As day one resulted in me planning and feeling like I knew exactly what to do, it is only fair that day 2 show me exactly what I should not have done.  Here is a list of my first things I’ve learned not to do at VMworld.

• Do not schedule back to back sessions during lunch.  The food is certainly better at 11.30am vs 1:45 pm.
• Do not schedule sessions close together in time, but far apart in distance
• Do not think you will have reliable Wi-Fi/LTE when there are 21,000 people using both of those on multiple devices.
• Do not wear your “VMworld 2013” T-shirt that you got at registration to the first day of sessions.  Come on now.
• Don’t take pictures of slides during the presentations.  You can download them later.

Some of that is joking, some of that is serious.

Getting serious now:  My first day of real sessions was probably too overbooked.  I found myself distracted during current sessions trying to figure out how much time I had to make it to my next session.  I should have left a bit more time in between to allow for things like snacks, walking, drinks, bathroom breaks, and other extra curriculars like the hangout space and hands-on labs.  I will be adjusting my schedule accordingly, because I think I’m confident in saying that there is just as much to be gained from “unofficial” networking and experiences as there is from the actual sessions.  Ultimately, cramming in as many sessions as possible is not necessarily the best way to do it.

Noted, VMworld.  Tomorrow is another day!