I was only slightly disappointed to discover that Style & Class has nothing to do with helping me become a true lady. Instead, this meetup in Vancouver brings together designers and developers who love to make the web look and function better. I talked myself into going because I only dabble in these topics, but I am perpetually curious about how to get better.

Their first conference took place on Saturday and, if you didn’t know better, you would could never had guessed that this was their first event larger than a meetup. It was head and shoulders above many of the events I have attended in the past couple of years. Here are a few details from that conference that I want to remember, and that everyone else should be aware of.

What Made the Style & Class Conference So Good?

• More than 50% women speakers. It can and should always be done at every conference. Here’s why I feel this way: I can very clearly see when it’s a women on stage and I will identify with that speaker. It’s very important to represent as wide a perspective as possible. Next time, I would love to see how representation of different races of designers and developers.
• It started at noon on a Saturday. Not 8am after a party that went into the wee hours the night before. I think it’s a part of that bullshit macho culture to party hard all night and then make it a point to show up in the morning. I found it very thoughtful and showed that the organizers respected everyone’s time.
• Every speaker presentation was interesting, rehearsed and had beautiful slides. Designers sure know how to give a presentation!
• The chosen venue was appropriate – comfortable seats for everyone, darkened theatre room and yet you could still use your phone, or even laptop, if you wanted to capture notes or tweet.
• All the profits from the event are going toward Ladies Learning Code! It’s a perfect partnership that is surprising, but shouldn’t be. When will it become normal for everyone to care about little girls having the same opportunities as little boys?
• Fantastic flow to the day – just enough time to chat with other attendees before and after the event, with a solid 45-minute intermission in the middle. I also enjoyed being able to grab dinner before the after-party started 2 hours after the end of the conference.

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In terms of inclusion, gender balance, and accessibility (also curation) just set a gold standard for conferences to follow.

— Todd Smith (@toddsmithdesign)

I think we should all clap for these unreal sign language folks keeping pace with the speakers.

— Scott Baldwin (@benry)

"What if Lady Gaga designed Excel?" @chelscore asking the tough questions at.

— Style & Class (@Style_n_Class)

Here is the @learningcode video I showed during my talk. I can't stop watching it!

— Meredith Underell (@MeredithU)

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I have attempted to theme my months with catchy names and the hope that I would have an easier time of coming up with ideas. But, a lack of ideas has never been the problem. I have more than enough ideas – ideas about what circumstances will help me write, when, where and how. Ideas about how to structure my blog, what kind of writing process to use, and how to gather research. Half-formed ideas that are wasting away in WordPress drafts and Evernotes.

No, the problem is not a lack of ideas. The problem is a lack of writing.

The problem might be the phrase ‘personal blogging strategy’ itself. I can spend hours creating a calendar of wishful blog post titles. I can even get started on the outlines for posts with a solid idea of what I want to write. But without sitting down and writing it all out – everything else is just bullshit. That’s how I feel – walking around, pretending that I’m a writer, while being too scared to actually write anything.

What could I possibly be scared of, you ask? I’m afraid that I will pour my heart and soul into creating something, only to realize that it’s not good at all. I don’t actually feel this fear everyday because I, as a human, have a lot of built-in defences to protect myself from admitting that. My actual excuses, ones that I give to myself and other people, are a good place to start with removing the safety net of my inaction.

My Excuses for Not Writing

• “I don’t/didn’t have the time”

  This might be my most used up excuse of all time. Who can argue with it? We’re all so busy that most people can sympathize with letting things fall to the wayside. But here’s where it gets tricky – smart people never understand how I couldn’t have time for something that I have deemed “most important.” Instead, how about I try telling the truth: “It isn’t/wasn’t a priority.” I don’t say that because it’s heartbreaking to hear myself say that about writing. But, for a long time, it has been true.

• “It’s not just something you can turn on”

  I think that this excuse has a long history among creatives who were billing by the hour. For me, it’s something I say to release myself from putting any intention into writing. Like a scarf caught in the wind, I’m at the mercy of my creative urges, just praying that I will gently settle into the perfect writing conditions. I don’t think it’s laziness, because I have literally cleaned the house top to bottom to procrastinate writing. It’s that it’s not easy to do. Sitting down to write amidst a world full of distractions requires discipline, focus and routine.

• “I’m working on something else”

  This excuse usually fools others because the others things I’m working are tangentially related to writing. Fixing up the design of my blog, reading books, or watching documentaries are common “impressive” ways to procrastinate. All of these things are extremely valuable and essential to my creative outlet, but I’m abusing my interests and hobbies. All of the tasks I mentioned are only useful if they contribute to my creative outlet, not take away from it.

The Blogging Strategy that Worked

Since writing this post I’ve read a book that changed my life. The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron was recommended to me by a librarian who noticed my interest in the craft of writing. He cautioned me not to be thrown off by the book’s sub-title (‘A spiritual path to higher creativity’).

Since then I have encountered a least a dozen other fans of this book. I was meeting my friend Humaira at The Minimalist’s book tour and she had the book in her purse! While waiting in line, 3 other people commented on their love for the book.

Well what did the book teach me? It revealed long-buried reasons for my creative block – things people said to me as a child that I took for gospel and held in my sub-conscious well into adulthood. How my creativity was languishing in many other aspects of my life, not just writing. What else?

• Morning pages are the cornerstone of creative recovery. Cameron prescribes 3 pages of writing every morning, before your ego wakes up, throughout the course of reading the book (which should take 12 weeks). I still write the pages now, which average about 1,000 words most days, and the effect of journaling every day is invigorating.
• Artist dates are what Cameron calls a date with your creative self, which she suggests should take place at least once a week. Some of my own have included bike-riding to the beach to watch fireworks, wandering around a bookstore for hours, and buying a new notebook and pencil crayons. Doing those things you find most therapeutic is like fuel for your creativity.
• Exercise is key to controlling stress. When stress takes over it becomes impossible to justify an artist date or sitting down to write. How can I possibly be so selfish in such a time of strife? But, I found that writing and exercise are two sides of the same coin. They both need to be present in my life in order to control stress and live to the best of my ability.

I fully recommend this book to anyone that loves to create. You will dig up some painful memories from the past, and you may come to the realization that you are your own worst enemy, but you will be better for it. You will be a better writer, a better blogger and a better person.

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{This post is the 2nd edition of The Newcomer’s Guide to Vancouver Startup Community, which I wrote in Nov. 2012. A lot has happened in a year, so there are a few tweaks to the format. The original guide drew it’s inspiration from A Hitchhiker’s Guide to Toronto Startup Ecosystem and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Boston Tech Community.}

As always, I hope that this guide helps anyone new to Vancouver, new to a career in startups, or with a new-found vigour for life.

Let me know in the comments if I have missed any great Vancouver startup resources – and I would love to add them to this post.

Don’t miss out on fantastic writing on the Internet just because it was published on the weekend! Check out the links below to some great reads to ease back into the work week.

The British amateur who debunked the mathematics of happinessby Andrew Anthony

Oddly enough, Gottman, the psychologist whose research showed that divorce could be predicted by a 0.8 positive-to-negative behaviour ratio during arguments, couldn’t understand the math behind a hugely popular psychology article, which claims a 2.9 positive-to-negative emotions ratio as the basis of human flourishing. But, it took a part-time, retired psychology student to bring the bad mathematics of happiness to wider attention. Interesting read, which reveals the state of positive psychology right now.

Further Reading: Bright-Sided: How positive thinking is undermining America by Barbara Ehrenreich

How the Simpsons have secretly been teaching you mathby Indre Viskontas & Chris Mooney

Mathematics was a hot topic this weekend! Simon Singh, author of the book The Simpsons and Their Mathematical Secrets, uncapped a fountain of mathematical references and surprises in each Simpsons episode. Not very surprising when you consider the amount of Simpson’s writers who are also mathematicians!

Darkness in August by Buzz Bissinger

Tells the story about the circumstances surrounding the killing of a young Australian baseball player in the small Oklahoma town of Duncan. Bissinger paints a bleak picture of class segregation, racism, and poverty that is all too common. Whatever the motivation the killer(s) had, it’s clear that this story started a long time ago for everyone involved.

Happy reading!