Wear Comfortable Shoes

Ladies and Gentlemen of VMworld 2019.

Wear comfortable shoes.

If I could offer you only one tip for the conference, comfy shoes would be it.

The long term benefits of comfortable shoes have been proved by scientists, whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience… I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the knowledge and learning imparted at the breakout sessions; oh nevermind; you will not understand all the knowledge and learning imparted until you watch the recordings. But trust me, in 20 years you’ll look back at your notes from the event and recall in a way you can’t grasp now how much technology lay before you and how fabulous that UI really looked… You can’t fit in as many parties as you imagine.

Do one thing everyday that scares you.

Present a session.

Don’t ignore other people’s opinions, don’t put up with people who ignore yours.

Talk to people.

Don’t waste your time on free pens; Sometimes there’s T-shirts, Sometimes there’s LEGO. The swag list is long, and in the end, it’s only what fits in your suitcase home that counts.

Drink plenty of water.

Maybe you’ll do the Hackathon, maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll watch a vBrownbag, maybe you won’t, maybe you’ll get an early night, maybe you’ll dance the funky chicken at the VMworld party. Whatever you do, don’t worry too much when someone says on-premise. Enjoy your time at the conference, Use it every way you can… Don’t be afraid of doing new things, or what other people think of them, Spending time wisely is the greatest investment you’ll ever make…

Use that Early Bird pricing, you’ll miss it when it’s gone.

Be nice to your peers in the vCommunity; They are the best way to learn and the people most likely to stick with you in the future

Stretch.

Go to VMworld US once, but leave before it makes you hard; Go to VMworld EU once, but leave before it makes you soft.

Accept certain inalienable truths, vBeards will grow and turn grey, vendors will talk FUD, you too will get tired, and when you do you’ll fantasise that when you were younger vChins were clean-shaven, vendors were noble, and the flash client was the best thing since sliced bread.

But trust me on the comfortable shoes…