Looking back and planning ahead: Why should I attend Dreamforce?
This article was written by Idealist Consulting Consultant Kristen Speth. Kristen has over 14 years of software consulting, and lives with her family in Denver CO. A couple of months after Dreamforce all that cool stuff we learned is becoming part of our routine, the lessons are sinking in, and we’re getting excited for next year.
“Should I attend Dreamforce” is a question I often hear from clients and co-workers. They want to know what they will get out of it, how it will benefit them and what their motivation might be for attending. After attending the past two conferences I can say that I now have a little perspective on an answer.
The best example I can give you relates to my kids. My kids have been learning to play piano for the last 5 years with a wonderful teacher. She used standard piano books and they had been progressing through the different levels and checking off the boxes on their learning charts. Recently, their piano teacher decided to retire, and fortunately another teacher was willing to take her classes. When my kids were with the previous teacher, it took a lot of prodding and reminding the kids to practice. The new teacher has a very different style and allows the kids to pick the music that they play. This style has made piano more fun and now my kids run downstairs and play their songs willingly and many times without being asked. Even though both teachers are great, the new teacher has reinvented the way my kids relate to their lessons, making piano more fun and giving them a newfound love of playing.
Dreamforce is like playing piano with a new teacher.
In your day to day job, you probably have many tasks to do and boxes to check on your own personal learning charts. Understandably, it’s hard to find the motivation to sit down with an online learning course, a book on Salesforce, or to dive into that next level of certification. But Dreamforce makes learning more about Salesforce fun! It is an event full of enthusiasm, connecting with live human beings (and not just a computer screen) and a full menu of topics and ways to spend your day. Every person that attends can flip through the menu and choose what they need most at that time. This year for me, it was connecting in person with co-workers, learning about the latest and greatest technologies for my clients, and talking with a vendor about an issue I was having with their product. Next year, who knows, but I’m sure that like the new piano teacher, it will be fun and make the most of my time.
What anyone gets out of Dreamforce varies from person to person, and is completely dependent on what you go into it looking to gain. There is something electric about 170,000 people coming together with various backgrounds and experiences and sharing and learning from each other. Whether the upcoming Dreamforce would be your first or your tenth, the one constant is that it will be valuable to you in some way. Just like the new piano teacher, Dreamforce lets you pick out your own music.
Curious how Salesforce and Dreamforce can help your business or nonprofit pick our your own music? Let us know when you're available and we'll set up a call!
