I have written posts in the past about how to deal with technical failures as a speaker: Be prepared. Have backups of your files. Take screenshots or videos of your demos. Rehearse presenting your session with and without your slide deck. I have made plenty of I-wasn’t-prepared-for-that mistakes in the past, and I learned from them.
Last weekend was different. I was supposed to do a precon and a session at SQLSaturday Nashville. I didn’t experience any technical failures. I experienced what felt very much like personal failures.
On Friday, our precon got canceled due to weather.
On Saturday, no one showed up to my session.
I had not prepared for either of those things to happen, and I definitely had not prepared for both of those things to happen on the same weekend. I went through a whole range of emotions in a short amount of time, from embarrassment to disappointment to amusement.
Since then, I have debated with myself about whether or not to write this blog post. I have written and re-written it several times. I did not want to write a blog post full of whining and complaining, but I did want to share my experience as a reminder to both myself and others that:
- These things happen. It’s ok to feel disappointed, but don’t let it stop you from trying again.
- There is always something positive to take away from a negative experience.
- Life is full of ups and downs. Social media (especially my own) often focus on the ups, but life is not amazing all the time.
If you only needed a few reminders, feel free to stop reading here 😊 The rest of the post is quite long and a little more like a journal entry, really.
One of the sessions I was most looking forward to at Microsoft Ignite 2017 was New capabilities for data integration in the cloud with Mike Flasko. In that session, he talks about Azure Data Factory (ADF) v2 and its new first-class SSIS support.
After the session, I convinced Mike Flasko and Sanjay Krishnamurthi to have a chat with me 🤓 We talked about what’s new in Azure Data Factory v2, including the updated pipeline application model with a new visual design canvas, new Software Development Kits (SDKs) for working with Azure Data Factory, the new Integration Runtime, and the ability to run SSIS packages inside Azure Data Factory v2.
Azure Data Factory v2 with Mike Flasko
At Microsoft Ignite 2017, I had planned an interview with Sunil Agarwal, and was very excited about it. Then Sunil asked if he could bring Kevin Farlee. Of course! Then he asked if he could also bring their customer, Aaron Gerdeman from FIS. Even better! 😁
In this interview, we chat about SQL Server 2017, Resumable Index Builds, Adaptive Query Processing, Columnstore Indexes, High Availability, Real-time Analytics, Real-time Dashboards and the SQL Tiger Team.
During Microsoft Ignite 2017, I got to interview one of the nicest guys in Microsoft, Bob Ward! 🤩
In this interview, we chat about SQL Server 2017, SQL Server on Linux, Adaptive Query Processing, Auto Plan Correction and Columnstore Indexes.
SQL Server 2017 with Bob Ward - Microsoft Ignite 2017
I got to interview Buck Woody about Data Science at Microsoft Ignite 2017! 🥳
In this interview, we chat about Microsoft Business Analytics and AI (formerly known as Cortana Intelligence Suite), Artificial Intelligence in Excel, intent-based programming, Predictive Analytics, DevOps for Data Scientists and life-long learning.
Data Science with Buck Woody - Microsoft Ignite 2017