On the surface, attending Together Digital’s Illuminate 2024 conference during our Restorative Week felt contradictory—born from loss, restorative week is when we shut down Seventh Scout, step away from work, and give ourselves some breathing room. But the truth is, I am not sure I would have attended if it wasn’t Restorative Week. Not because Illuminate 2024 wasn’t worthy of taking time out. But rather because, like many of us, I struggle with stepping away from my daily tasks and truly valuing my time off.
Together Digital is a unique gathering of women in digital careers who came into my life when I needed a sense of community the most. It was unexpected for our paths to cross, given that I’m based in Austin while most members are from Cincinnati and Columbus. A few years ago, as I navigated the loss of my friend and co-founder, Rhodes, I began journaling about the challenges of grief in the workplace and the struggle to keep moving forward after losing a business partner. Through these entries, a former co-worker connected me with Together Digital – a group of over 500 women in the digital space committed to connecting meaningfully with a supportive and resourceful online community. My time on their Power Lounge podcast and attending their national conference, Illuminate, was the perfect place to share my journey while also learning from the powerful stories and insights of others.
Here are some insights and takeaways from the day-long conference. My hope is to inspire others to find a balance between work and self-care, reminding us that connection and purpose lie at the heart of what we do.
Key Lessons and Inspiration
Zontee Hou of Convince & Convert on AI and Personalization: Hou opened the conference by reviewing data-driven personalization utilizing AI to tailor your content to your audience’s needs at scale using tools like Persado and Optimizely.
Expert Panel on Purpose-Driven Marketing: Leaders from 8451 Digital, Clean Age, Ronald McDonald House, and Lupus Foundation reminded us that our work is most meaningful when we internalize it personally because at the other end of the transaction is a human—every time.
Fireside Chat on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Under Fire and Using Data to Rebuild, Not Retreat: This panel provided facts to counter the divisive forces dismantling DEI initiatives because, as we know, more diverse companies historically perform better. We all need to recognize our own biases, name them, and be accountable—some companies even use AI to detect sexist narratives.
Helen Todd of Creativity Squared on A.I. and the Future of Creativity: Welcome to the Imagination Age reminded us of the old Cherokee adage of the wolf. Which wolf survives? The one you feed…so we need different stories. This technology is taking us from the information age to the imagination age with the convergence of advances in Biotechnology, IOT, and AI. Fun fact: Computer programming can trace its origin back to 1843 when Ada Lovelace wrote the first algorithm.
Brook Daniels, aka the Holistic Hustler, authentically started her session with a meditation and some breathing exercises, which was refreshing and needed as our closing speaker. Her message was one of following a work compression strategy and giving yourself permission to rest. Be present and grounded by turning off notifications and batch-scheduling your response time. When you are working in your purpose, you are using your gifts that bring satisfaction to you and others.
