UKNM: The party

[Leigh Blue Caldwell]

Hi all


Thanks to Sam, Anna, sponsors and all for a fun party.  The last time

I was in Imperial College Union was in 1994 when I was studying there.

It was just after that I started Internation, and yet those days seem

more recent than the last UKNM party in 1998.


Things have changed lots in the last two years.  People are less

idealistic, less British, and more attractive now.  There was a lot

less selling tonight and a lot more getting drunk, chatting people up

and dancing.  It was a young industry back then, but it isn't any

more.


In 1998 there were a lot more people hanging around the edges of the

room just watching, and wondering who to talk to.  Tonight I seemed to

be almost the only one!  What's more, Sam was the only face I

recognised, though I saw plenty of familiar names.  Last time I seemed

to know nearly everyone.


Most of us are relatively young, and yet between us we've helped build

an industry and watched it mature.  That feels good.


I imagine that means the people who are here now are no longer the

ones who either liked the excitement of "the new new thing" or saw

easy money in it.  Those who stuck around, and who stay with it in the

future, are those who believe in it, and like what they're doing here

for its own sake.


I enjoy being part of this culture, talking to people who understand

what we all do, and knowing that people are still striving for - and

achieving - the same things they believed in five years ago.  It's

nice to share the same ironies - the casino and the monopoly money

were nice touches - and to have a yardstick to measure ourselves

against - just to remind ourselves that we're doing okay.  It's nice

not to have to feel that we in the industry are the only "believers"

any more, and that we still have to sell the very idea of the Internet

to the outside world.  It provides a lot of comfort - as well as

better job security.


Just having contributed to it all makes me happy.  Thanks everyone for

giving me the chance to feel that way.



Regards

	Leigh.



-- 

------------------------------------------------------------------------

  information        |  Leigh Caldwell, managing director, Internation.

    innovation       |   Kinetic House, 44 Hatton Garden, London, U.K.

      integration    |          +44-20-7242-3200 (fax 3033)

        Internation. |

blueinternation [dot] co [dot] uk

   www.internation.co.uk

------------------------------------------------------------------------


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 looking for useful books about the new media biz?

 check out the UKNM books page for some suggestions:

 http://www.chinwag.com/uk-netmarketing/books.shtml

 Email suggestions to:

helpchinwag [dot] com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  To unsubscribe or change your list settings go to

http://www.chinwag.com/uk-netmarketing or

helpchinwag [dot] com