Why not here? / TEDx Glasgow 2015

On the 12th of June I was lucky enough to volunteer at this year's TEDxGlasgow convention at The Tramway.

Needless to say that I had an amazing day, but of course there were also things that could have worked out better. I thought I could share my experiences with you and, in case you're maybe thinking of volunteering at a TED event yourself one day, give you a bit of an idea of what to expect and how to make the most of such an exciting opportunity.

If you don't know what TED is all about, head over to their website or have a read through what I have to say about it.

1. Be open, friendly and smile
   Life is so much easier when you're positive, and especially at events like this - where everything is about human interaction to make the world a better place - cheerfulness, affability and courtesy are key! You're there to help and trust me: For everyone involved you make an essential contribution to the whole TED experience.
2. Get all the information you can
   This might sound obvious, but in order to be able to help out properly you have to know stuff. Where are the toilets? When is Session 2 starting? What happens in the labs? Will there be food during the breaks? When will Speaker X be on? Think about stuff you would probably want to know if you were an attendee. But even if you don't know the answers - find out where to get them from!
3. Go and talk to people
   TED is all about connecting to people and getting inspired, so dive into the crowd and strike up an interesting conversation! People are generally quite talkative, so just give it a shot and introduce yourself, start with some smalltalk and ask questions: "What's your name and how come you are at TED today?" "Do you enjoy the event? What has been the best talk so far? What did you like about it?" "What do you do? What inspires you? How would you like to change the world?" Oh, you won't regret it and might even walk away with a widened horizon.
4. Look for interesting tasks
   Being a volunteer is a bit too easy sometimes; it depends on you how much you want to work. Normally, you are expected to answer questions, show people around the venue, collect feedback and sometimes rubbish (literally) and generally make sure that everyone is having a good time. If you are actively looking for things to do, the whole experience will most likely be more fun, more rewarding, and you get to write more stuff on your CV as well. Be quick, keep your eyes peeled and always ask if there's anything else you can do!
5. Do whatever you like
   Well, after all, you're not getting paid! ;) Don't be afraid to take a break, have some of the food and drink or just chat to people. If you feel that you deserve a time-out, relax!
6. Make friends with your fellow volunteers
   TED is a shared experience, and working together to make it happen can be so much fun! You'll be spending hours and hours with your team, so talk to your co-workers, joke around and share your stories. It's a party!
7. Select your favourite session, not your favourite speaker
   I don't know how this works at other TED events, so this might be applicable to TEDxGlasgow only. The event started at lunch and ended at about 8pm. It consisted of three sessions, with breaks for food and labs in between. There were three sessions. Every session hosted about 5 speakers and some entertainment.
   Each volunteer was granted attendance at one session, and we were able to choose whichever one we liked best. I went straight for the one with my favourite speaker in it, because I really didn't want to miss Karen McCluskey's talk about violence and crime reduction in Glasgow. In hindsight however, it might have been better to select a different session (The talks in the last session all sounded amazing!)... My advice for you is therefore to carefully read about all the speakers and talks before the TED day and attend the session you'd overall enjoy the most. But then again, each must live as they see fit. :)

What I took home with me from the talks I attended

• Where you start does not matter; it's where you're going that's important.
• Constantly ask yourself who you are, what you do and why it matters. If you are not satisfied with your answers, change something!
• Go do and act upon your good inner voice.
• You have the freedom to choose your own opinions and attitudes.

Unfortunately, for now, the talks are not available on Youtube yet, but keep an eye on the TEDx Talks channel and the TEDxGlasgow website; they will be up soon!