Steem Summit Organizer's Perspective

_{Image courtesy of @iamqueenlevita}

Hello Steemians!

Every Steem Summit participant's perspective is valuable. It is the true gauge of the event's success. I am ecstatic to know that every review has been a positive one. With that, let me share my perspective as the Overall Head of Steem Summit.

Everything was still overwhelming even when it's now two days after that successful event. I still have to recollect everything that had happened because I can't grasp the idea that I had a direct influence over something that has made an impact to the community. I am still trying to figure out how we were able to pull something that big. It's the greatest milestone in my life so far! Finally, I can now brag that I, together with my team and the support of the number of people mentioned in my expression of gratitude post, made a first-of-its-kind event for the Steemit community.

I guess it's fair to say that I can claim a part of Steem Summit's success. But as I answered @jan.lives' question about how Steem Summit came to be, everything is a collaboration. I can't and will not claim that I conceptualized Steem Summit. It was @jassennessaj who approached me to have a convention to cater the increasing number of Steemians in Cebu. I didn't know then why he approached me to organize an event that big. I just guessed that maybe we, together with @themanualbot, have the same vision for Cebu. But even before @jassennessaj approached me, I had a dream of making something like Steem Summit to happen. I visualised everything in my head, but the major roadblock that hit me was how to realize that dream.

Having a dream is one thing, but making it a reality is another. To make it happen, I realized that I need a team that I could trust. I need colleagues who shared the same vision with me, but in a different perspective. That's where my team came in. Before Steemit, @thegaillery and @legendarryll are my siblings in the same organization that I'm in. I can say that I've known them personally. It was @legendarryll who brought me to Steemit and I invited @thegaillery, so we grow up together in the Steemit community and we are still growing.

I needed someone who can translate what I visualized into words. That's where @thegaillery comes in. She crafted the Steem Summit Manifesto. I just told her to summarize what we are aiming to achieve in Steem Summit and she gracefully made the introduction of Steem Summit. Her words resonate in people. It's evident in her ongoing personal project: The Confidence Project. She became the People Relations Officer because of that aspect. I also needed someone who can handle the funds and expenses. She has the integrity and transparency, a trait that Steem Summit is always aspiring, so she became the Financial Executive.

Steem Summit is a brand. We wanted it to be something that we can claim to be ours. As we aspire the event to stick to the minds of the attendees, we planned to be consistent in our branding from start to finish. That's where @legendarryll comes in. He's the best in his field. Every single detail in the summit proper is part of his creation. From the banner to the logo, from the streamers to the exhibit, from the choice of colors to the shirt design, and from the freebies/souvenirs to the photo booth, these are all from his mind and he makes sure that every part of the summit is an experience. He is Steem Summit's Creative Director.

I also need someone who can reach out to people and can handle the program very well. This is where @honeyletsgo comes in. She's bubbly and full of life. She has the power to make the program into something that we envisioned. She was supposed to be the host of the event, but sadly, she was not able to do so because of her circumstance. It's @thegaillery who took over as a host, but thanks to @honeyletsgo's detailed program flow, everything went smoothly during the event.

Now that we're done with the organizers, let's move on to the working committee. Steem Summit preparations were stressful, but I was enjoying the event more than I should because of these people who volunteered to help:

1. @wandergirl, @babybear, and @redspider - They're responsible for the food. Everything about it was wonderfully executed. They didn't serve it in one go, they serve it in a way that everyone will be satisfied. I just allowed them to do things their own way because I trusted their decision.
2. @xaydtrips and brokemancode - They're responsible for the set up of the exhibit. Carefully aligning the Sintra boards without an aid of a ruler is not easy. But everything was perfect about the exhibit.
3. @reewritesthings - It's her first meet up experience, but she was assigned in the registration. It's the first stop when you enter the venue. She was able to execute the task without sweat. Ma'am Rose, @fernwehninja, was also a big help in the registration.
4. @jsmalila and @ninyea - As ushers, they're the first to greet the participants, lead them to the registration table, and orient them on what to do.
5. @brokemancode - He's responsible for the sounds and slides. He's probably the most stressed person in the event. Making sure that everything is working fine during the event is daunting. It requires focus and presence of mind. He nailed it!
6. @anneporter - She came at the venue early just to make sure that she can help in the preparation even if she has a presentation to mind. Take note, she's responsible for @thegaillery's make up.

When you say that the event was successful, it's just the tip of the iceberg. There are a lot of hurdles that we encountered along the way. But thanks to the overwhelming support of those who trusted that we can pull it off, we were able to overcome those hurdles. Let me just cite one example.

When @thegaillery posted the financial statement, we expected to gather a conservative estimate of Php 83,000.00. Thru our postings and thru sponsorships, we expected to gather that amount. Thanks to @donkeypong for sponsoring the exhibit submission prizes and the performances, @maefe30 for the token of the speakers, and @kryptonia and @superiorcoin family for the venue. Every expense was carefully allocated, but we just gathered Php 62,000.00. We made some adjustments to the expenses, but we were really short of funds. Two days before the event, I told @themanualbot our situation and he immediately relayed the situation to @donkeypong. Without hesitation, @donkeypong sent the needed amount. Without his support, @steemsummit would not be the same as what you guys have experienced. As for the full liquidation of the funds and expenses, @thegaillery will make a post about it in the Steem Summit account.

Another story that is worth mentioning is about the speakers. It was agreed that the speakers would be outside Cebu. But a week before the event, the local speakers backed out due to unforeseen events. So we had to change the line up the speakers. It was @jassennessaj and @morken who saved the slot for the two speakers. We just thought of having @jassennessaj as the one who will talk about the current state of the Cebu community and what we have accomplished so far. On the other hand, @morken will inspire and discuss about the future activities of the community.

The inspiring videos from @surpassinggoogle, @voronoi, and @hansikhouse were also last minute additions which added a great value to the whole summit experience. Thanks to @jassennessaj for taking an extra effort in asking for those videos. Everything about those videos was inspiring!

Before a surprise story, let me just emphasize that the event started on time because we value punctuality and prompt sense of time. It ended ahead of time because everything went smoothly as planned. There were no dead airs which is another factor that makes Steem Summit different. In the coming summits, the same sense of time will be expected because we value everyone's time.

When I thought that the event ended with a blast, a surprise came in the form of someone who has been a great inspiration to the whole Steemit community. The presence of @surpassinggoogle in Steem Summit, even if it was at the last minute, signifies that Cebu has the support of amazing people. I'm still in awe of his presence in the summit. I will discuss more about it a separate post. One thing I can say though: He's a man of many novel ideas.

Since Steem Summit has made a mark, it will not be a last. The organizers have discussed and other exciting activities are being brewed. For now, let's just enjoy the stories about how the event went for the participants. Stay tuned for exciting updates in the @steemsummit account!

I haven't touched about the summary of the event yet. I guess I'm satisfied by the stories of the participants.

Here are some of them:
https://steemit.com/steemsummit/@smaeunabs/the-sweet-surprises-of-steem-summit
https://steemit.com/steemsummit/@anneporter/things-i-love-and-hate-about-the-steem-summit
https://steemit.com/steemsummit/@themanualbot/steem-summit-short-summary-cebu-s-first-annual-gathering-w-speakers-productions-exhibits-and-a-surprise-session
https://steemit.com/meetup/@mindblast/1st-steem-summit-was-a-success
https://steemit.com/steemsummit/@indayclara/steem-summit-cebu-was-a-blast-learning-about-blockchain-kryptonia-and-superior-coins-celebrating-success-talent-and-friendship
https://steemit.com/steemsummit/@iamqueenlevita/steem-summit-cebu-2018-a-gathering-of-steemians
https://steemit.com/steemsummit/@xaydtrips/a-quick-spotlight-on-the-steem-summit-working-committee-how-to-claim-your-exhibit-souvenirs-and-certificates-for-winners-and
https://steemit.com/music/@jaderpogi/steem-summit-beatbox-video-performance-of-steemit-beatbox-community
https://steemit.com/steemsummit/@carlitojoshua/the-successful-steem-summit-or-the-summary-experiences-learnings-photographs-and-the-community-464410386e7d5
https://steemit.com/steemsummit/@jembee/steem-summit-in-cebu-showcase-of-talents-exhibits-sharing-of-knowledge-awardings-and-photoshoots
https://steemit.com/steemsummit/@iamwhatiamnot/steem-summit-2018-this-is-it-steemit-is-now-making-an-edge-here-in-cebu-philippines

For the rest of the stories, look at the @steemsummit account. I will resteem all posts related to Steem Summit.

Thank you everyone!
Kim

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PS. I'm sorry if that's the only picture I managed to grab and add in this post. There's something that happened to my phone which prevented me to add more pictures. I think there's a problem with the single most powerful weapon I only have right now.