Of the many pieces of Dreamforce wisdom that I’ve gained over the years, selecting the contents of my daily Dreamforce bag is among the most important.  You will do a lot of walking (yes, I’ll have my FitBit so #GAMEON) and you should always plan to be away from your hotel from 8am -> 10pm+ (this doesn’t always happen but you should plan for it just in case), so it’s important to make sure you are armed with the essentials.   I was inspired by my fellow MVP Brent Downey’s recent post about what goes into his Dreamforce bag, so I thought I’d share what goes into mine since I’m apparently a tad more high maintenance than my friend Brent 😉

The Bag

I completely agree with Brent that this Rickshaw Commuter bag is the best bag ever.  It’s light, has pockets for everything, has perfect length and depth, is made of high quality material, has a soft liner for your laptop… it’s really just awesome.  If you don’t have one, go ahead and do yourself a favor by picking one up.

The Essentials

Going counterclockwise, starting with…

• Chatty! Obviously.  He is so excited for DF13, he can hardly contain himself…
• Business cards and a business card holder (I just hate when they are everywhere)
• Phone/card holder with wrist thing:  sometimes you want to drop your bag at your company’s booth or with some buddies while you go off to do X or Y.  I don’t always have pockets that accommodate my phone/business cards , so I keep them in this handy dandy holder so that I can easily grab and go.
• Notepad and pen…you know, just in case…
• FitBit Charger: I will not lose a single FitBit step because of low juice, no sir. (Friend me on FitBit for a lil friendly competition!)
• GridIt: I LOVE LOVE LOVE my GridIt organizer (courtesy of Salesforce’s Erica Kuhl and Matt Brown) because it keeps what would otherwise be loose charging cords/headphones organized and together.
• Extra wall charger …just in case
• Mophie and/or Limeade battery charger (depending on which one Fred has): MUST.HAVE.JUICE at Dreamforce and I for one am not interested in being tethered to a wall.  These portable batteries have changed my life.
• iPad: … yes, it’s 1st gen but hey – it works as well as I need it to!  But man, I cannot wait to get a Nexus tablet!
• Personal hygiene/maintenance items + carrying case:  hand sanitizer, lotion, Listerine Pocketmist x2 (don’t worry, I have plenty more of these at the hotel), an extra hair band, eye drops for dry contacts, lip gloss, and Rubz for emergency foot massaging (thanks for the rec, Becka Dente), and Friction Block for preventative foot blister care (thanks for the rec, Brandy Colmer!).  Carrying case is essential so that these little things don’t end up everywhere!
• Sephora’s Instant Depuffing Eye Mask: okay so I probably won’t actually bring this to Dreamforce, but I wanted an excuse to recommend these AMAZING one-time-use gel eye masks that makes you feel refreshed and amazing, even if you feel good! (Thanks for the rec, Cristina!)

So, I *think* that’s it.  Will keep note for next year in case any other bright ideas come along the way.  Happy DF13, all!