[Christmas Music]
Ah, there it is.
The Anaheim Convention Center.
And good old Katella Ave.
How could I ever forget it?
And there I am, with that dumb round face and...
that stupid green shirt.
But no matter.
VidCon was on its way.
Lovely, glorious, beautiful VidCon... around which the entire YouTuber year revolved.
VidCon holds a really special place in my heart.
If you’ve seen some of my other videos you’ll know that I used to work there, behind the
scenes, all year-round, like an elf in Santa’s workshop, building something unforgettable
for everyone to enjoy.
Some people spend their whole year waiting for their favorite holiday.
Christmas, Halloween, Arbor Day…
And I’m no different, but my holiday is VidCon.
And since it’s that time of year again, I thought I might take you back, behind the
scenes, to one of my most… memorable… memories of working at VidCon all those years
ago.
But first, in the spirit of Christmas, we’re gonna need a healthy dose of capitalism!
Over the last three years that I’ve been a full-time YouTuber, I’ve raised my standards
a lot.
I want to make the best videos for you, so I’ve hired some friends to help me animate.
But as we all know, exposure doesn’t put food on the table, and the only way I can
afford to pay them for their hard work is to partner with sponsors every now and then,
which is why I’m excited to say this video is sponsored by Honey, the free browser extension
that automatically finds the best promo codes whenever you shop online, which means you
always get the best deals on over 20,000 sites like Amazon, eBay, Best Buy, Walmart and more.
I need to buy some new running shoes, right?
And thanks to Honey I could save $18 on this pair.
If you’re not using Honey when you shop online, you’re basically throwing money
away.
It only takes two clicks to install.
Just go to my link and big bang boom, you’ve joined 10 million other members in saving
online.
*ahem* Please read verbatim.
Listen, there’s literally no reason not to use Honey for everything you buy online.
It’s FREE to use and installs in just two clicks.
Get Honey for FREE at join honey dot com slash TIMTOM.
That’s join honey dot com slash TIMTOM.
I get lots of emails from companies that want to sponsor the channel, but there’s not
many that I’d feel good about promoting.
Honey, on the other hand is something that actually provides value, and doesn’t make
their money by like, selling your data, so I feel comfortable promoting them.
Without their sponsorship I wouldn’t be able to make as many videos, so if you want
to support the channel, support them, and click the link in the description to try Honey
today.
Ok back to the story!
I don’t think people realize how much work goes into properly running an event the size
of VidCon.
*Ahem* Tana, ya dingus...
Yeah, I said it.
In fact, a lot of people are surprised to find out that a team works all year to get
ready for that single weekend.
There’s contract negotiations with hotels.
You gotta work with security companies and the fire department to make safety plans.
There’s signs all through the convention center that need to be designed.
Not to mention the guide, which is basically an entire magazine that needs to be written,
laid-out, and printed.
And you can’t forget all of the booth vendors and sponsors who have all sorts of crazy requirements.
You gotta hire companies to make the website and app, so that attendees can get all the
info they’ll need to… attend.
There is so much coordination between so many people and companies, that it’s a wonder
VidCon happens at all.
Not many people know this, but one year, many moons ago... it almost didn’t.
When I worked there, every year, a couple months before VidCon, the core team flew from
VidCon headquarters in Montana, down to Anaheim California.
The point of this site visit was to meet with all of the people that we’d be working with
during the event, get to know each other ahead of time, and talk about where signs and stages
and activities will go.
It’s way easier to know if you have enough room for a big-ole-ball pit if you’re actually
standing there instead of just looking at a map.
At my first site visit, after days of back to back meetings, our boss decided to treat
the team to a super fancy dinner at a super nice steak house.
The restaurant was incredible, we had a room all to ourselves, and they even custom printed
menus for us.
It was probably the fanciest meal I’ve ever eaten.
That VidCon was going to be the best yet, and my co-workers and I were excited to relax
and celebrate our hard work.
I can’t tell you how great it felt to finally get to kick back for a moment.
The whole team was riding high.
But when we were done with dinner we went back to our rental car to find the window
shattered.
Someone had broken into the SUV and stolen our laptop bags.
More than ten thousand dollars of technology, gone.
But worse; everything my coworkers and I had been working on for months, was in the hands
of some thief.
There was a feeling of panic among us.
How were we gonna do a VidCon without our stuff?
My boss’s laptop had all of the most sensitive information on it.
Financial documents and contracts that we absolutely needed to make VidCon happen.
But it just so happens... that right before dinner, he had taken an extra second to tuck
his bag a tiny bit further under the seat, and whoever broke the window couldn’t quite
reach far enough in to grab it.
Somehow, the most important laptop of the bunch, was left behind.
Everyone quickly changed their passwords so we didn’t have any issues, and since the
most important files were safe, we didn’t have to cancel VidCon!
It was a pretty close call, though, and I haven’t let my laptop out of my sight since.
Also, as long as we’re talking about working at VidCon, here’s a little bonus story about
something I’m really proud of: I, TimTom, single handedly built version 1 of the signing
lottery.
That’s the thing VidCon does where you rank the creators you want to see the most, and
the system sorts you into the limited spots available as fairly as possible.
See?
Being a computer nerd has its perks.
Like saving people from having to line up at 6am and spend all day in a QUEUE.
And now, I’m one of the creators that you could have picked from the list!
Like, it’s already closed for 2019, so if you didn’t pick me this year, you’re out
of luck, but it’s all come full circle for me.
I played a big part in getting the system working, and now, I’m part of the system.