therefore, I can recommend reading his post, even if you are used to speaking at events. You never know if changing your habits and trying something new is leading to a different experience when preparing a presentation.
13 years ago today, I had to stop during our Macromedia Studio 8 and Flashforum tour in Düsseldorf, after Berlin, Hamburg and Düsseldorf’s show and had to skip the Munich stop. My son was born during that night and Sascha, Stefan, Greg , Saban and the rest had to do Munich without me. 13 years later I am still and always happy, proud, in love (you can add more here).
Check the opening titles for this year’s Reasons.To in Brighton. dina Amin created lovely, sometimes spooky characters for every speaker and created these stop motion opening titles.
I recently stumbled over a short article by Christian Jarrett which was titles ”Underestimating the power of gratitude – recipients of thank-you letters are more touched than we expect”. It made me stop and think about how important that actually is for me always. It is not even much of an effort to say thank you in a short email to my attendees, partner and speaker at beyond tellerrand. I am happy that many of those I have written a short note to actually come back to me and thank me for this note then again. Partners (other people also say sponsors) tell me, they are surprised to get such a lovely note with a short wrap-up about my impression of their booth and that I even picked some photos for them. I think that is the way it should be, isn’t it?
[…] our fear of awkwardness can lead us to misjudge what is in our own best interests, such as underestimating how much we will enjoy interacting with strangers.
In the article, I read, that often misjudgement and underestimation of what those short emails can do are the reason for the possible sender not to send those emails.
I can only encourage you to simply start doing this, if you not already do it. It is not much work to quickly write a short thank you in an email, tweet, blog post … whatever. Even a short call, if you think that you should get in touch to say thanks was never easier than these das: pick up your mobile phone and do it. You’ll be surprised how much a positive reaction to your action will give you.
Earlier this year, I had the pleasure of speaking alongside my friend Bastian Allgeier, who is the mastermind behind Kirby, a CMS, which I love and use, whenever possible.
When I chat to Bastian, it always amazes me, how much our Products have in common. Sure, his is a CMS, a product he sells and where people work with and create their website and I run an event – not a product really. But you know, the problems we face, the questions we ask ourselves when sitting in our studios and thinking about how to improve and move our product forward … all this is quite similar. Maybe because we both care so much about what we do and love to see our little babies grow and see that other people like what we do. But I also think that any product or business, if you run it on your own, faces the same things: problems, questions, tasks and more. Every time I speak to Kai Brach, who publishes a magazine called Offscreen, it is quite similar.
Maybe this also is the reason why people keep asking me to speak about what I do and that there are people who also listen to what we speak about ;) – they are maybe facing the same things.
Anyways, I am very happy, excited and humbled that Maik Wagner invited me to speak at his event. Especially along with Basti, who’s work and passion I admire and I always enjoy sharing the stage with him.
The WWRUHR meetup is taking place on Thursday 27th (next week that is) and it would be lovely to see many people to chat with and share ideas and experiences (talks are going to be in German!). See you there …
