Fi (00:07)
Welcome to UnDUBBED the podcast that's unscripted, uncensored, and undeniably data. I'm Fi
Sarah (00:14)
And I'm Sarah and we are going to San Diego.
Fi (00:20)
Yay! I didn't like that crowd kind of sound in the background. So that's Tableau Conference 2026 or TC 26 That's from the 5th to the 7th of May this year and we are back baby.
Sarah (00:23)
Hahaha
And this one's kind of personal, I feel, because here's a fun fact that not everyone knows, but Fi and I first met nine years ago at TC17.
Fi (00:46)
Our customer success manager at the time, who was looking after both Singapore and Australia, Mark Evans, basically said to us, you two need to meet. And it was kind of a start of everything.
Sarah (00:58)
the start of our Tableau BFF journey that somehow ended up Dub Dub Data Consulting and a podcast and now a presentation slot at TC. So Mark, if you're listening, this is entirely your fault and we're very grateful for it.
Fi (01:15)
So when we say that TC feels like going home, I think we genuinely mean it. This community, this event, it's where it all started.
Sarah (01:27)
Yeah, and that's exactly why we wanted to do this episode. Because if you're going for the first time and you don't quite know what you're walking into, or if you've been so many times that you want to get more out of it this year, we want to help you make the absolute most of it.
Fi (01:45)
So we've been putting a call out in the community asking what's on everyone's radar, the sessions, the meetups and the things that you absolutely can't miss. So it's not just all of Sarah and Fi's ideas, it's wonderful crowdsourcing from the community. And we're be weaving that through this episode for you today.
Sarah (02:03)
So we'll also be bringing UnDUBBED with us on the ground. We'll be roaming around San Diego, capturing the data fam, sharing takes. So if you spot us, please come and find us and get in on the action.
Fi (02:16)
Yeah, we definitely want to hear your takes. What's your data take? But before we dive in, please share this episode with anyone who's heading to TC26 or anyone who's been on the fence about going. Consider this.
your sign and also don't forget to like and subscribe because that really helps us to boost those algo's. It's a really good thing for people to be able to listen to in the car. They don't have to watch what we're actually doing on here. So make sure you share it with them and hopefully it will help to give newbies a bit of a hand up.
Sarah (02:46)
Right, let's get into it.
Fi (02:50)
So for anyone who hasn't been to TC before, what are the events that absolutely cannot be missed and why do they matter so much?
Sarah (02:58)
So I'm gonna start with the keynote. And for me, this really sets up the whole conference. You kind of get in there, you get all the energy. I love when you come into the keynote, there's so much noise and action and music and everyone's really excited to get in there. straight off the bat, you really understand what the big buzzwords are gonna be for the conference, I'm guessing.
What do you think? Agentic? Do you think that's gonna be in there?
Fi (03:28)
Yeah, I reckon there's a good... We could put a pineapple, which is an Australian $50 note, down to say that agentic might come through. Absolutely.
Sarah (03:37)
Yeah, it might be
a buzz. I'd say for the keynote as well, a little tip, get in early, try and get a good seat. And yeah, really make sure that you're in there, because I feel it really sets the tone for everything, the keynote. So I'm just doubling down on the keynote there.
Fi (03:55)
Okay, so you and I haven't had the pleasure of being at TC for a while, but we have looked online and observed what's actually happening there. Typically, keynotes are more corporate than community, right? So, how do we manage the expectations of our listeners in terms of that?
Sarah (04:16)
Yeah, so I think always expect the forward statement.
Fi (04:20)
The forward looking statement, yeah. That's the wall of words.
Sarah (04:24)
Yeah, the wall
of words, which kind of gets glossed over. And I always find it quite interesting to look at how the presenter glosses over that as quickly as possible, or everyone's just kind of staring at the screen. And you're right, there is a lot of kind of corporate angle to the keynote, but it's like sifting through that and finding out the good little pieces, the buzzword, the excitement of what's coming, ⁓ maybe a little tip to what's happening.
on stage and a little suggestion on iron viz and so forth. But I think I'm really there for the energy, the energy and corporate jargon aside.
Fi (05:03)
Yeah, and I would say for first time people who are heading into the keynote, maybe think about what you might say to the person next to you. You don't just wanna sit there and be in your own little bubble. You have to wait around for a while for things to kick off. There's usually some music and that kind of thing going. But it's pretty boring to sit on your phone and just sit there and scroll. Why not have a bit of a...
pitch to say who you are, what you do, and what you're hoping to get out of TC and also inviting the others to come and speak like your next whatever, you what do you do? What are you excited about for this TC as well? Because for me, one of the...
best experiences about being there in person is the ability to connect with people. And I know that can feel really scary, especially to people that aren't so used to going to these conferences, but I can guarantee you that the majority, or all of the people that I've met before actually, have always wanted to talk about something data related. So it's really good to be able to sit down. If you've got something prepared, it makes you feel a little bit less nervous as well.
Sarah (06:09)
And if you always run out of a question, one of my favorites is, what version of Tableau did you start using?
Fi (06:15)
⁓
Sarah (06:16)
Now, one of my favourite pieces as well as actually Devs on Stage, which is one of the most talked about sessions, I think, in the whole conference. Fi, what do you think for people that have never experienced Devs on Stage, what makes it so special?
Fi (06:25)
Mm-hmm.
Righto, so if you've never been to a Tableau conference before, Devs on Stage is actually where they get their engineers and product team up on the stage to be able to present to everyone what's coming in Tableau or what's new in Tableau. And it's really difficult to look too far out because...
you know, whether it'll actually make it in. But what I really love about what Matthew Miller's been injecting in there, at least last year, was seeing some of the things that they're not sure whether they're actually bringing forward and hearing the crowd reaction to it. Because watching the crowd reaction is super special. You get a sense at a grand scale around who's actually excited about a new feature that's coming through and
given that a lot of the audience are people that actually use Tableau as well, they really understand the time savings or the cool things that they're going to be able to do. So it's that excitement and the noise and everyone gets excited. But that fact that you've got someone who is an engineer, typically, so they're actually building stuff and the fact that they're getting up on stage and presenting the stuff that they've been.
building is absolutely amazing. I think given that we all come from a place where we're builders as well and we're developers and we're trying to solve problems with data, I think it's a huge connection and we really sort of relate to it as really a bi-directional moment between the community and the people that are.
building the product and we would really, really love, we don't know that we can do this yet, but we would really love to get a behind the scenes look this year. Hey, Matthew Miller, can you help us out?
And choosing devs on stage as the must have was kind of like choosing between my dogs and which is the favourite because then there's iron viz and for people who haven't seen it live, what is it and what's it like actually being in that room, Sarah?
Sarah (08:44)
Gosh, being in that room would be a lot better than being on that stage. I can tell you that, Fi, that is not a dream of mine, not a dream. So for those that don't know what Iron Viz, it is a huge competition and it's based on, Iron Chef? they must need to make something really quick because every Iron Viz contestant has 20 minutes and
Fi (09:00)
Yes.
Sarah (09:09)
the same data set to make an amazing visualization.
So it's based on three things, analysis, design, and storytelling. And at the end of their 20 minute build, which they're all doing live on stage in front of everybody, they do get a sous chef from Tableau to kind of help them and guide them along the way and to, I guess, tell them if they're going off track or anything, At the end of it, it's not daunting enough. They then get five minutes to present it to the judges.
So after the feeder competition, it gets whittled down to 10 with the top three. And that's when they find out that they are going to be on that stage.
They also given 'Sous Vizzies' which are three people from Tableau, which helped give them guidance and will be up on stage with them.
We recorded a podcast a couple of months ago with our top eight from the feeder competition and very excited when five of those made it into the top 10 and of those five, three of them made it into the top three.
the top three were Anne Pregler, Kevin Wee and Brian Moore. So really excited to have spoken to them. If you wanna go deep into the Iron Viz feeder, we'll put that in the show notes below.
So Fi beyond the keynote and Devs on stage and Iron Viz what else is out there for everyone thinking of coming to conference or ready to come?
Fi (10:37)
Well, there's a lot and I'm just going to put a pin in the sessions for a moment, because I feel like that needs a bit of a deep dive in itself. Sam Batchelor, who is a Tableau Ambassador from Australia, specifically called out a few sessions that are really important and great community sessions. So there's the to the core session where they get some of the Salesforce Tableau executives up there and the crowd.
It's essentially an ask me anything session or providing feedback and the execs get to respond and really hear from people who are key fans of Tableau. So if you wanna have your voice heard, it's a perfect opportunity to get up and speak and talk about something that really matters to you when it comes to Tableau.
In addition to the To The Core session, Sam also called out the Vizzies which is absolutely admissible. And you might be wondering, well, what the hell are the Vizzies? They are awards that are voted on by the community and for the community. And they've got
Sarah (11:46)
Like I was the first time I got there by accident.
Fi (11:57)
no politics or anything in between. There's literally a place that you'll be able to go and vote before Tableau Conference for your favourite community members. And these community members can't be Tableau visionaries, so they can't be people that are already recognised by Tableau, There's also a...
Community Leader Award, which is something that I've previously won in 2016. So it's really important to me that the fact that the community actually recognised my contributions and it's really cool to see how they can recognise all the up and comers in the community as well. So a great session to not only prepare for and vote for, but also to head along to. Another ambassador Celia Fryer.
from Austin gave a huge shout out to the community village. And Celia said that her time in the community village, was a genuine highlight from last year because if you spend time in there, you'll find other community members who are super passionate about Tableau. You'll be able to get
huge insights, you'll be able to get help from people as well, and really have an opportunity to make some great data friends. Another thing that's happening this year is the hackathon, which for those of you who can't quite step away from the tools and want an opportunity to flex your skills, it's where you can pop the hood and test those limits And that can be things like
using the APIs to do fun things, even building extensions. I'm sure that they'll have some things that they, guard rails that they put around it, but it's an opportunity to get your name out there and also win some prizes as well. One of the other activities that's there is data night out. And this is a huge party where the community kind of comes alive. There's music, there's drinks, and there's plenty of opportunity to be able to let your hair down. And it's free as well.
But it's not for everyone. if you feel like, don't feel like being in a huge party kind of environment around lots of strangers, I know folks that prefer a quieter evening. In fact, I'm one of them. I like to go out with a close group of DataFam members for dinner and get to sit down. So I really recommend making sure, like everything at conference, that you choose your own adventure.
Because the honest truth is you can't do everything. So it's really important that you pick what matters to you and let the risk go without any guilt.
Sarah (14:36)
Yeah, and I think that's really important is don't carry the guilt. If you've kind of turned up and gone, I'm gonna go to all these things and do all this stuff. And halfway through the day, you get a bit like, ⁓ I don't think I could do much. I just wanna have a sit down and maybe chat to one person in the community village. And that might turn out to be the best conversation that you've had and really valuable.
So Fi we spoke a little bit about the schedule and you put a pin in it. Do you want to kind of come back around that because my god that schedule, it started to come out. It's huge. It's overwhelming. How do you make sure you don't lose your mind before you get to San Diego?
Fi (15:17)
I make a lot of plans before I head.
to TC and then as I'm talking to people, I find out about sessions because the tiny little session description doesn't always give enough space to really understand what's going on. And so for me, it's important to connect with people and understand which sessions I want to go on, but I try and do a little bit of planning upfront. So my personal favourite in terms of session building, outside of those big hitters or those heavy hitters that we've already spoken about.
I love heading to customer sessions, real people, the Salesforce sessions they're most likely to be recorded, but the customer sessions, sometimes the customers don't want them recorded. And sometimes they're not pre recorded either. So it's best to get in with what's most important to you because the practical advice you can hear from clients or customers or even consulting firms really helps you to
formulate different plans and solve problems that you may be having. My biggest recommendation is think of your own persona and what's important to you. So for example, if you're an analyst and you're starting out, I recommend getting inspired by the visionary greats. For example, the Flérlage twins, how to do cool stuff in Tableau or the OG visionaries, Andy Krebel and Jeff Schafer, who are bringing back their speed tipping where you'll learn so many tips.
your head will spin and you'll have to go back and see if you can find something that's recorded there. But if you're trying to figure out how to get more recognition for your team or influence for buy-in, get more sponsorship, shameless plug, we'd love for you to join our session, which is building a data culture with datafluencers. And this is where we'll give you some takeaways like Canva templates.
we'll teach you how to share your data stories and get them amplified by leadership, which helps you to build value in your organisation. And, you know, some people are out there and maybe a little afraid of losing their jobs or wondering, you know, what's the future given AI? Well, if you're able to communicate the value of what you're doing and get eyes on the results that you're having, I can guarantee you it's going to make you and your team stick.
So we're gonna actually be in the expo hall, speaking about that. You come on, you put some headphones on. It should be a really fun session. And like I say, you're gonna get things that are practical that you can take away and you can immediately implement in your team, whether it's in Slack or on Teams. And you can really help to get to the bottom of what matters for different people as well.
Mind you, if you're a leader who's really trying to understand, should I be going to Tableau next? What should I be doing? Then you can, head into the more technical sessions or head into the sales sessions. Or you may want to know more about building your data culture and understanding where your competitors are going. So start with the non-negotiables, like sessions that may not be recorded or you may want to go and speak to the speakers. That's a big tip. Go and speak to the speakers afterwards.
They may not cover everything and if you've got a specific question for your environment, they may be more keen to answer that one to one than actually publicly as well. So build on those things first, not the other way around. There's also
the Data Fam Tug which has a lot of recordings that are done post TC So that's kind of like.
my approach to how ⁓ I start to build a plan. What about you, Sarah?
Sarah (19:03)
Yeah, so a lot of things that you covered definitely are things that I do. And I just want to really iterate on what you said around the customer sessions. Like if you're trying to get this over the line with your company right now, and there's some really good customers that are aligned to your company, those sessions are super valuable. And that's how in the past I've managed to get into conference by saying, hey, I work at a big bank.
these big banks are doing where we want to go and making sure I'm front row of those sessions. And afterwards I'm in that line asking questions, getting their details and beyond conference and having conversations with them to really ask how bits and pieces of what they're doing is going for real because yeah.
Fi (19:54)
Yeah,
like building on that real story about something that happened to me, we'd gone and implemented Tableau, rolled it out to let's say 400 stores across Australia. And one of the problems, the data wasn't accurate. Who would have thought?
Sarah (20:20)
Never.
Fi (20:21)
Who would have thought, why wasn't the data accurate? Well, ⁓ for instance, you get your phone, you buy a phone case, it's an accessory. The last person hasn't logged out of the till when you just swipe it through. And that sale is then attributed to the individual who was previously logged in. But if you're tracking individual performance, is that fair? No. And so we needed to find a way to fix the data.
But unfortunately, there wasn't the ability to fix the data in the source system. So I was really interested when I headed along to a customer session. They had nothing to do with the industry that I was in. But they talked about write back. And this was way back when, before extensions, before anything else. And I sat next to a consultant who I was working with in Australia. And I was just shaking him saying, this is...
this is the solution to what we need to do. being able to go back, I had to then build a business case behind it, source funding for it, when you're going out to thousands of people to roll something out to, it's a big program of work and you need to be able to get it right. And having the confidence that someone else had been there before.
allowed me to then go and sell that through to the executives and get it across the line and then make millions of millions of dollars in revenue because we could drive that individual performance.
Sarah (21:53)
Yeah, what a great success story from attending a conference, ⁓ Yeah, yeah. So some of the things that I like to do in preparation for conference is, if I can, I like to arrive a couple of days early. And that comes with a couple of reasons. The time difference between Singapore and Vegas was huge. I think between New Zealand and San Diego is also huge.
Fi (21:57)
100%.
Mmm.
Sarah (22:22)
I like to try and get a little bit time adjusted. There's also quite a few events, that happen on the fringe of conference as well, which are great to get to. And you can pick up your badge the day before, you can start making those connections, just lightly kind of easing your way into it before the big bang of the keynote happens.
Another thing is, you know, there's a lot of different community channels that you can reach out to people on. A lot of people are talking about whether they're going to conference, if they're presenting at conference. If you've got some fan favorites, be brave, reach out to them, ask if maybe you could, meet them in the community village or something, And then I must admit, when I see any kind of schedule,
I just go hard and I'm like, I want to go that one, that one, that one, that one, that one. And that's about when I look up and go, four of those are on at the same time. That's never going to happen. But I still actually try and like have them all on my schedule. And like I said, I don't worry if I don't attend them,
Make sure you've got super comfortable shoes, a jersey or a shawl, because you never know when it's going to be freezing cold in there and you're probably not going to see a lot of daylight. A battery pack, your laptop if you're doing anything kind of hackathon-ish. Blister packs, water bottles. I don't know, what else would you take with you, Fi?
Fi (23:52)
Well, having just arrived back from a trip overseas, I know that one of the problems that I had, I broke my shoes while I was over there.
So make sure you have a couple of of shoes, I think, because what you can actually do is wear one pair of shoes on the first day and then another on the second day
I think aside from all the great things that you've mentioned, I really love to be able to room with people. And I've roomed with a couple of different people, yourself included. This year we'll be rooming together again, which is exciting. It's a great way to save some cash, especially if you're self-funding.
it's a good way to help one another out. And you know, I think that I've been on the receiving end of that before and I've also been on the giving end of that before.
And it's just a nice way to give people a bit of a hand up. The other thing that I recommend totally left field, ⁓ making sure that you put your phone on to battery saver right from the start, especially if you're roaming. Having a travel eSIM works really well rather than relying on the conference Wi-Fi, because at times that can be a bit sketchy depending on where you are.
Get connected on the Tableau Slack community because there'll be lots of insider knowledge that's going on there and you might learn about things that you want to get involved in. Keep searching for those blogs, looking on LinkedIn, making sure that you are getting connected with people. We would love for people to connect with us.
We're really keen to make sure that we're not only catching up with the old crew, that we are meeting the new crew as well. And so make sure that you reach out and say hi and happy to help anyone that needs some help as well.
Sarah (25:39)
Yeah, and one thing I just thought of that you did when we were recently at Agent Force World Tour in Sydney was you had your screenshot of your ⁓ LinkedIn.
Fi (25:51)
like connect with me. So you still have to scan it, I think from LinkedIn. Can you see that?
Sarah (25:58)
Yeah, but you had that saved as your screen saver, did you?
Fi (26:02)
Yeah, saved as my screen saver on the front. So it's really easy for people to come in and to be able to, you know, connect with me on LinkedIn. That means that we're going to be buddies forever. I'll get to see your content. You'll get to see my content. I
Sarah (26:18)
Yeah, for sure. And then I think one thing that I missed is around how you take your notes. So think about that if it's pen and paper, if it's an iPad, if it's just talking into your phone at the end of each session, because you will be overwhelmed with so much information. And I find just jotting something down in the middle or at the end of each session, that just kind of is going to trigger my memory, even if it's like I need to watch this one again, if it's being recorded because of X, Y and Z.
then you've got some stuff to take back as well.
Fi (26:50)
Yeah, for sure. mean, at Agent Force World Tour, we were recently there. Whew, must be three weeks ago now. And I really enjoyed using Whisper Flow, the app, because I can jump into...
any app and just do a quick recording and it actually understands my Kiwi accent which is quite broad and does a good job at that. And what that meant was after I'd spoken to someone I could write all the notes down and then I could write the action plan and come back into the office and make sure that I was closing things out. So good way to get everything sorted there.
Sarah (27:24)
Yeah. Community meetups are a huge part of the TC experience and they don't get nearly enough air time. What's on the radar for TC26 and why do they actually matter?
Fi (27:39)
Well, multiple people actually called this out in the community, unprompted. And Sarah Pallott said meetups are always a great way to connect and find your people. I would say that TC is really unique in that way because...
all of a sudden you're with people who are super passionate about data. Well, most people that are there anyway. Most people aren't forced to go into a conference by their companies. But you know, most people are there because they really want to be there and they want to further themselves and further their careers as well. But that can be hard when you're just getting started out. Like I remember my first conference, Seattle 2014, I barely spoke to
anyone, there were a few people that I was introduced to, some amazing people who I still call my mentors and friends these days. But then in terms of the community, I really sat on the fringe. And I reckon that's totally the wrong way to go about it. I met one woman who worked at the Harvard Business Review, and she's still on my on my LinkedIn. And it always makes me chuckle because there could have been so many more people, you know, I knew that there was
Paul Benoob and Paul Chapman and all of these amazing visionaries as well. And I did not lean into it because I was feeling like, why would anyone want to talk to me? You know, who am I? So a lot of that imposter syndrome coming through and...
I would say put on your big girl pants or your big boy pants and just get over it and try and have that one thing prepared or just ask a question or something along those kinds of lines and people love talking about themselves. So it's a good way to get connected.
In addition to that, Siddhar Ramakrishnan said that it's where you learn how to do cool stuff in Tableau. all of those really cool community meetups is a good way to go and do things.
My personal favorites, are some of the fringe events that go on. So there's the data plus women event, and it's not just for women. Typically there's about a 70-30 split. And so that can feel a little isolating as a woman coming in, especially if there's a bit of bro code.
or things that are going on, locker room behavior, and you guys just think that you're having a lot of fun, but it can feel a little bit isolating. It's a great way to show your support. In addition to that,
There is also the Data Plus Tacos event. So that's run by the San Diego Tableau User Group. It's at midday, around midday on Monday as well. So it's a great way to get connected with the local Tableau community. It's also, especially if you've got any questions about San Diego or just trying to get in front of things, ⁓ you can go and connect with some of the locals, but there'll be some...
familiar Tableau community members who all turn up and it's a good way to get to know them, especially when they're not super busy as well. I don't know about you, Sarah, but I kind of think that these events are where the truth comes out and the real conversations happen. when it's away from the conference center, maybe away from your boss. And there's fewer people trying to...
beat their chests or do anything, it's just more that people are turning up to connect with others as well.
Yeah, there's a shitload of other things that go on at TC as well that we haven't spoken about. So to the listeners, if you've got something happening at TC26, make sure that you respond to our posts on LinkedIn or something like that and people will be able to come in and I'll see if I can also update the show notes of this as we start to learn about other.
fun events that you can register for. We'll put the Data Plus Women and Data Plus Tacos registration links and I'll also see if I can find some of the other cool meetups that are happening as well in the show notes for you.
All right, Sarah, I know that we've kind of talked a little bit about this, you know, I think this podcast is really best for people who haven't been before. And just heading to their first TC, they walk into the San Diego Convention Center on day one. What do think it actually feels like?
Sarah (31:55)
Well, I'm gonna cast my mind back to 2017 when I walked into my first Tableau conference in Las Vegas. And I just remember being completely overwhelmed. I loved the fact that there was little like information stations around with people that looked like they knew what they were doing and what to tell me where I should focus on. And they were really informative. So I spoke to someone there and before I knew it, I ended up in a Makeover Monday session.
and it really changed my career, but we don't need to go down that rabbit hole today. But what I will say is, you know, everyone looks like they know where they're going. They probably don't. They're just bumbling around as well. It is overwhelming. A lot of us working from home or work in slight isolation, we're not generally surrounded by over 10,000 data geeks. if you do get overwhelmed,
Take a step back, go and have a chat with someone that could be more valuable than any of the sessions that you've ended up attending. don't be disappointed if you don't attend everything. Try not to go too hard on day one.
Yeah, be brave. You know, we all have imposter syndrome, but go and talk to people.
Fi (33:03)
Yeah, absolutely. I mean, there's one thing about the Tableau community that I find is different from any other data community. And I've belonged to a lot, the alt-trace community, the SAS community, you know, there are a lot out there, but people in the Tableau community tend to want to engage and have
a real desire to help one another out. And I do want to come back to one thing that we talked about because I don't think that I explained it terribly well about the vizzies and the origin of the vizzies. So the vizzies have been around now for more than 10 years. I think this is the 11th year. And they were
They were started by Emily Kund and Matt Francis, who at the time were running a podcast called the Tableau wannabe podcast. And they wanted a way to recognise people in the community without it feeling like a popularity contest. So that's why they chose not to have Zen masters or visionaries included in it.
And I think that the way that the vizzies have evolved over a number of years, they've become more more inclusive, thinking about different areas that people can vote for or have people recognised. And it's just a really special story, the fact that someone from the Tableau community would pay for awards out of their own pocket, which is what they do. And they would...
make sure that they organise with the Tableau execs that they could have something that was on on the schedule, bringing it to life. It's just super special. And so I just want to do a bit of a round of applause and a thank you to Emily and Matt and the fact that they continue it these days is just absolutely amazing. So thanks, guys.
Sarah (34:49)
Yeah.
Now, conference fatigue hits a little bit differently at TC. What does it actually feel like by day two or three and how do you manage your energy?
Fi (35:11)
Look, I think that one of the things that I find is really important is to make sure that I'm hydrating and that I'm snacking. So for me personally, a bit weird, but I find that the food in America is quite different to the food that we have here in Australia. So I try and have food that I can peel, or fresh food. So if I can find a banana.
or I can get a mandarin or I can get an apple or something that's actually fresh. It really helps me with my digestion over there because if you're having problems with your digestion and you're in middle of a keynote, you can't exactly run out, right? So I think making sure that you're eating the right foods and you're trying to get good food is really important. Obviously, there's lots of opportunity to socialise with people, but try not to go...
overboard with it. It's really easy to get caught up in the, my god, this is amazing. And I'm really enjoying myself. You know, for the neurodiverse ADHD people out there, having a few drinks often can feel quite good until it doesn't. ⁓ And so, you know, it's a way to, you know, you can sometimes find that you self medicate with alcohol. So just be careful how much you're actually having. ⁓ But if you do happen to overindulge, make sure you have some hydrolyte or something there that helps you with the electrolytes.
make sure that you're trying to give yourself what you need. you know, like no matter what you do, you'll always be able to catch up on things honestly. Like if you really needed to find something, someone would be happy to take the time out. I also found recently a pair of ⁓ loop headphones or earplugs was really good for noisy events. So I mentioned before data night out, not always my favourite, a lot of that's to do with noise.
So having a good set of earplugs can often help as well. Or if you've got a snoring roommate, ⁓ not Sarah, she doesn't snore. ⁓ But like if that happens it's good to have a pair of earphones as well.
Sarah (37:16)
I think you're probably gonna go a bit sideways as well, so don't beat yourself up about it if you do drink too much one night, like face it, rehydrate, get back onto it. You don't wanna be feeling sorry for yourself in your hotel room. You're just gonna have to get up and carry on, have an extra coffee maybe.
Fi (37:24)
Yeah.
And one last thing on that. When you're home from conference, don't have anything major planned. Make sure that you can get a lot of rest because you are going to be exhausted, guaranteed.
Sarah (37:50)
Yeah,
yeah. And actually just in the preparation for conference as well, really clear your calendar. You know, it's so important not to be doing other work while you're there if you can help it. Really block that time off.
Fi (38:07)
for sure. Now, see, you've been around for a while.
A lot of first timers feel genuinely terrified about approaching someone that they see as a superstar in the community. What would you say to them?
Sarah (38:24)
Feel the fear and do it anyway. We've spoken a lot, know, imposter syndrome. Are they gonna wanna talk back? It's a real open sharing community. People that are normally, in visionaries, hall of famers, ambassadors, they're to a point used to people coming up to them and talking and they genuinely care about newbies and people that have been around for a while and the conversations that they wanna embark on.
Fi (38:26)
Good.
Sarah (38:53)
So I would say get into it and just remember that we are two people that stepped forward and spoke at conference and look where that's brought us together.
Fi (39:03)
Yeah, for sure. Come and say hi to us. Break that seal by coming and saying hi. You'll see us, we'll probably be wearing something with dub dub on it or undubbed on it. We've got some stickers and stuff that we'll be giving away and maybe even some tattoos. So come and say hi, we won't buy it. And then that way we can be the first people.
that you'll learn how to have those conversations with and it'll be easy from there once you've got over that first hurdle.
Sarah (39:33)
and maybe come up to us and say, really want to meet so-and-so and maybe we'll help you do the first introduction.
Fi (39:39)
yeah, if they're around it
for sure, for sure.
Sarah (39:44)
Fi, when it comes to asking questions and sessions, knowing when to leave and saying no to things, what's your honest guide on that?
Fi (39:53)
Oh gee, there's a lot in there. All right, asking questions in sessions. In some sessions there will be a Q &A and others there won't be. What I suggest you do is make sure that as they're talking about the topic and you've got a question about it, just open your phone and put it into notes or something else that you've got that you can then prompt yourself so you haven't forgotten about it by the end of the session. That will allow you to remain completely present for the rest of the session until it's the specific time.
that you can ask. Now, I think there's a bit of etiquette in terms of asking those questions. Please don't put people on the spot and ask something that you think that they might not be able to answer because of their job or their role. Like it might be like, how much did you spend on this? Or, you know, like, how did you get that?
why don't you do this in Power BI or what's the ROI? Why'd you make that choice? know, think about things that's going to also give the speaker an opportunity to shine. If you've got something that's relatively pointy, feel free to ask it one to one at a time that they don't have to answer it in front of other people.
listen, be brave with it. Like it's hard, like yeah, I'm sure your heart will pump. But if you feel like your own voice is gonna wobble, let me tell you, the voice wobble is louder in your own ear, because your ears are closer to your voice box. Don't worry about it. People are more interested in what you're saying than how you're saying it. Okay, so just give it a crack. And what will happen, you'll build up these skills over time. And then suddenly, you won't care if you're speaking in front of 18,000 people.
next, knowing when to leave. You get into a session and they start talking and you realize you've misunderstood what you're gonna get out of the session. Now, if they're good presenters, they will tell you upfront what you're gonna take away. So why you're here and what you're going to take away. Now, if you're listening to that and you're like, don't need that, I found myself.
in a Tableau Next session and we don't use Salesforce.
maybe not the right session for you. So get up and go to something and use your time effectively. Now that could be another session, it could be hanging out with someone, leaving is completely fine, but make sure that you're doing it quietly, make sure that you're not making a scene, and I can guarantee you the speaker won't actually notice what's actually happening, because they'll be so in the head about where they're presenting. One other thing, say no.
if it's all getting too much or you can't do something it's okay to say no people are okay with it it's not a rejection of other people it's literally i've got things there's so much going on and what else can i do
Sarah (42:43)
Yeah, and I'll say to that as well, you know, if you've been invited to a lunch or a coffee and you genuinely can't make it, try and give them as much notice as you can and just be polite about it. But everyone knows, shit happens.
Fi (42:57)
Okay, real talk Sarah. What are the things that people should absolutely not do at TC26?
Sarah (43:01)
you
say from my own experience don't try and do everything all at once in day one and completely burn yourself out. Don't try and arrive you know hungover slash still drunk to pick up your lanyards.
And maybe don't just fill your schedule with sessions that you know are gonna be recorded. Like it's great to be at some of them, but I think back to your tips earlier on, Fi, if there's some client sessions that you really think won't be recorded, try and get into those. Everything will be on demand later on, so you can do it. ⁓
Try not to skip meals. I find this one hard because I'm battling time zones. Try not to have a tick list and try and tick every single thing on that list and meet every single person, because you will burn yourself out. And I think be okay.
things change, like if you're like, that's actually really interesting. And I want to go down that Tableau Next rabbit hole now. And I'm going to put the server stuff aside and my schedule is going to change because of that. That's okay too.
Fi (44:16)
Yeah, don't have new shoes.
They can be okay, but can also be problematic. ⁓
Sarah (44:26)
How many steps do you think you do a day in Tableau Conference? It's a lot, right?
Fi (44:31)
It depends on the conference ⁓ arena, but ⁓ I would say somewhere between easily 20,000 edging up towards 30,000. so it's really important to make sure that you've got the right clothing. I think you mentioned before like ⁓ the layering.
things as well so making sure that you've got a wrap or you've got a hoodie or you've got comfortable things that you can move around in you don't you don't need to totally dress up and look super corporate this is a tech conference you can be quite comfortable and a t-shirt yeah exactly chinos whatever whatever but making sure that you've got comfortable shoes
Sarah (45:06)
T-shirts, hoodies and jeans.
Fi, so that's a lot of information. What's some final takeaways you want our audience to really hone in on?
Fi (45:20)
So I wanna do some shameless plugging of what we're gonna be doing because it is our podcast. And so, and we don't often talk about dovetubed data things, but it's really exciting to be back at TC as ambassadors and also being able to do some undubbed reporting while we're over there. So we can't wait to hear.
your voices. We're to be publishing as we go on LinkedIn and YouTube, so make sure that you are following both channels. We want to interview you. We don't actually want our voices. We want your voices. So make sure you come and find us. We'll give you some swag as well. And it'll be great to hear what you think of. I mentioned that we are speaking at TC. So we want you to upside down your data culture in your organisation.
Oftentimes we hear that it needs to be leaders who are top-downing, telling everyone this is what's happening. We want to give you a voice and we want to help you to build the structure behind that to make it a simple no-brainer for your leaders to amplify your messages and help you to build value and share the good word of what your data teams are doing. So make sure that you ⁓ register for our session on your app.
when you do it, when you get it finally, and that's building data culture with data fluences. We'll make sure that you're a data fluencer. So we'll make sure that you're a data fluencer.
So with that, let's get into a rapid fire around Sarah.
Sarah (46:54)
Okay, Fi, what's one session at TC26 that you're excited to see and why?
Fi (47:02)
what comes back to the OG devs on stage. ⁓ And the reason why is because I love that the engineers get a chance to shine, but I also love the fact that I get to hear about what's coming and we all get super excited about it. So that's the thing that I'm most excited about heading along to.
Sarah (47:22)
So for me, it's seeing the Flérlage twins on stage. I have seen them on YouTube. We've spoken to them on one of our podcasts, but I'm really excited to see their energy live on stage.
Fi (47:35)
Yeah, I mean, there's so many different events that are coming through. We've got people locally from APAC speaking, we've got Commonwealth Bank, we've got Xero coming through as well. It's hard to choose. Next question, best thing you've ever packed for a conference that most people wouldn't think to bring?
Sarah (47:49)
very hard.
stickers. I've got our, remember these ones? For those that are listening, they've got a cat with a unicorn on it. We've got data unicorn, data villain, tableau for the people. I'm reading this all in reverse here and hashtag data fam. And we had these stickers and we'd pop them on people's lanyards so they knew that we'd spoken to them, which I thought was really cute. Oh, watch out for these.
Fi (48:00)
yeah!
So we have some really exciting stickers that are coming through this year so really looking forward to being able to share those with you and I think and these are actually some tattoos so we'll see how they go as well.
Sarah (48:39)
Oh, I like I.
Fi (48:45)
best thing that I've ever packed for a conference that most people wouldn't think to bring noise canceling headphones, because the longest trip from, you know, it's like 13 to 15 hours of flight for me to get to LA, and then we have to...
find our way all the way down to San Diego. So the best way to get some restful sleep is to make sure that I've got some noise cancelling headphones.
Sarah (49:10)
And on that, looking for top tips on how to get from LA Airport to San Diego too.
Most underrated part of the TC experience that just doesn't get talked about enough.
Fi (49:25)
the people that you bump into along the way.
I mentioned before that there's been some people that I've bumped into and got to know through being at more than 10 international Tableau conferences, both in Europe and in the US as well. And these have been people that I've been able to build friendships with, do business with, and also learn from.
and have been able to call on when I've needed a favor. I think bumping into people and just having those natural connections that happen is a really underrated part of TC.
Sarah (50:07)
And mine would be about networking and the quiet moments. So, you know, if you're just standing there queuing up for your fifth coffee for the day, or in the toilet line, or trying to get into the conference, it's just having that conversation with the person that probably looks as awkward as you do standing next to you. So be brave and have those conversations because you never know where it will lead.
Fi (50:30)
Yes.
So Sarah, what's one thing you tell your first conference self that nobody told you?
Sarah (50:39)
I'd say just get in there, talk to those people that you're too scared to talk to, because they're pretty friendly.
Fi (50:45)
Yeah, I love that one. I know that I mentioned before, I had had a few people in mind that I would have liked to have met. And what it meant was I had to wait more than a year to be able to meet those people in person because I did happen to reach out to them afterwards and built some strong friendships just through messages and talking to them as well. So be brave with that face-to-face stuff. I think one thing that I tell my very first conference self that nobody told me
when I looked at the schedule and saw something called Iron Viz I was like, what the hell? Why is this company ripping off Iron Chef?
You know, like a bit weird. What I didn't realize was the absolutely amazing achievements that people can do within Tableau and how talented people are, but not only that, how excited we can all get about following and voting and really getting into the moment of supporting these amazing competitors through something that must be.
so nerve-racking to stand on stage and build something in 20 minutes and then talk about it in front of a huge, huge crowd. So the one thing I tell my first conference self is don't be judgy judgy. Like just go and get involved. And even if that's like, don't get judgy judgy about something else that's been advertised, know, give it a crack and don't be afraid to walk out if it's not your thing.
Sarah (52:22)
One person from the data fam that you are hoping to run into
Fi (52:28)
There's lots of people and I hate leaving people off the list. I love Celia Fryer, but she came over to Sydney and so I've already met her in person. So the one person that I need to meet is Kirk Monroe because we're working with him at the moment on some tableau semantics and really enjoying having the time to be able to learn and grow under his guidance.
The one person that I'm most looking forward to catching up with is Kirk Monroe.
Sarah (52:59)
Nice. Mine is Matthew Miller and it's because I have not had the chance to meet him yet. And then we've had him on our podcast twice.
Fi (53:05)
What?
my God, I didn't even realize that you haven't met him yet. One of the things that I really love about Matthew is that he has been on the outside and on the inside of Tableau as well. And he's so super passionate. It really reminds me of the OG Tableau days. And he really wants to make the product absolutely amazing. So yes, can't wait to catch up with Matthew as well.
Big question, what are you wearing on day one?
Sarah (53:35)
say a undubbed t-shirt, a pair of jeans, some super comfortable shoes and a hoodie in case it gets cold. What about you?
Fi (53:44)
Yeah, that sounds about right. So bringing that along, I've got ⁓ some really nice comfy Lululemon pants that I think that I'll be slipping into, ⁓ but also maybe some chinos as well. So we'll see how that goes, but got to be nice and comfy and also have the ability to be able to warm up under that cold, cold air conditioning that happens.
Sarah (54:12)
What's the biggest conference survival tip you can share?
Fi (54:18)
This one's a bit left field, but the thing that's made my conferences the best is by sharing it with you. So having a buddy, a conference buddy has been super amazing. I've never felt alone. I've got someone to walk into rooms with and figure out what's going on. And I think if you can find someone else to hang around with and go through, really makes conference the best.
Sarah (54:45)
that's so nice. Mine's gonna sound a bit boring now. Mine was gonna be, keep hydrated.
Fi (54:47)
Ha
That's all right. Keep hydrated is a very good answer as well. And so maybe you can keep me hydrated.
Sarah (54:57)
what's the one thing you really want the Data Fam to take away from this episode, whether they're heading to San Diego or following along from home?
Fi (55:07)
Conference is what you make it. So lean into what you want, figure out how you can get it and squeeze the most out of it. How about you?
Sarah (55:18)
I love that. think just going with some expectations, but not a lot, and you'll probably take a lot of left turns and that'll lead you to where you need to be anyway.
Fi (55:29)
That's right, because you know, every time we talk about TC, I come back to the same thing. TC17, a customer success manager telling two strangers, two Kiwi women that they should meet. So if you go to San Diego and you're nervous about talking to people or you're wondering if you'll just fit in, remember that two randos met at a tabloid conference and nine years later, is it?
Sarah (55:40)
and look what happened.
Fi (55:56)
⁓ They have a consultancy, a podcast, and a presentation slot at TC26.
Sarah (56:03)
And that is the power of the Data Fam. We cannot wait to see what TC26 has in store for us and the people that are going for the first time this year.
Fi (56:18)
All the links are in the show notes, the TC26 website to register if you haven't now, the community meetups, maybe even we'll try and figure out where to find us while we're there. And if you're going and you wanna connect, slide into our DMs or connect with us on LinkedIn, we really mean it.
Sarah (56:37)
And if there's something happening at TC26 and the data fam needs to know about it, you can send it to us or you can put it in the Tableau community Slack channel. We really want to help get the word out.
Fi (56:51)
If you've loved this episode, hit follow, leave us a review and share it with your data fam. Help us spread the word before May.
Sarah (57:03)
Until next time, stay curious, keep exploring your data, and thank you for joining us here on UnDUBBED, the podcast that's unscripted, uncensored, and undeniably data. Bye.
