Why do you suppose.....

Great question, Tammy! I can say that, for my part, traveling more than about 20 minutes outside my stomping grounds is rare for networking events. I try to focus the bulk of my networking efforts in the community where I live and work. I consider networking another way of building community, and for me there's a benefit to staying local with that, at least most of the time.

That being said, I've attended a couple of Bob & Judy Dunn's events in Renton and really enjoyed being there. If there's an unusual event that catches my eye that's in Tacoma or otherwise outside of my normal area, I'll certainly try to make it! What I'm realizing is that there is a lot of GOOD out there - good events, good people, etc. And I just can't do everything that's good - I have to choose what's best for my life and my business. Staying local is part of that for me.

I look forward to hearing more from other Bizniks on this topic!

Great topic, Tammy. I hear what Valerie is saying. It might depend on what your "community" looks like and how you define it. If your clients are all in a close radius, perhaps the networking farther away might not be the best strategy. And it does make sense, with all our crazy schedules, not to be regularly attending events 90-100 miles away. (Oh wait. Bob and I ARE doing that! :) )

However, (and here comes the "but"), I see incredible value in getting Bizniks together across counties. Bob and I even took the train trip to Portland recently. Of course, most of our work for clients is online, so our prospects and customers can live anywhere. But it is the collaboration and sharing that I love the most. What is cool is that many times, actual work evolves from that kind of networking, too.

The exciting thing about the Biznik picnic for me is the Biznik-wide community building aspect (at least for the western Washington Biznik community). I know that there are several new Olympia members that I am very eager to meet. And reconnecting with Seattle folks at the same time? Perfect.

So, on the picnic issue, if transportation is an issue, can we set up a plan for car pooling?

Traffic is pretty horrible from the North End. I'm in Shoreline, and to travel to Tacoma is a significant time commitment. Having family in Tacoma and Olympia, I do travel that way quite a bit. It's common for it to take over an hour for that trip through some pretty heavy stop and go traffic to reach the Tacoma Dome.

What everyone is saying makes sense, and unfortunately traffic and time, and other reasons can make a lot of decisions for us.

Okay, so I will be the devils advocate here and open my big mouth. Many of us South Sounders have traveled to Seattle, fighting traffic, and struggling to find parking spots. But we did it to support some of the larger Biznik events, because it felt good to do so.

And now we are asking the same of Seattle.

(now I know I have opened a can of worms)

~bob