Consensus 2018 wrapped its third and final day yesterday, and as some 9,000 attendees, exhibitors, volunteers, and sponsors filed out of the Hilton Midtown in New York City, there was only one thing on my mind: I needed a drink.

Coindesk’s annual flagship event has long been among the industry’s most well-attended, but this year’s numbers put it at a whole different level, alongside heavyweights like WebSummit and Money20/20. Similarly to those monster conferences, the subject matter on stage tended to be broad and thoroughly generalized; there was very little time to get technical, and the average level of knowledge with this audience of token investors, crypto lawyers, and blockchain startup founders was middling at best.

The registration process for some attendees took upwards of two hours

To me, it felt like one of those conferences that you don’t attend so much as “go through.” It was not unlike a three-day dinner party where 90% of the conversation is just you introducing yourself to an endless parade of business cards. Of the 300 hands I shook, I found that perhaps 50 were people I would attempt to follow up with, and about 20 were people I genuinely wanted to meet again.

Common amongst these massive events is what I like to call The Conference Glance, where people flick their eyes down at your badge as you approach, and decide whether you’re someone important before you’ve even had a chance to open your mouth. It’s a necessary (if slightly impersonal) way to navigate these venues. With this many people in attendance, you’d have to meet one new person every thirty seconds before you even got through half of the crowd, and keeping the non-essential interactions short is key to survival.