I am a fraud.
I went to Cybermummy 11 under the illusion of being a ‘mummy blogger’. I had a little name badge with my blog address and Twitter name neatly printed on it. I was treated exactly the same as the other 400+ mummy bloggers – with food and drinks laid on, pamper rooms to indulge in and bags full of free stuff to take home to my family.
In the main conference room, there wasn’t a table plan organised by site stats in ascending order, so nobody stopped me from taking a seat close to the front, just a few feet away from Sarah Brown while she was speaking.
I was free to pick and choose from any of the workshops on offer, no invitation required, no pre-booking system in place. I mingled freely alongside rockstar bloggers with followers in the tens (possibly hundreds!) of thousands. A bit like Chico rubbing shoulders with Mick Jagger and talking shop.
I tossed my business card willy-nilly into glass bowls to win more free stuff. I waltzed around Cybermummy Central like a pro. Except, I am not.
I have only been blogging for 3-months. I do not even have an iphone. While the Crowdsourced Keynote speakers read aloud their greatest and most inspirational posts, I thought back to my last post… about burning my tongue.
While people tweeted away to each other on their ipads, I checked my trusty old mobile phone for text messages from the Greek God(zilla).
Cybermummy 11 highlighted to me just how much I still have to learn about this world, and I admit I felt completely overwhelmed at times, but it also showed me just how far it’s possible to go.
So, I’ll be back next year but with a few more posts behind me, hopefully a fair few more cybermummy friends and definitely an ipad.
You are a mum, you have a blog therefore you are one of the rest of us pretty sure I met you as I ended up with one of your cards lol
Author
Did you?! Do I have one of yours?! What is your blog address?
Thank you for commenting also – sorry it took me so long to respond, it ended up in spam for some reason!
Yes but at least you went to the conference! You put yourself out there and that’s the main thing! You’ll most likely be a key-note speaker in 2012!
Author
haha, I wouldn’t have the nerve!
3 months or 3 years – its brilliant anyway so you deserve to be there as much as anyone. Keep the faith Smudger! xx
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Thanks Noodle!
Great post. You blog and you’re a parent, that’s all you need. You’re not a fraud in the slightest. A few of us have been doing it longer – some are better at some things than others – just like life. There must be some kind of blogging hippy phrase that fits here “yeah man, post in the moment, like. Groovy”. Blogging is not a competitive sport.
Author
I completely agree Ellen. Although some people I met would have you believe that it is 🙂
Have to agree with Sarah – the point is that you went! And you got lots out of it, and even if you had only been blogging for three weeks, that still makes you a blogger, not a fraudster. At CM12 there will be loads of newbie bloggers asking you for all kinds of advice, feeling in awe that they got to talk to you x
Author
Thank Anna. I am pleased I went and got to meet so many people. In the presence of all these great bloggers, I felt a bit sorry for my little hobby blog 🙂
Well sounds like you had a great time, and well done, I’ve been blogging about the same amount of time as you and don’t think I’d have been brave enough to go… even if I wasn’t ‘up north’ Nat
Author
I would have loved to meet you in person! Let’s make a deal to waltz around CM12 together like pros?!
Well sounds like you had a great time, and well done, I’ve been blogging about the same amount of time as you and don’t think I’d have been brave enough to go… even if I wasn’t ‘up north’ Nat
Just read about the comments. I think I need to look at it, my friend keeps trying and she’s wordpress and it doesn’t let her, so i’ll try and sort that out! Nat
All great things begin somewhere and it sounds like you are well on your way! I look forward to reading your blog and meeting you at cybermummy 2012
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Thank you Lee-anne. I look forward to meeting you too!
Brilliant. Very funny. Well done for going. I think you’re a pro! Xx
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Thanks love x
Great post. I had I pad envy too.
Liska x
I don’t think blogging is all about the gizmos and the elbows, but what do I know 🙂 Maybe see you there next year. In the meantime, lovely to stumble on your blog today.
~M
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Thank you! I don’t think it’s about all that either, feel much less overwhelmed almost a week on…
Well I love your blog and spending the day with you at CM11 made it all the more enjoyable, particularly the drinking too much rose bit afterwards hee hee. Hope it won’t be CM12 before we meet again! Bianca x
PS. still so weird to discover we have the same birthday!?!
Author
How did I miss this???! Thank you – I loved spending my first CM with you too! Must meet up again for more wine… or maybe just a little walk in Richmond Park with the kids!
Same birthday is spooky, also same shape diamond… woooooooooooooooo
I was there. I have been blogging for 6 years and I felt more out of place than the new people I think. Mainly because I realised that I am a hobby blogger. I just like to empty my brain onto the page, I am not in it to make money or carve my niche or anything else! I did have a nice time and I do own an ipad though!
Author
Hi Kelly, it seems so many of us felt the same way. I am definitely a hobby blogger too so going to CM was good thing as it made me to realise that. I couldn’t write anything much this week with the carve your niche advice – have a clearer head again now though and am back to my happy blogger place 🙂
Hopefully by CM12, I’ll have an ipad too x
Tongue burning is an important issue in parent blogging 🙂
At the end of the day people take it all far far too seriously. And that’s coming from one of the few dads there 🙂