There have been a few who have taught me different things.
My first webmaster gathering was the CJ/NatNet/Lightspeed party in Atlanta. I knew no one, felt rather out of place, and was almost convinced that I was in way over my head. Then I started talking to someone, (I had no idea at the time to whom I was speaking), and found him so easy to talk with and so much a regular joe that I started spilling my guts about my fears and worries and the like. He may have been drunk at the time, but the advice he gave pushed me on my way. He said, "Why are you trying to do what everyone else is doing? What are YOU good at?"
That's the moment I decided not to try doing what everyone else was doing. I turned to writing and the rest is history. I thank him every day. It wasn't until after we had talked that someone called his name and I was dumbstruck. I had been speaking with Steve Lightspeed.
Again in Atlanta, this time for Webmaster Access, I was sitting at the bar when I was invited to a table of people I didn't know. I was introduced, and immediately invited to dinner. MMmmkay. Now mind you, I'm not used to things being bought for me, even dinner. But I had a BALL. During the course of that dinner I had opportunities to speak with several people, and I learned so much about myself and what I wanted to achieve during that one dinner that I'm still absorbing and using what I learned. I consider those people some of my closest friends in the biz, and continue to learn from them with every conversation. Those folks are:
Jack of AFF
Sagi of AFF
Lauren (mmmwah)
Sleazy
There's a reason I wear a SleazyDream tat. It's one I'll never regret getting.
