Conference Notes Template

When to use this

Notes scribbled in real time and never opened again help no one. This structure forces synthesis: what did you actually take away, and what will you do about it?

What’s included

• Top 3 takeaways (one sentence each)
• Sessions worth noting
• [Session title] — [Speaker]
• People I met
• Ideas to bring back to my work
• Actions
• Revisit date

What to customise before you use it

• Replace Conference name with your real meeting, project, or stakeholder details.
• Replace Dates with your real meeting, project, or stakeholder details.
• Replace City with your real meeting, project, or stakeholder details.
• Replace Full / part with your real meeting, project, or stakeholder details.
• Replace Insight that changes how I think about something with your real meeting, project, or stakeholder details.
• Replace Session title with your real meeting, project, or stakeholder details.
• Replace Speaker with your real meeting, project, or stakeholder details.
• Replace Same structure with your real meeting, project, or stakeholder details.
• Replace Idea with your real meeting, project, or stakeholder details.
• Replace my context, who I'd talk to with your real meeting, project, or stakeholder details.

# Conference Notes — [Conference name]

**Dates:** [Dates]   **Location:** [City]   **My attendance:** [Full / part]

## Top 3 takeaways (one sentence each)
1. [Insight that changes how I think about something]
2. [Insight that changes how I think about something]
3. [Insight that changes how I think about something]

## Sessions worth noting
### [Session title] — [Speaker]
- Main argument:
- Best supporting evidence:
- What I disagree with:
- One question it raised for me:

### [Session title] — [Speaker]
[Same structure]

## People I met
| Name | Org / role | Why they're worth a follow-up | When I'll follow up |
|------|------------|-------------------------------|----------------------|
|      |            |                               |                      |

## Ideas to bring back to my work
- [Idea] — applied to [my context, who I'd talk to]
- [Idea] — applied to [my context, who I'd talk to]

## Actions
1. [Specific action with a date]
2. [Specific action with a date]
3. [Specific action with a date]

## Revisit date
[Date — 30 days out — when I'll come back and check what actually changed]