How to Make the Most Out of Attending a Conference: The Elevator Track

I’ve written several blog posts about speaking at conferences, discussing the sessions I attended and my journey into speaking. While my goal was to show the value of speaking at conferences, I may have inadvertently hidden some of the value of simply attending, so let me fix that.

What Is the Hallway Track?

So, there is a term that has gained popularity in the last couple of years: the “hallway track” What this is referring to in an in-person conference the talk you may have with one or more attendees in between sessions. Some would say that if a conversation is valuable enough—especially if it could lead to saving your company money or solving a critical problem—it’s worth skipping a session to continue it.

You’ve heard of the hallway track. But what about the elevator track? The shuttle track? The coffee line track? The real magic happens when you realize every space is a networking opportunity.

I’m not here to rename the concept—I love the term “hallway track.” I’m here to expand it. That “hallway” extends to the hotel elevator, the hotel breakfast, the vendor sponsored breakfast, the walk to the venue, and everywhere in between.

Pre-Conference Workshops: Deep Learning and Deeper Connections

One value-add beyond the regular sessions is adding a pre-conference workshop or two to your schedule. Pre-conference workshops are all-day affairs, allowing you to go deeper on a subject. While the technical benefit is significant, the hidden value is being in the same room all day with the same people.

You start talking to the person next to you. You chat with people in the hallway during breaks. Since you’re all seeing the same content, that naturally becomes the conversation starter. I’ve had a pre-conference workshop lead to a dinner invitation when I had no other plans, and I’ve made connections with people in the data community based on questions I asked and follow-up conversations. What happens to me countless times is meeting someone in a pre-con and then running into them repeatedly throughout the conference because we share similar interests—it makes it easy to get to know them.

Expanding the Definition

The more obvious opportunities are the after-hours activities many conferences organize, such as game nights or community nights. These are easy ways to meet people and have fun while doing it. The same goes for conference-provided breakfasts or lunches. I’m not going to lie—when I’m by myself and picking a table, it brings me back to high school lunchtime anxiety. But once I sit down and people introduce themselves, I realize this isn’t high school at all.

Finding the Opportunities

It’s harder these days to discover events with all the different platforms available. LinkedIn and following any hashtag the conference promotes can help. Sometimes a connection you made earlier in the week posts about an event on LinkedIn. It really does snowball once you start engaging.

Speaking at conferences expanded how often I see the same people, allowing me to get to know them better. It also opened new hallway track opportunities, especially at smaller conferences—speaker dinners, time in the speaker room prepping, and informal gatherings.

That said, you don’t need to speak to build a strong network. A good friend of mine built incredible connections and friendships just by consistently showing up and being genuinely engaged. He didn’t give his first talk until years into his conference journey. And guess who encouraged him to finally take the stage and supported him through it? Those same hallway track friends he’d been building relationships with all along. Proof that the hallway track is accessible to everyone—and can open doors you never expected.

Finding Your Balance

I want to leave you with an important point: you need to find your own balance. If being social drains your battery, you must take steps to ensure your wellbeing. Maybe you stream the keynote from your hotel room but show up to your first session refreshed. Perhaps you will attend an event but set a timer to leave after an hour. This could be a whole topic and will vary by individual. Sometimes it means taking an extra day after the conference for decompression.

The Real ROI

From a business perspective, you might leave the conference having found a vendor that can save your company $50,000. From a professional perspective, you may have made contacts who can help you develop your skillset or become someone you can reach out to when you’re stuck. You might end up making friends and finding a community that lasts far longer than the conference itself.

Even if I switched completely out of tech, I have friends I met through conferences that I’d want to visit simply because of what great people they are. That’s the real magic of the hallway track—it’s not just about what you learn, but about who you meet and the relationships you build along the way.