It is Saturday morning 08:00. Sleep status = Zero. Only one day before I’m taking the plane to VMworld Barcelona. This is the first time that I’m attending, and I’ve been looking forward to this event for a very long time, which make me feel very blessed that I get this opportunity from my company ITQ. Still, even though I’ve been looking forward to this event for quite some time, the whole week I was busy finishing up some stuff for my customer. At Saturday 08:00 in the morning, after a night with no sleep, I was finally finished. My planning wasn’t exactly going smooth, and after a quick powernap of 3 hours of sleep, lots of family obligations and some private matters, it was suddenly 23:00. I still hadn’t packed my bags or even set up my agenda. Honestly, I think with all the hectic stuff that is going on in my life, it is suffice to say that I’m currently the last person in the world that should give some advice on planning your trip to VMworld 🤣. On the other hand, in the midst of a crisis, you’ll learn how quickly you can trust your planning skills and still feel prepared for one of the biggest events of the year. Luckily for me, VMware has created some cool tools that makes planning a whole lot more fun and easy. So with some energy left, I quickly prepared myself for an awesome VMworld and getting an overview feeling for all the awesomeness that is coming our way.
Tip 1: Check the VMworld program multiple times, even after registration
VMworld has a lot of cool sessions, but some of them don’t appear directly when registration is opened. Even though it is a good habit to explore and register for the sessions of VMworld as soon as possible, lots of other cool sessions are not directly available and will be added to the list later on. So definitely check the website more than one time, since some of them are added in the last week itself.
Tip 2: Creating and exporting your online VMware Schedule
While clicking on all of the cool sessions that you wanted to attend, you’ve probably realized that VMware has a created a cool scheduling tool. This while give you a great and awesome overview of all the sessions that you have signed up for. It even shows which sessions are in the same timeslot, which will create a popup that will help you to swap the sessions. One thing that is really handy is the export function, which will help you to import it into your personal agenda. If you want to export and import this, try to do this just a few days before. Locations and rooms can change during in between, and if you have exported it right away, the possibility exists that you won’t have the latest information.
Tip 3: Add custom times to the VMware Scheduler
VMware is a fun and awesome technical event, but besides that, it also offers you an environment to connect with peers, enjoy some awesome parties, and a great city that has lots of stuff to offer itself. Besides VMware, partners, customers and user groups also host their own events and parties. So it is quite handy, that you can add and create custom events in the VMware scheduler. This way, you don’t have to keep track of a double agenda.
Tip 4: Download the app, download the app and download the app
The “VMworld 2018” app is a fun and easy app that has a lot of information, but also shows your online Agenda that you have scheduled before. It has a map with all the information and locations, it makes checking in for your badge a whole lot easier, and it has some other awesome and handy stuff. So definitely download it and check it before you go.
Tip 5: Know before you go page
Definitely check this link from VMware which also has a great summary of all the things that you can expect. https://www.vmworld.com/en/europe/know-before-you-go.html
Tip 6: Use a Public transportation app, like Citymapper
At VMworld Barcelona you’ll get a travel ticket that you can use for the public transportation. Getting from point A to B, can be challenging but in my honest opinion, the app Citymapper does the job quite well.
Last but not least some simple but general tips, keep important mails, tickets for boarding, hotels but also all the events, offline on your phone. So that you always can quickly access them if needed. And most importantly, don’t forget your wallet in the car when you go carpooling with colleague’s. Guilty😅😑.
Samir is the author of vSAM.Pro & a Life enthusiast who works as a consultant in the field of IT. With a great passion for Tech & Personal Development, he loves to help people with their problems, but also inspire them with a positive outlook on life.
Besides that, he is also a big Sport & Music junky that loves to spend a big chunk of his time on producing music or physically stretching himself.
