TC25 Guide for Introverts
How to make the most out of Tableau Conference without losing your mind
Hi! Did you get into data because you love hanging out with large groups of people?
Uh huh, right, me too.
Still, I’ve been going to Tableau Conference since pre-acquisition, and every year since in-person started back up after COVID lockdowns ended, self-funding when necessary. Here are my tips for the biggest social engagement I attend all year. If I missed anything you’re still curious about, drop a comment!
Session Fomo
Unless you’ve got Hermione’s time turner, there’s no getting around this one. Here’s a few tips for how to approach building your TC agenda. Don’t miss IronViz or DevsOnStage. Beyond that, how do you pick?
The “Diner Food” Strategy
I was overwhelmed by a breakfast menu once and my Dad gave me this advice: It’s a diner, Elisa. They have breakfast food. Figure out what you want to eat first, then figure out what they call it.
– What’s up with Tableau + AI?
– How to be a pro at Tableau Desktop
– Tableau Server Guru Training
– How to Get Involved in the Tableau Community
The “Good Professor” Strategy
Remember in college there were good professors everyone wanted to learn from. Did I really care about Urban Economics? I did when Randy Bartlett was teaching it. Same deal. Find a speaker you want to learn from, prioritize their sessions.
– Flerlage Mega-session
– Chart Chat Live
– Your favorite Tableau Content Creator
The “Channel Surfing” Strategy
There’s a section of conference each year that’s set up like a drive-in movie theatre with separate screens/presentations in the same space. This year is even BYO headphones (if you want to), so it will probably be even easier than ever to tune into what interests you most that’s available right now. Just like at the movies, you can wander into whatever’s playing when your session lets out. Unlike the movies, here it’s actually encouraged.
The “Anchor Session” Strategy
Pick one or two can’t miss sessions every day, backfill with channel surfing as energy allows.
The “Comprehensive Analytics” Strategy
This is the one I bet you’re tempted to do, because you’re reading this post. The one where you read every single session description and favorite more than half of them. Where you wish you could scrape the whole agenda into an overwhelming gantt chart. Where you analyze and optimize, scrutinize, make hard choices, and feel like you’ve gone to the conference before it even starts. I get that. I want to do it from the bottom-up too. But if you don’t have time or energy to ruthlessly optimize your TC agenda, I am here to tell you it’s going to be OK.
BTW - if you need a tie breaker to pick between two sessions, many will be recorded and streamed or presented at a Tableau User Group (TUG) as an encore. Go to the live one! Unless you know that you’ll break the pinkie promise to actually watch it later.
Taking Breaks – Can’t Pour Water Into a Full Sponge
Your brain is going to fill up.
Your people meter is going to run down.
Your sensory overwhelm is going to kick in.
Take a break! Last year there was a quiet room – dim, weighted blankets, color pages, an employee to enforce the norms. It took me a while to give myself permission to skip out on interacting and unwind. When I finally got there, I couldn’t believe I’d waited so long.
Lunch Sooner Than Later—and You Can Eat Outside
There are usually several meal options for lunch… at the beginning.
If you roll in at the end of lunch, you will be left with the least popular option (ask me how I know).
Food is served in a big, light, loud, echoey atrium. The tables are those huge 10-person conference tables that are too big if you don’t know anybody and too small if you roll in with a group. See also “how to network.”
The big, echoey atrium opens… onto a lovely patio! We’re not in Vegas anymore, baby, they have fresh air in San Diego. Pack your sunscreen and step outside to reconnect with nature while you refuel your body.
How to Network – Make Friends. Make Plans.
Right now, reach out to two people in the community that you want to get to know better. Slack, LinkedIn, email, smoke signals, whatever.
Make a plan to have lunch together, attend the same after-hours event, or go to a session together (bonus points if you meet up for line-waiting).
That’s it. That’s the whole thing. Start now and stop worrying about vague “networking” goals. You can have this one checked off before you land in CA.
Leave Time for the Data Village
– The embodiment of Tableau Public
– The epicenter of MeetUps
– The source of the silly data speech bubble pictures
– The best place to actually sit down for a hot minute
– The unofficial Home Base of the #Datafam
If You See Someone You Know, Say Hi
It’s ok to be intimidated by saying hi to people whose work you respect.
It’s also ok to say hi to them anyway.
All of my Tableau friends are just as nice in person as they are online.
This isn’t comicon or some other fandom, but we are all here because we share the same niche interest.
You can do it!
What About the Evenings?
Tuesday: all sorts of vendor events are happening. Ball games, golfing, you name it. If you want plans, plans are available for you.
Wednesday: DNO, or Data Night Out. It’s a big deal! But that doesn’t mean it’s required. As an upgrade from Vegas, DNO is an easy walk from the conference venue so you’re not stuck if your social battery runs out before the party’s over.
The Gaslamp District has tons of great restaurants. Tacos are a San Diego specialty—make sure you have them while you’re in town.
Getting takeout and going back to your hotel to collapse in the silence is always an option.
What to Wear
Whatever you feel comfortable in.
When in doubt, jeans and a data t-shirt with a light jacket/sweatshirt/hoodie (morning cool ocean air + conference AC).
– Only the execs wear suits
– Sometimes presenters are dressed up for their session
– If dressing up is your vibe, go for it. KT is always a fashion plate. Christina Gorga usually does an #OOTD series of her fun vintage fashion outfits. I’m on team Fun Dress (freed from the tyranny of denim waistbands).
Just remember: Comfy shoes. If you don’t believe me, look up Britany Rosenau’s step tracker project. People walk a lot at TC. A LOT. And some people get up early and even do extra running (props if it’s your thing).
Shop ASAP
No data tees? No problem. The TC gift shop has all the swag the online store has and more.
You can go shopping on day one and have data tees to last all week.
In fact, you should go shopping on day one, because they run out of sizes. The store is open ‘till Thursday, but they will absolutely run out of at least one shirt that you want in the size that you need by then.
P.S. Yes, I’m OK
If you made it this far, thanks!
If you’re reading this and thinking, “Elisa, these are great tips but are you OK?”
Yes, but only because I actively manage my mental health (woo!).
Tableau Conference is the most anxiety-inducing thing I willingly sign up for—over and over again.
It’s worth it because it’s an amazing gathering of creative, smart, kind people who like to turn jumbles of data into pictures that make sense.
So if you catch me looking a bit glazed over, it’s not you—I’m probably on my way to the quiet room.
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AI Disclosure:
Wrote this myself, then ChatGPT helped wrangle the formatting and flow. You’re welcome.