Speaker Support of Awesomeness - Open Source Bridge 2014

Once upon a time, I was terrified of public speaking. I went from having stage fright to being a stage presence who speaks at conferences. I run a support group for old and new speakers called the "Tech Conf Speaker Support of Awesomeness." I want to talk about what we do, why we do it, and how well it's worked out so far. This talk is about speaking for the first time, improving your talks, and how conference organizers and attendees can help too.

Transcript

1. Speaker support of
   presented at OSBridge 2014
   

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2. Supporting
   New Speakers
   

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3. New speakers
   Consumers
   

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4. Consumers?
   Event organizers
   Attendees
   People at home
   

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5. Why?
   How?
   Tips & Tricks
   

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6. View Slide

7. Why should
   we care?
   

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8. We want
   awesome talks
   

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9. awesome talks
   

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10. awesome talks
    Expand your knowledge
    Challenge preconceptions
    Leave you feeling inspired
    

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11. awesome talks
    Expand your knowledge
    Challenge preconceptions
    Leave you feeling inspired
    

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12. awesome talks
    Expand your knowledge
    Challenge preconceptions
    Leave you feeling inspired
    

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13. What’s not
    awesome?
    

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14. same people
    

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15. same talks
    

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16. same topics
    

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17. same way
    

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18. same conferences
    

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19. !
    year
    2012
    

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20. after
    year
    !
    year
    2012 2013
    

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21. after
    year
    after
    year
    !
    year
    2012 2013 2014
    

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22. Even with
    great speakers,
    it can get boring.
    

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23. Sometimes
    they want to
    take a break.
    

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24. And they’re not all
    great speakers…
    

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25. SPEAKER LAW OF INERTIA
    

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26. SPEAKER LAW OF INERTIA
    A person who speaks
    

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27. SPEAKER LAW OF INERTIA
    A person who speaks
    will continue to speak
    

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28. SPEAKER LAW OF INERTIA
    A person who speaks
    will continue to speak
    unless acted upon
    

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29. SPEAKER LAW OF INERTIA
    A person who speaks
    will continue to speak
    unless acted upon
    by an outside force.
    

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30. I want us to be that
    outside force
    

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31. new speakers
    shake up the status quo
    

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32. homogenous
    the status quo is
    

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33. homogenous
    

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34. homogenous
    is boring
    

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35. diversity
    

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36. diversity
    is interesting
    

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37. diversity of
    passions
    

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38. diversity of
    ideas
    

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39. diversity of
    experiences
    

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40. diversity of
    backgrounds
    

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41. don’t forget the
    elephant in the room
    

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42. diversity of
    speaker lineups
    

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43. THIS IS A DRAMATIZATION
    

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44. THIS IS A DRAMATIZATION
    Any resemblance to
    real events or persons,
    living or dead, is
    purely coincidental.
    

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45. VanillaTechConf is excited
    to announce the speaker
    lineup for 2014!
    

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46. View Slide

47. We are disappointed
    in the homogenous
    speaker lineup.
    

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48. We tried, but we couldn’t
    find any other speakers.
    

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49. NOT GOOD ENOUGH!
    

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54. View Slide

55. It doesn’t have
    to be this way…
    

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56. Supporting
    new speakers
    can help.
    

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57. Don’t worry
    

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58. Don’t worry
    This isn’t
    a unicorn talk
    

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59. Why should
    you become
    a speaker?
    

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60. public speaking
    is good for you
    

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61. public speaking
    is good for you*
    *with exceptions
    

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62. Improve confidence
    

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63. After speaking in front
    of 100s of strangers,
    a lot of other things
    seem way less scary
    

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64. Promote your ideas
    

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65. Promote yourself
    

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66. Meet awesome people
    

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67. Be the change
    you want to see
    

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68. Before you start
    looking for excuses…
    

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69. I’m not a
    big name.
    

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70. View Slide

71. Not needed
    for a CFP
    

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72. Call
    F
    P
    

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73. Call
    For
    P
    

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74. Call
    For
    Proposals
    

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75. I’m not an
    expert.
    

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76. what you
    think you
    need to know
    

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77. what you
    actually
    need to know
    

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78. You are an expert
    on your experiences
    

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79. Experts aren’t always
    the best for the job
    

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80. expert
    

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81. beginner expert
    

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82. beginner expert
    

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83. I don’t have
    anything interesting
    to say.
    

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84. this is my skeptical face
    

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85. Impostor
    Syndrome
    

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86. I’m afraid of
    public speaking.
    

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87. View Slide

88. Give & Get
    Support
    

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89. Event
    Organizers
    

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92. View Slide

93. View Slide

94. Experienced Speakers
    • Plant the seed
    • Provide advice
    • Mentor
    • Start a support group
    

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95. Tech Conf Speaker Support of
    

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96. Brainstorming
    

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97. Selecting Events
    

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98. Proposal Writing
    

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99. Expectations
    Management
    

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100. Suckin’ at something is
     the first step to being
     sorta good at something.
     

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101. Expectations
     Management
     

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102. Talk Preparation
     

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103. General Support
     

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104. Individuals
     

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105. Start Small
     

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106. Lightning Talks
     

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107. Lightning Talks
     5 mins
     

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108. Speaking at work
     

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109. User Groups
     

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110. >14,350 clubs in 122 countries
     

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111. View Slide

112. Don’t alienate
     your audience
     

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113. So easy your
     mom can do it
     

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114. So easy your
     mom can do it
     

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115. It’s not
     open mic
     night
     

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116. Don’t live code
     

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117. Don’t read us
     your blog post
     

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118. Slides
     

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119. Keep It Simple
     

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120. YOUR
     SLIDES ARE
     NOT AN EYE CHART
     

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121. don’t use tiny text
     

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122. use big text
     

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123. use huge text
     

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124. use
     ridiculously
     massive text
     

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125. on slides
     

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126. def merge_sort(m)
     return m if m.length <= 1
     middle = m.length / 2
     left = m[0,middle]
     right = m[middle..-1]
     left = merge_sort(left)
     right = merge_sort(right)
     merge(left, right)
     end
     def merge(left, right)
     result = []
     until left.empty? || right.empty?
     if left.first <= right.first
     result << left.shift
     else
     result << right.shift
     end
     end
     result + left + right
     end
     ary = [7,6,5,9,8,4,3,1,2,0]
     p merge_sort(ary) # => [0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9]
     

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127. def merge_sort(m)
     return m if m.length <= 1
     middle = m.length / 2
     left = m[0,middle]
     right = m[middle..-1]
     left = merge_sort(left)
     right = merge_sort(right)
     merge(left, right)
     end
     

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128. def merge_sort(m)
     return m if m.length <= 1
     middle = m.length / 2
     left = m[0,middle]
     right = m[middle..-1]
     left = merge_sort(left)
     right = merge_sort(right)
     merge(left, right)
     end
     

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129. def merge_sort(m)
     # Return if already sorted
     # Split into left and right
     # Sort left and right
     !
     # Merge
     end
     

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130. def merge_sort(m)
     # Return if already sorted
     return m if m.length <= 1
     # Split into left and right
     # Sort left and right
     !
     # Merge
     end
     

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131. def merge_sort(m)
     # Return if already sorted
     # Split into left and right
     middle = m.length / 2
     left = m[0,middle]
     right = m[middle..-1]
     # Sort left and right
     !
     # Merge
     end
     

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132. def merge_sort(m)
     # Return if already sorted
     # Split into left and right
     # Sort left and right
     left = merge_sort(left)
     right = merge_sort(right)
     !
     # Merge
     end
     

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133. def merge_sort(m)
     # Return if already sorted
     # Split into left and right
     # Sort left and right
     !
     # Merge
     merge(left, right)
     end
     

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134. def merge(left, right)
     result = []
     until left.empty? || right.empty?
     if left.first <= right.first
     result << left.shift
     else
     result << right.shift
     end
     end
     result + left + right
     end
     

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135. def merge(left, right)
     result = []
     until left.empty? || right.empty?
     if left.first <= right.first
     result << left.shift
     else
     result << right.shift
     end
     end
     result + left + right
     end
     

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136. def merge(left, right)
     result = []
     until left.empty? || right.empty?
     if left.first <= right.first
     result << left.shift
     else
     result << right.shift
     end
     end
     result + left + right
     end
     

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137. def merge(left, right)
     result = []
     until left.empty? || right.empty?
     if left.first <= right.first
     result << left.shift
     else
     result << right.shift
     end
     end
     result + left + right
     end
     

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138. def merge(left, right)
     result = []
     until left.empty? || right.empty?
     if left.first <= right.first
     result << left.shift
     else
     result << right.shift
     end
     end
     result + left + right
     end
     

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139. def merge(left, right)
     result = []
     until left.empty? || right.empty?
     if left.first <= right.first
     result << left.shift
     else
     result << right.shift
     end
     end
     result + left + right
     end
     

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140. Don’t put important
     content at the bottom
     

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141. High Contrast
     

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142. Crappy
     Projectors
     

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143. Color
     Blindness
     

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144. Project Results
     

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145. Project Results
     

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146. Supporting Imagery
     

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147. The Noun Project
     

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151. View Slide

152. flickr
     

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153. View Slide

154. Pop Culture
     

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155. View Slide

156. ALL THE
     MEMES!
     

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157. ALL THE
     MEMES!
     

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158. ALL THE
     MEMES!
     

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159. ALL THE
     MEMES!
     such meme
     wow
     

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160. ALL THE
     MEMES!
     such meme
     wow
     

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161. ALL THE
     MEMES!
     such meme
     wow
     

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162. ALL THE
     MEMES!
     such meme
     wow
     

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163. ALL THE
     MEMES!
     such meme
     wow
     

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164. ALL THE
     MEMES!
     such meme
     wow
     

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165. View Slide

166. Practice.
     

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167. Practice.
     Practice.
     

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168. Practice.
     Practice.
     Practice.
     

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169. View Slide

170. Memorize
     what's important.
     The rest you
     make your own.
     

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171. Only way to do that
     keep sayin’ it…
     and sayin' it…
     and sayin' it…
     

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172. Playtest your talk
     

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173. Playtest your talk
     June 13 - playtest
     June 25 - real talk
     

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174. Plan for technical
     difficulties
     

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175. Become a
     Speaker
     

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176. Support
     New Speakers
     

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177. Julie Pagano
     @juliepagano
     Thank you!
     

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178. Additional
     Resources
     

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179. Blog Posts
     • I Support Speakers and So Can You - http://juliepagano.com/blog/
     2014/04/27/i-support-speakers-and-so-can-you/
     • Presentation Skills Considered Harmful by Kathy Sierra - http://
     seriouspony.com/blog/2013/10/4/presentation-skills-considered-
     harmful
     • http://weareallaweso.me/
     • http://cognition.happycog.com/article/so-why-should-I-speak-publicly
     • http://writing.jan.io/2013/05/10/how-to-give-the-killer-tech-talk---a-
     pamphlet.html
     • http://blog.pamelafox.org/2013/08/why-do-i-speak-at-
     conferences.html
     

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180. Talks About Talking
     • Conference Submissions and Presentations by
     Matthew McCullough
     - Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
     v=fJz4JJIchaY&feature=youtu.be
     - Slides: https://speakerdeck.com/
     matthewmccullough/conference-submissions-
     and-presentations
     

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181. Presentation Tools
     Many beginners may be unsure what to use to create a
     presentation. Below are some tools I’ve used before. I
     don’t think there’s a “right” tool. Pick the one that is
     easy for you to use and meets your needs.
     • Keynote (Mac only)
     • PowerPoint (Windows and OSX)
     • Google Drive Presentation (browser)
     • Reveal.js - http://lab.hakim.se/reveal-js/ (browser)
     

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182. About Pycon
     • PyCon 2014 - Summer Update - http://
     pycon.blogspot.com/2013/08/pycon-2014-
     summer-update.html
     • PyCon 2014 - Thanks! - http://pycon.blogspot.com/
     2014/04/pycon-2014-thanks.html
     • Conference Recap: PyCon 2014 - http://
     juliepagano.com/blog/2014/04/14/conference-
     recap-pycon-2014/
     

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183. Other Conferences
     PyCon isn’t the only conference doing outreach to
     support new speakers. Here are some others:
     • https://thestrangeloop.com/attendees/diversity-
     scholarships
     • Beating the Odds — How We got 25% Women
     Speakers for JSConf EU 2012 - http://
     2012.jsconf.eu/2012/09/17/beating-the-odds-how-
     we-got-25-percent-women-speakers.html
     

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184. Imagery Resources
     Places to find imagery for your talks:
     • The Noun Project - http://thenounproject.com/
     • Flickr - https://www.flickr.com/search/?
     q=test&l=cc&ct=0&mt=all&adv=1
     • Wikimedia Commons - http://
     commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
     

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185. Example Early Speakers
     • Nell Shamrell - Behind the Curtain - Madison Ruby
     2012
     • Behind the Curtain: Applying lessons learned from
     years in the Theatre to crafting software
     applications.
     • http://www.confreaks.com/videos/1093-
     madisonruby2012-behind-the-curtain-applying-
     lessons-learned-from-years-in-the-theatre-to-
     crafting-software-applications
     

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186. Example Early Speakers
     • Stephen Ball - Deliberate Git - Steel City Ruby 2013
     • In Deliberate Git I'll share how to use Git to write
     detailed commits that craft a cohesive story about
     the code without giving up a good programming
     flow.
     • https://speakerdeck.com/sdball/deliberate-git
     • https://vimeo.com/72762735
     

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187. My Speaking Timeline
     Throughout the talk, I mention that people should start
     small and can progress over time. I thought it might be
     interesting to share a timeline of my progression as a
     speaker over time, but it didn’t fit in the time for the
     talk. I’m leaving it here in case it interests you.
     You can find links to slides and videos from these talks
     on my site:
     http://juliepagano.com/speaking/
     

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188. My Speaking Timeline
     • April 2012 - Lightning talk at work retreat (first talk)
     • July 2012 - Lightning talk at PghRb
     • August 2012 - Lightning talk at Steel City Ruby
     • January 2013 - Speaking support group created
     • February 2013 - Lightning talk at PghRb
     • June 2013 - Conference speaker at Pittsburgh
     TechFest (first conference talk)
     

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189. My Speaking Timeline
     • August 2013 - Conference speaker (alternate) at
     Steel City Ruby
     • September 2013 - Conference speaker at Nickel City
     Ruby
     • April 2014 - Conference speaker at PyCon
     • June 2014 - Keynote speaker at OSBridge (first
     keynote)
     

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190. Attribution
     

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191. Attribution
     • Presentation designed by XOXO from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/presentation/23951/
     • Happy designed by Julien Deveaux from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/happy/43940/
     • Neutral designed by Julien Deveaux from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/neutral/43949/
     • Calendar designed by Daniel Llamas Soto from the Noun Project -
     http://thenounproject.com/term/calendar/38232/
     • Happy designed by Julien Deveaux from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/happy/43961/
     

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192. Attribution
     • Man designed by Simon Child from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/man/22453/
     • Man designed by Simon Child from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/man/22486/
     • Man designed by Simon Child from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/man/22466/
     • Man designed by Joshua McMahan from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/man/13856/
     • Man designed by Simon Child from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/man/22473/
     

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193. Attribution
     • Man designed by Simon Child from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/man/22956/
     • Neutral designed by Julien Deveaux from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/neutral/43968/
     • Sick designed by Julien Deveaux from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/sick/43969/
     • Angry designed by Julien Deveaux from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/angry/43964/
     • Surprised designed by Julien Deveaux from the Noun Project -
     http://thenounproject.com/term/surprised/43962/
     

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194. Attribution
     • Surprised designed by Julien Deveaux from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/surprised/43962/
     • Dialog designed by Reed Enger from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/dialog/6070/
     • Thought designed by Adam Zubin from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/thought/35709/
     • Chicken and Egg from Wikimedia Commons - http://
     commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:
     %E0%B9%84%E0%B8%82%E0%B9%88%E0%B9%84%E0%B8%81%E0
     %B9%88.jpg
     • Baseball Field designed by Erik Wagner from the Noun Project -
     

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195. Attribution
     • Baseball Field designed by Erik Wagner from the Noun Project -
     http://thenounproject.com/term/baseball-field/25079/
     • Chat designed by Mister Pixel from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/chat/36835/
     • Brainstorm designed by Bastien Ho from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/brainstorm/20036/
     • Lightning Bolt designed by daisy binks from the Noun Project -
     http://thenounproject.com/term/lightning-bolt/9601/
     • Microphone designed by Eric Bird from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/microphone/28757/
     

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196. Attribution
     • MST 3K - free vector by the-biggest-lebowski on DeviantArt - http://
     the-biggest-lebowski.deviantart.com/art/MST-3K-free-
     vector-91900530
     • User designed by Lil Squid from the thenounproject.com - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/user/26020/
     • User designed by Lil Squid from the thenounproject.com - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/user/26017/
     • User designed by Rémy Médard from the thenounproject.com -
     http://thenounproject.com/term/user/2553/
     • User designed by Lil Squid from the thenounproject.com - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/user/26028/
     

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197. Attribution
     • Speech Bubble designed by Pascual Bilotta from the Noun Project -
     http://thenounproject.com/term/speech-bubble/9513/
     • Calendar designed by James Keuning from the Noun Project -
     http://thenounproject.com/term/calendar/9826/
     • Dead designed by Julien Deveaux from the Noun Project - http://
     thenounproject.com/term/dead/43902/
     • Merge Sort in Ruby from Rosetta Code - http://rosettacode.org/
     wiki/Sorting_algorithms/Merge_sort#Ruby
     

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