October 7, 2004
Dear Everyone:
Last week’s Letter was short because I was getting
ready to go to the ARMA International
Conference in
As for the Conference, it was loads of fun. “Finding Creative Solutions for Changing Times” was the theme. I spent the first morning at the meeting of the Industry Specific Group (ISG) for XXX. There are lots of ISG’s in ARMA. People who work in government, in the financial services, health, legal, etc. And people who work for xxx companies. It’s an opportunity for these people to get together and share ideas, Best Practices, horror stories.
Then there were the educational sessions. I concentrated on the ones dealing with “The Business of RIM” (Records & Information Management) with the idea that they might help me get better at doing my job. Things like “Professional Certification in Records Management” and preparing for the CRM Exam (Certified Records Manager). I also attended sessions regarding electronic records and what to do with them.
We’re already using an electronic records management system at work; but my local chapter sent out a survey and the chapter members indicated they wanted to know more about e-records. So if I couldn’t find a session to promote myself, I looked for sessions to learn more for the chapter.
Joining ARMA is a great way to meet people. They’re all records management nerds, but they’re still people. And they can get very rowdy when the education stops and the parties get started. And the exhibit halls! Vendors to the right of you. Vendors to the left of you. Vendors giving away key rings and T-Shirts. What could be more fun than that?
I actually did get to meet and catch up with people I’ve known for years, but usually only see at a Conference. So a good time was had by all.
Until I woke up this morning (in my own bed!) with the first symptoms of a possible cold. By this evening, it was confirmed.
By the way, if you spend time in hotel rooms, which I’ve been doing a lot of lately, there’s a neat trick that you can use. Buy an inexpensive nightlight and keep it in your travel bag. When you get into the hotel room, find an outlet and plug the nightlight in. Turn it on before you go to bed.
Then, if you wake up in the middle of the night,
not unusual when trying to sleep in a strange bed, the light lets you
see where you are. I first
tried it last month up in
Love, as always,
Pete
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