When Less Is More — LaxCon 2016
Driving down to Baltimore for the US Lacrosse Convention (LaxCon) last Friday, with the Blizzard of 2016 about to bury the city, I was wondering whether or not this would be a huge waste of time. I was transporting about 1,200 Swax Lax balls that we were hoping to sell from our booth in the Expo Hall. Some of the balls were expected to be used in a number of Field Demos and Coaches Education Program clinics. I was also scheduled to do a presentation with Laura about “Putting Fun in Fundamentals” — who came up with that corny title?
The weather people were predicting Armageddon, and I was driving into the epicenter of the storm. This was going to be a big mistake. No one was going to be there, either to buy our balls or listen to our presentation. We’d be standing around all weekend twiddling our thumbs and listening to the echoes of an empty Convention Center. As usual I was wrong.
Never underestimate the dedication of lacrosse coaches — or the power of nonrefundable hotel reservations — to draw people to the middle of a meteorological cataclysm (aka #jonasblizzard2016).
Lots of Lacrosse Talk
There were definitely a lot of no-shows. Many sensible people did stay at home. But this was not the total bust I expected. Granted, it was hardly the mob scene the Expo Hall usually is during Lax Con. But there were people there. And they wanted to talk — about lacrosse. Well, guess what, that is right my alley. I love talking lacrosse. I like listening to people talk about lacrosse too, and I got to do a lot of that.
Often, you only get to give a quick elevator pitch (the length of an elevator ride) when you are working a convention booth. That was not the case this past weekend. With fewer attendees and vendors, everybody had more time. Time to listen. Time to connect. Time to share. And really, that’s the best part of lacrosse, sharing.
Sometimes less is more.
