Personally for me I have found it really useful to dip in and out of the various different streams at SXSW. Last time I was in Austin for the conference I was Tech Lead and really only involved in the sessions related to that role. This time around, coming here as a Project Manager, I have tried to attend as broader range of sessions as possible. Taking in talks with a bias on Sales and Marketing, Design, as well as the Psychology of it all, while dipping into the technical development side of things, has open my eyes a little more in how pivotal the role of a project manager is in holding it all together.  I do feel quite inspired and I have learnt a lot.

Looking at Headscape as a whole I feel like we are starting to really find our place in the world. Early in Paul's talk (@boagworld); Pain free design sign off, he uttered an almost throw-away line; "Headscape specialise in sh*t projects!". Obviously he didn't mean the quality of the work, or our clients, but simply refereed to the fact that we do normal work, for normal clients. We are involved in complex projects which often require us to manage multiple stakeholders to reach a successful conclusion. And we do it well.  We do it creatively, inventively and are taking a lead, in these normal, everyday projects, in setting expectations and standards of how things should be done.

When Paul said this there was an audible expression of understanding; almost relief in the audience. Because, of course, most freelancers and agencies don't do the cool, whizz bang projects that you often hear about from the front. They do everyday client work; just like us. It was great to hear a session which was grounded in the everyday, real world life of an ordinary agency. 

For me, this understanding is significant and will have an impact on company as a whole. 

All in all, SXSW has been a blast. I've had a great time. It's been a party, there is no denying that. But I think I head home with new inspiration and I am looking forward to seeing that worked out in the coming months.