UNBOUND 2026 said yes. Sort of. I made the waitlist.

When I saw that email, my stomach dropped. But I've learned that sinking feeling is fuel, not failure. It's the same feeling that pushes me to apply to things I technically have no business applying to.

So I did what felt counterintuitive: I shared the waitlist email on LinkedIn.

A few hours later, Ashley Faus, one of the keynote speakers I'd met at B2B Marketing Exchange, commented:

That comment reminded me why I share the messy middle, not just the wins. People love a good hero story. We root for the origin, the struggle, the climb. And when I eventually make it to UNBOUND, it's going to be a damn good story.

1. Use AI to find your conference hit list.
Go to your handy dandy AI of choice and prompt it with: "I'm a B2B Content Creator in [industry/focus] and want to attend large industry conferences to make content and network with my audience of [your audience]. Give me a list of the top 5-10 in [city]." You won't get a perfect list (some answers will be funky), but it's a great starting point. Also, your favorite B2B creators go to a lot of conferences. Comb through their content to see what they're covering. (Want the full breakdown? Watch: How to Get Into Major B2B Conferences Without a Budget).

2. Sharing failures makes you human.
And humans love to do business with… people. Vulnerability opens the door for others to resonate with your content. Who actually wants to follow a polished profile that never talks about failure or lessons learned? For me, those brands aren't authentic, and they're probably lying because ain't no way someone's life is perfect. If it's perceived to be, that's not where I want to learn from. My two cents. (Here's me doing exactly that.)

3. Be audible about what you want.
I put out an event wishlist a few weeks ago, places I didn't have tickets to yet. It had four conferences on there, including Tableau Conference and VidCon. Guess what? I eventually got into Tableau (and instead of VidCon, I ended up at BIO International). Being audible creates a trail. People see it and think, "Oh, I hope she gets in." Then once you're in, you've cemented that timeline in a follower's mind. (Pro tip: I also researched the event hashtag to find free side events in case I couldn't get into the main conference.)

Stanley AI for LinkedIn — I got a week's trial, and I'm hooked. Unlike Gemini, ChatGPT, or Copilot, this one already has your LinkedIn info and data baked in. You don't have to spend hours educating it about your best-performing content…it already knows and suggests ideas based on your pillars (it helps define those too). Not sponsored, but wish I were (manifesting it right here).

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig — An existentialist take on "what if you took this choice in life and ended up somewhere else instead?" It's fascinating watching the protagonist try on different lives and seeing how each one unfolds.

Physical To-Do Lists — I love stationery, and Marshalls had some cute ones a few months ago. Grabbed two and use them daily. Yes, Notion is great, but nothing beats physically crossing off a task and hitting that dopamine.

A few weeks ago, I chatted with Sabreen Haziq about the coffee line, the Buffer Creator Program, YouTube videos, personal branding, and so much more. My favorite takeaway: “Anyone can build a social tool, but almost no one can replace 70 people at a company creating in public consistently.”

Watch the Full Episode Here

The lesson I keep coming back to: be audible about what you want. You never know who's listening.

What's something you've been hesitant to share publicly? Hit reply. I read everything.

Thanks for being here. It means more than you know.

Coffee in hand,

Rocio ☕