Sixteen years ago I earned my CTSM certification; the first woman to do so. It was one of the proudest days of my life.

I remember how much fun I had working with my account manager and the designer at the exhibit house to pull samples of laminate and carpet and to create little images of the signs I used in my booth. This was before the age of electronic portfolios. My portfolio was and still is, a green three-ring binder about an inch and a half thick with pages typed using Powerpoint because I didn't know how to use Word!

I spent weeks collecting the information to put in my portfolio, but wrote almost all of it in one weekend.

You can finish up your portfolio in no time, too, if you approach it with an attitude of expectation and joy.

The next time you think about your CTSM portfolio, instead of thinking of it with dread, consider the joy you'll take from crafting a beautiful representation of one of your favorite or most successful events. Your CTSM portfolio is just like one big post-show report, and you know all about the event. Get your thoughts flowing and the rest will follow.

Gail Hernandez, Gold-Level CTSM (1st woman to earn certification, 1994)