Looking Back at 2014, My Goals for 2015, and Something New….

/ seanpmassey

Christmas is here, and the end of 2014 is just around the corner.  That means it is time to look back on this year and start looking forward to the next.  I also have a couple of announcements at the end of the post.

A Year in Review

2014 was a very busy year with a lot of exciting opportunities to grow.  Some of the highlights from this year were:

  • Giving my first vBrownbag Presentation
  • Participating in the Virtual Design Master challenge
  • Attended my second VMworld, where I presented on the vBrownbag stage and met a lot of really cool people
  • Passed both VCAP exams in the desktop track
  • Was a technical reviewer on the VMware Horizon View 6 Desktop Virtualization Cookbook by Jason Ventresco
  • Became a VMware vExpert and Cisco Champion
  • Joined the Steering Committee for the Wisconsin VMUG

The biggest highlights were early in the year when my wife and I welcomed our second child, a daughter, into the world and moved into our new house.

Blog Statistics

2014 was a very busy year on the blog front.  As of 12/24/2014, I had posted 86 times and received 149,600 page views for the year.  Those numbers should creep up to closer to 90 posts and 150,000 page views by the end of the year.

Some key statistics for the year are:

2015 Goals

I have a few goals for 2015.  These goals are:

  1. Get My VCDX: I will be starting my design documentation for my VCDX after the 1st of the year.  I have my design picked out, and my goal is to defend in October.
  2. Make the jump to a vendor or partner: This kind of goes with goal #1 as this will help with the VCDX process.  I currently work on the customer side, and I would like to transition to the other side and work for a vendor or a partner.  My long-term goal is to get into technical marketing or become a technology evangelist.
  3. Find a better balance between work, community involvement, and family: I think this one is self-explanatory.  Smile

And now for the good stuff

I mentioned that I had a couple of announcements at the top of the post.  None of the announcements are a new job, otherwise I would not have listed that as one of my goals for the next year.  But I do think they are exciting opportunities.

The first announcement is that I’ve been invited to present at the inaugural meeting of the North Central Wisconsin VMUG in early February at UW-Eau Claire.  I’ll have more details about the date and time as they become available.

The second announcement is going to be a bit vague at this point.  It’s not a new job, in a manner of speaking, but it is a big opportunity that I’m very excited about.  Keep an eye out in early January for more details.

And a big thank you…

This year wouldn’t have been as successful as it was without the great vCommunity.  A few of the people that I’d like to thank are:

  • The Wisconsin VMUG Leadership team
  • The Virtual DesignMaster leadership team of Eric Wright, Angelo Luciani, and Melissa Palmer and all of the judges and participants
  • Jonathan Frappier and the vBrownBag crew
  • Josh Atwell – who, despite being in most of the above, has provided some great advice

I’m looking forward to 2015, and I hope everyone has a great year.