Every conference, by design or circumstances, has its own style. That is not to say they don't have common features such as opening sessions, educational opportunities, and the chance to network over a golf club or the liquid spirit of choice. But for those of us circuit riders like myself who spend a large part of our summer walking the halls of convention centers, we come to expect certain things depending on the trade groups and associations who make their annual gathering a central feature of their year. Some conferences are small affairs where everyone knows each other and has the feeling of a family reunion. Others are more family-friendly affairs where it is not uncommon to see spouses and children riding elevators in bathing suits heading for the pool. Some, however, are much more expansive and offer a full range of opportunities.

The Florida Workers' Compensation Institute's annual educational conference has its own atmosphere that is unlike any of the national and state conventions. The brainchild of Tallahassee attorney Jim McConnaughhay, the conference has grown from a few hundred people in its early days to an event that now attracts thousands of visitors and exhibitors from Florida and around the country. For many it has become the most anticipated event of the year as witnessed by the number of hotel reservations made a year in advance and the waiting list of exhibitors who for the lack of space couldn't join the some 300 vendors and companies who see the conference as their premier marketing event.

The FWCI has long had a reputation as the largest party thrown in the state. The opening reception on the first night of the convention attracts a huge crowd that centers around headline entertainment. People eat, drink, dance, and make the rounds of hospitality suites that occupy at least one room per floor. But what is remarkable about the conference is the juxtaposition between the partying and the attentiveness of those in attendance at the breakout sessions. When the many sessions are taking place behind closed doors, the silence almost makes the hotel seem deserted. And when you attend sessions there is no doubt that people are absorbing the information and will apply it when they return to their desks.