My heart sinks when a conference or event gets brought up at work, and it's always framed as 'Would you like to go to this?'… The honest answer is: no, no I wouldn't. I don't want to have to make my working day longer due to the added travel time, it messes up my routine, and I'm not bothered about the actual content. But I feel like it's almost taboo to actually say 'You know what, I just don't want to go.' I have to find some excuse why I can't go, and that's not always valid, like I'll say I can't get there easily and then someone's like 'I'll give you a lift!' Any ideas on how to politely decline stuff like this?