FAILURE OF CONFERENCES

Most conferences, seminars, panels, symposiums, and forums
meant for students and those starving to learn --
to find out the secret of the holy grail (talent),
to "network,"
to find out how to get a job --
are not specific or useful enough.
The problems are:
too many guests, too little time,
no strong moderator to guide panelists,
panelists too diplomatic and polite,
visits too short to talk with students and fans,
audiences afraid or unable to ask strong, direct, clear questions.
This is how 95% of conferences, etc., are.

Conferences, etc., invite too many international guests,
as if quantity = wisdom.
Not true.

Schools and organizations can brag about having the guests,
but poor ignored students and audiences don't experience or learn enough,
compared with the cost of bringing the "famous" names
(airfare, expensive hotels, banquets, daily expenses, honorariums).

Guests and hosts are lucky to talk together before and after,
but students and audiences don't get that opportunity.
Stiff Q & A are often useless rituals,
good for the guests' egos,
primarily for boasting, gossip, quips, forgettable self-help,
and, ultimately, a sense of hopelessness.

Life and real education are unfair.