Chanda Bell and Christa Pitts of The Elf on the Shelf creations are interviewed during the Entrecon seminar held Thursday at the Rex Theatre. The seminar continues through Friday.

I’m tired, but it’s a good tired.

Day one of EntreCon is done.

After months of looking for the right venues, finding that perfect mix of speakers, designing the look of the event and all the other things you have to do to make an event like this come together, the first day has come and gone.

Our goal for EntreCon has always been to improve business in Pensacola. And to do that, we didn’t just want to offer tips and advice, although there was plenty of that.

We wanted to tell stories and we heard many in day one.

Quint Studer, always a great storyteller, shared how his hearing impairment effects the way he interacts with people and talked about the new UWF Center for Entrepreneurship.

Inc. Magazine and inc.com Editor James Ledbetter talked about disruption. If you’re not a disrupter, a company that is completely changing the game like Uber or Airbnb, then you must find a way to adapt and survive that game-changing shift.

There were stories of mishaps turned into learning opportunites. Pensacola native Emily Ley didn't know she needed a factory proof for the first order of her now signature Simplified Planners. When they arrived - two pallets worth - they were all wrong and unusable. It taught her something she didn't know about the business she was entering. Ley now calls it her "$6,000 mistake."

Chanda Bell and Christa Pitts, the twin sisters behind The Elf on the Shelf®, told the story of turning a family tradition into a successful business and in the process, creating a new tradition for families around the world. They shared part of their business philosophy: working directly for Santa Claus, each of the 100,000 children who send them letters, e-mails and make phone calls to them each year get a personal answer.

Bell and Pitts believe in magic.

And for me, that’s what day one of EntreCon was – magic.

In the breaks between sessions and at the post-conference social event, I saw lots of waving, smiling and talking. I saw business cards being passed and lunch meetings being set up.

There were old relationships being renewed and new ones being formed.

And most of all, I saw the future of Pensacola, a group of entrepreneurs that not only want to see their businesses get better, but our community to thrive.

Quint often tells us that “we are all in this together,” and as day one drew to a close, I saw that notion being embraced.

I can’t wait for day two.