would not recommend back to back conferences, especially to other introverts, but I don't regret it. conference #1 was great for networking with other academics in my geographical area, which is very important if I want to get a job afterwards. I connected with two professors (& plan to follow up v soon), which was really valuable, and also a lot of other PhDs. most of the latter are not doing great quality research, but knowing them can make my life easier at other conferences and perhaps we can collaborate in different ways. I also got to see three of my friends who are at different institutions -- all paid for except for one plane ticket. conference #2 will be a different beast. a lot of the scholars whose work I read and cite will be there, as it's a larger and discipline-focused conference. unfortunately I know no one and it will be much harder to get to know people overall (no scheduled socials, no common Whatsapp group, we're staying in different hotels, etc). so, my action plan is different. I want to connect to (1) professor only, who is editing a special issue I plan to submit to and whose work is close to mine. he's chairing my session, so the introduction is easy, it's the follow up that I have to work on [anyone can go up and introduce themselves to anyone. doesn't mean that they will actually want further contact and will actively tell you to keep in touch]. second goal is to just be reinvigorated by listening to good quality research. it really makes me want to work. third goal is to get some teaching ideas / experiment with some new pedagogical tools. would be cool specifically to talk to a specific professor, with whom I've exchanged emails before regarding a book chapter I'm working on, but who doesn't exactly know who I am. (relatedly) I also would like to find a potential collaboration (for either a research article or an opinion piece), but that's really reaching for the stars. overall, I will lay low and spend most of my time alone, and then turn on the charm to the max only when needed.
