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What I learnt by NOT going to TestBash!

I've seen many blog posts about people posting about what they learnt by going to TestBash. It made me think about what I have learnt by NOT going to TestBash this year....

Firstly, I attended TestBash Brighton last year. I loved it, I learnt so much and came back passionate and engaged with the Testing Community. Over the course of the year however, my work changed significantly and I wasn't doing as much testing as I was before.

When TestBash came around this year, I had 3 QAs who asked about going. I said to them "Definitely go", we got the funding and got them tickets and off they went. I don't think they realised why I was so passionate about them going, and about how I was "gutted" that I wasn't going!

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So with 3 of the QAs who I work with being there, I was in constant communication with them, checking in on how it was going, what cool things have they learnt... They even brought me back an MoT Calendar and some TestSphere Cards! But that isn't all they have brought back...

They have brought back a fountain of ideas, they want to build up a community within ASOS (we have 150+ QAs - so we have the people), they want to try new games, go to new events, have ideas about what we can achieve within our domain... It's awesome to see them so invigorated and passionate!

I think that last one is important, Passion, I've learnt that it's very much something that needs to be nurtured, and it can stagnate, it can dwindle, but you need to get out and talk to other people to feed off of their passion, feed off of their enthusiasm and take that back into your workplace. Remember, smiling at someone can change someones day, in much the same way as showing and demonstrating passion towards something. It's infections.

I'm reading a book on how to build a successful community of practice, which I sent to one of the QAs who went, and she replied saying she'd bought the same book... Great minds think alike!

I have also learnt that I don't need to go, by sending people I work with, I get a lot out of it, and they get even more out of it. I'd much rather send others and let them experience it for the first time, than go again myself... Having said that I will be going again... It's just more important that others go!

One more thing I have learnt is that you can track so much stuff on Twitter! Every day during the conference/workshops I was checking the #TestBash on Twitter, it was almost like I was there... almost!

So, I feel that by sending 3 QAs, my passion for testing, for the community has been reinvigorated... hence the revival of this blog, and my first blog post in a LOOONNNNGGGG time. I have many more ideas lined up, but I thought I'd kick off with this as it's relevant and the reason why I feel invigorated about testing and the community again.

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