You Got This 2020 is less than 2 weeks away. We're really excited, and wanted to talk more about why we're running the event and what you can expect.

But first, why?

The Underland team feel it's really important that we talk more about the non-technical skills that surround our industry but rarely get mentioned. Content about 'soft skills' (we call them 'core skills') and others that require emotional labour are a staple of many tech conferences, but often as only one or two talks in a side track. We wanted to build a conference where this was the main theme, and successfully ran 'You Got This!' for the first time last year.

In 2019 we were lucky to have amazing speakers covering topics like overcoming imposter syndrome, building good self-care rituals, managing money and morality & ethics in tech, among others.

Roll on 2020

This year we're back and in Birmingham, with 9 great speakers across one day in one stream.

The event is in one of our favourite venues, Millennium Point, which is in the centre of Birmingham - right near Moor Street and New Street stations. We're kicking off talks at 10am and are running right through to 5:45pm with some networking drinks afterwards, but have built in lots of time to unwind, chat to people or take a break if needed.

Building an inclusive event

At the very top of our list is making sure we build an environment where everyone has a great time, feels welcome and included in every activity. When people signed up we asked them what we can do to make the event more comfortable. Here's a summary of the key things we have been able to organise in response:

• A quiet space people can use for having a break, quiet contemplation or prayer.
• All toilets are gender neutral - 'with urinals', 'without urinals' and 'accessible' options.
• All food provided is vegan. Other dietary requirements have been factored in and food labelling will be clear.
• We'll be providing live captioning, as well as transcripts post-event.
• Our venue is wheelchair accessible with no-stair options for any attendee available on request.
• This is a dry event, including networking drinks at the end.

The talks

We have 9 talks throughout the day, and the full schedule is online. We're excited about all the talks this year. If you haven't seen the lineup yet - it's really wonderful, topics include:

• The dangers of unconditional job love
• Investing in your future
• Finding mentors even when you don't know how
• Making your work visible in your organisation
• One aimed more at managers - developing your developers
• Making your first days in a new job count
• How company culture affects performance reviews
• Unionisation in tech
• Knowing when to walk away from a job

Along with last year's talks our conference is becoming a really powerful bank of resources for people, not just in tech, but across creative industries.

My top tips to get the most from You Got This

1. Actively listen

We're all guilty of spending many conference sessions in our laptops squeezing out some more work, or distracted by Twitter. Try and actively listen to the talks as they happen and don't worry too much about notes - all the talks will be recorded with transcripts so you can always refer back to them later.

2. Talk to people

This is a rare space where talking about the thoughts, feelings and concerns you may have as people in tech is absolutely encouraged. You'll be surrounded by your peers, sponsors who see the value of talking about these themes, and our knowledgeable speakers who will be happy to share a conversation in the breaks.

Everyone is friendly - if they weren't, this is likely not the type of event they'd be at. If you need help or just someone to talk to feel free to approach any of our team and we'll be there for you.

3. Listen to your body

Actively listening, talking to people, and just being at conferences in general is exhausting - we know this. If you're struggling to concentrate, need a break or just need to skip a session you are encouraged to do so.

We have a quiet room, but also feel free to leave and get some fresh air outside. We'll be happy for you to return when you're ready.

We are so excited!

The community of people who attend our events is what makes them special, and we're really excited to be able to run You Got This again. If you have any questions in the meantime feel free to reach out and we'll do what we can to help. 💖