The real problem at a conference like ICLR was never the posters or the list of people worth meeting. It is the moment before the first word leaves your mouth, when every group looks like a closed circle and your own feet feel bolted to the floor. That is not a lack of confidence. That is a lack of a concrete entry point, and it is a solvable problem.
The person who wrote this is a PhD student with a clear goal: industry roles. They have done the preparation. They know which posters matter and which people they want to reach. What they do not have is a tactic for the first five seconds of a conversation, and that is where the entire event stalls. Generic advice like "just be confident" is useless because it skips the actual mechanics. Confidence is not a prerequisite for action; it is a byproduct of having a small, repeatable move that works under pressure.
Here is what a practical approach looks like. Instead of aiming for a group, aim for the edge of one. Stand close enough to hear the topic, not to interrupt. Wait for a natural pause, then ask a question that requires the speaker to explain something specific about their work. "How did you handle the data preprocessing for that result?" is better than "What do you work on?" because it signals you were listening and it gives the other person an easy, low-stakes answer. For the posters, the move is even simpler: approach the presenter during a lull, say you are exploring industry applications, and ask what they found most surprising in their own results. That is not small talk. That is a focused, respectful opening that respects their time and yours.
The deeper issue is the belief that everyone else already belongs somewhere. They do not. They are standing in the same airport terminals and coffee lines, feeling the same hesitation. The only difference is that some people have a script. So build one. Write down three questions tonight, not ten. Rehearse them out loud. Then commit to using one of them in the first hour of the next event. One concrete move, repeated, is what turns a hallway full of strangers into a list of contacts. You already did the hard part by showing up with a plan. Now give yourself permission to start smaller than the plan feels like it should be.