• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • About
  • Baseball ’19
  • Day Zero 3
  • Earl
  • My list
  • Photo Blogging Challenge

A 'lil HooHaa

Messing with the blogging world since 2005

A great experience at my first NEPA BlogCon

October 17, 2016

There are times in life when you plan on one thing — and get something so much more from it.

That happened this weekend when I attended the NEPA BlogCon for the first time. This is an event I had been wanting to attend for a few years and it never worked out. This year it did. Though it wasn’t everything I had expected, I left after having a tremendous experience.

z76-mymc

Let me get one thing out of the way, though. Though I loved the day and all it had to offer, it still left me feeling slightly short on what I was hoping/expecting when it came to networking/talking to other bloggers. I came with cards and all for my blog and gave away … three. Part of that is on me, for sure … but at the same time, I don’t know, it just felt hard to “network.”

But that’s for another post later in the week. I’ll tackle that with my thoughts on that end of things in a few days. For now, let me talk about the conference as a whole.

With a one-day conference featuring 11 speakers, it’s a lot to absorb. I’m still trying to get everything straight in my mind. Whether it’s something about social media or branding or marketing or video — there’s a lot to think about and wonder how it can work within the confines of my blog.

Remember this — my blog is a personal one. There’s no true niche, so I don’t reach a certain group of people. One day I can write about baseball, the next could be photos, the next could be something in my mind etc. Other people who I spoke with at the conference had that focus — a niche or something along those lines.

That’s fine, too. Not everybody has a focused blog. I’m obviously one of them.

Through the years, I’ve seen people go to other blog conferences and such. They all seem to be different. Some are more based on fun and gathering. Others are more serious. Some are in the middle. While I won’t say the NEPA BlogCon was “serious,” it leaned more toward an educational sort of setting, which was OK.

The topics were excellent. The people who presented were excellent. They had amazing raffle prizes (I won on two of my tickets and each winning ticket had multiple things. In one of those packages, I received a pair of virtual glasses, gaming headphones and a laptop cooling pad … that’s solid), and they offered some amazing bagels for breakfast and lunch was by Panera. The swag bag everybody received had some excellent things, including a custom Rubik’s Cube, which is really cool. 

All for $15 (well, raffle tickets cost you some cash when you got there).

At the NEPA BlogCon!

At the NEPA BlogCon!

Anyway, back to my initial thought about getting a little more from something than planned. Though there were certain things I didn’t get that I was hoping for, I left with a whole heap more than I had planned.

Some of the ideas offered were great in terms of blogging, but they are ones I might never touch because of how I do my blog (such as advertising etc.), but there were things I might look into (more video etc.) and seeing what I can do for engagement.

But there were a lot of things that hit a little harder in that some of the advice went well beyond blogging or my social media or even as things I can use professionally, rather they spoke to life as a whole.

The reality is I saw a lot of people who had goals and knew how to follow through. There were people who were planners and made sure they got things done. There were high-energy people who had thoughts and who built themselves up. Yes, it was a tech-heavy crowd (not shocking), but those who presented gave lessons that can be used in your everyday life, which made things even better for me.

One of the pieces of swag we received.

One of the pieces of swag we received.

I realized through the day that there are changes I can make in my blog process, but also many I can make over the course of my everyday life. I do like my job and I like doing other things, but I need to continue down the path to improve not only my blog, but life as a whole.

The NEPA BlogCon was a great experience for me. I found a lot of people to follow and watch on social media and hopefully I’ll eventually find their blogs and see what they have to offer on that point. Though I didn’t get to experience everything I had hoped for, it worked out well. Later this week, I’ll have another post about looking forward and what I hope to get out of future editions of the NEPA BlogCon as I hope to attend again in the future.

A big thank you to all those who put the conference together and all the volunteers. It was a top-notch event and I’m extremely happy I attended!

For any others who attended and want to connect, feel free to follow me on Twitter (@softball29) and Instagram (@HooHaa29). Also, drop a comment below and let me know your blog address, so I can check it out!

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: blogging, My world Tagged With: #NEPABlogCon, blog, blog conference, blogcon, blogging, conference, nepa blogcon, social media, social media conference

4 Comments

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Lisa Rusczyk says

    October 17, 2016

    Great post. Maybe I will see you there next year. Yes, I went to Lock Haven University and I will live here!

    Reply
    • P.J. says

      October 17, 2016

      Thanks so much for visiting! I am pretty sure I saw your computer there, but didn’t talk to as many people as I had hoped! Go Bald Eagles!

      Reply
  2. Michelle Davies says

    October 18, 2016

    Nice meeting you in person, PJ! I’m glad you had a good time and won at the raffle! I was wondering who our lucky winners were!

    Reply
    • P.J. says

      October 18, 2016

      Great meeting you as well. Had a blast at the BlogCon, though had hoped to meet more people. I’ll have a second post about the con coming later this week. The raffle was definitely cool to win and the prizes were pretty amazing!

      Thanks for stopping by my blog!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badgeShow more posts

Primary Sidebar

Welcome

Welcome to A 'lil HooHaa!

This is a personal website covering many topics! We host a monthly photo blogging challenge, and then every January hold a fun writing challenge.

Thank you for stopping by and hope this becomes a stop for you!

Connect

  • Facebook
  • Flickr
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Follow

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 876 other subscribers

Instagram

hoohaa29

Harper is counting down to Santa Paws! You know, Harper is counting down to Santa Paws! 

You know, of course, Santa Paws travels with Santa Clause, making sure to find treats and toys for all the good little doggies! (We know they are all deserving, right?) So, Harper put out some milk for the big guy, carrots for Rudolph and the reindeer, and special cookies for Santa Paws! She is ready! 

#SantaPaws #Christmas2022 #HarperChristmas #MyDogHarper #GoldenRetriever #DogsofInstagram #PhotoOfTheDay #Photography #Christmas #IPhoneography
One of the best parts about having Harper as my be One of the best parts about having Harper as my best friend… ❤️
Couldn't resist stopping on the way to work to sna Couldn't resist stopping on the way to work to snap this shot. The colors in the sky were fantastic and the scene was nice looking (though, to be fair, I drove by what I think would have been a better scene -- the valley and hills full of snow etc.)

#Snow #Winter #Sky #Color #InstaLove #photooftheday #picoftheday #iPhoneography #nature #love #instalove #photography #happy #smile #photo
The best of times??? 🤪🤪🤪 The best of times??? 🤪🤪🤪
Just a break on our morning walk … #goldenretri Just a break on our morning walk …

#goldenretriever #dogsofinstagram #mydogharper
Tired. Tired.
Harper is ready for tonight! Let’s go Phillies! Harper is ready for tonight! Let’s go Phillies! 

#phillies #ringthebell #baseball #dog #goldenretriever
I look at her and sometimes still can’t believe I look at her and sometimes still can’t believe I have her. It’s been a year and four months and she makes me smile and laugh more each day. It’s amazing how much a dog changes your look on life, and how much joy they can bring. 

#goldenretriever #dogsofinstagram #dog #goldenretrieversofinstagram #harper_dublin #akc #photography #photooftheday #love #mydogharper #harperdublin #instagood #happy #picoftheday #fun #iphoneology #retrieveroftheday #ilovemygolden #dogstagram #dailygolden #dogsofinsta
I’ve recently realized how many photos I have to I’ve recently realized how many photos I have to post here, as well as on Harper’s (@harper_dublin) account). So, as I start to transfer photos, I’ll try and catch up. So photos coming could be from all seasons and who knows when. 🤣

This one is recent from the courthouse square in Delhi. We had some pretty good fall colors this year. 

#fall #delhiny #seasons #iphoneonly #love #photography #photooftheday #instagood #happy #picoftheday
From a few weeks ago. I was trying to get Harper t From a few weeks ago. I was trying to get Harper to put her paws on the bridge and looked out, but she was more content jumping on me and looking up. I do love the way she seems to be looking at me.
Instagram post 17992900117561614 Instagram post 17992900117561614
Couldn’t resist a quick stop this morning with t Couldn’t resist a quick stop this morning with the fog and frost settled in. 

Hamden Covered Bridge 

#coveredbridge #coveredbridges #bridge #fog #frost #nature #upstatenewyork
Harper’s friend Lucy is around this weekend! #g Harper’s friend Lucy is around this weekend!

#goldenretriever #dogsofinstagram #dog #goldenretrieversofinstagram #harper_dublin #akc #photography #photooftheday #love #mydogharper #harperdublin #instagood #happy #picoftheday #fun #iphoneology #retrieveroftheday #ilovemygolden #dogstagram #dailygolden #dogsofinsta #outside #sunshine #friends
So… @harper_dublin wants to know why she can’t So… @harper_dublin wants to know why she can’t have @mallons_homemade_sticky_buns.
This is why we can’t have nice things. Saw this This is why we can’t have nice things. Saw this on me morning walk Friday with Harper. Likely some college kids, but also as chance at local hooligans. I had Harper so not a lot I could do, but I managed to get the cart off the chair. (See second photo) This was in a local park.
Harper is ready for #nationalfetchday on October 1 Harper is ready for #nationalfetchday on October 15! @chuckitfetchgames 

Should be fun! @discgolfdarren @harmm23
Starting to feel like fall! #fall #nature #autum Starting to feel like fall! 

#fall #nature #autumn #colors #foliage #instagood #seasonchange #leaves #leaves🍁
Street lights hidden in a tree. #life #light #wa Street lights hidden in a tree. 

#life #light #walk #explore ##instagood #photooftheday #photography #happy
Finally learning this Canon M6 MarkII before my tr Finally learning this Canon M6 MarkII before my trip starts this weekend. Really like it now that I took the time to set it up and learn the differences between this and my 7D MarkII. This and the iPhone will do most of the work on the trip. 

Photo is inside on a dark and dreary day. Transferred to phone and edited with #snapseed. 

#canon #m6markii #dog #dogsofinstagram #goldenretriever
Life is good. Life is good.
Load More Follow on Instagram

YouTube

P.J. Harmer

P.J. Harmer
A video looking at my first year and a half of owning a golden retriever, my first dog. It's had its ups and downs, but I've truly loved the ride and look forward to the future. 

Music: Happy before we get old by Michael Shynes via Artlist. 

► My blog: http://www.hoohaa.com
► Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hoohaa29/
► Follow Harper on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/harper_dublin/
► Like on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HooHaaBlog

Thank you for watching. :)
When these boxes come, there usually some excitement. But this one ... is the ultimate unboxing! 

#cielovideo52 #52weekchallenge #week5 #weeklychallenge

Music: Happy to be Happy (Dapun)

► My blog: http://www.hoohaa.com
► Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hoohaa29/
► Follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/softball29
► Like on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HooHaaBlog
I hate being in front of the camera, but also realize sometimes it's not the worst thing in the world. So, I'm getting better with it. Week 4's theme was all about us and having us in front of the camera, so I tried to come up with a creative way to do it. 

#cielovideo52 #52weekchallenge #week4 #weeklychallenge

Music: Infinite Wonder (Ben Fox)

► My blog: http://www.hoohaa.com
► Follow on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hoohaa29/
► Follow on Twitter: https://twitter.com/softball29
► Like on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HooHaaBlog
Load More... Subscribe

Archives

Categories

Calendar

January 2023
S M T W T F S
1234567
891011121314
15161718192021
22232425262728
293031  
« Dec    

Search The Site

Site Information

  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

A 'lil HooHaa © 2023 · Created By Coded Creative

Copyright © 2023 · Ava Mae on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

 

Loading Comments...