Overcoming imposter syndrome: promoting yourself and your open source

by Olga Rusakova

Slide 1

Slide 1 text

Overcoming   imposter syndrome: promoting yourself and your open source Olga Rusakova Bites & Bytes

Slide 2

Slide 2 text

OKLCH: blog posts

Slide 3

Slide 3 text

OKLCH: OSS projects

Slide 4

Slide 4 text

OKLCH: events

Slide 5

Slide 5 text

OKLCH: events

Slide 6

Slide 6 text

No content

Slide 7

Slide 7 text

Open source promotion: steps Step 1: Organize your docs Step 2: Use small iterations to maintain consistency Step 3: Help your users fi nd you online Step 4: Help your users fi nd you of fl ine

Slide 8

Slide 8 text

Step 1: Organize your docs

Slide 9

Slide 9 text

README.md structure Clear description Why it’s useful Why it’s important The difference from other products

Slide 10

Slide 10 text

How people read online Nielsen Norman group research:   https://www.nngroup.com/articles/how-people- read-online/

Slide 11

Slide 11 text

PostCSS

Slide 12

Slide 12 text

The most annoying buzzwords in tech?

Slide 13

Slide 13 text

- Lighting-fast - Unprecedented - «Smart» everything - Ninja/wizard/rockstar - Innovative The most annoying buzzwords in tech? - Ecosystem - Optimize - Thought Leader - Agile - Pivot

Slide 14

Slide 14 text

Annoying buzzwords: continued

Slide 15

Slide 15 text

«Lightning-fast»

Slide 16

Slide 16 text

«Innovative»

Slide 17

Slide 17 text

Proofs, please!

Slide 18

Slide 18 text

Proofs, please!

Slide 19

Slide 19 text

Pictures, please!

Slide 20

Slide 20 text

Pictures, please!

Slide 21

Slide 21 text

Martian Mono Download on GitHub evilmartians/mono Download on Google Fonts fonts.google.com/specimen/Martian+Mono

Slide 22

Slide 22 text

Lists and bold type, please!

Slide 23

Slide 23 text

Lists and bold type, please!

Slide 24

Slide 24 text

OSS project Thread in Twitter twitter.com/anti fl asher/status/1699024652213854233 Your guide can become a thread

Slide 25

Slide 25 text

Step 1: Organize your docs

Slide 26

Slide 26 text

Step 2: Use small iterations to maintain consistency

Slide 27

Slide 27 text

Do it via small iterations Each iteration contains: - Action (feature, tweet, article, etc) - Getting feedback - Fixing the project according to feedback

Slide 28

Slide 28 text

Establish a routine

Slide 29

Slide 29 text

Hey, I’m not dead!

Slide 30

Slide 30 text

Hey, I’m not dead!

Slide 31

Slide 31 text

Step 3: Help your users fi nd you online

Slide 32

Slide 32 text

Help your users fi nd you online: continued

Slide 33

Slide 33 text

Help your users fi nd you online: continued

Slide 34

Slide 34 text

Help your users fi nd you online - Search engines are your friends - Leave online imprints - Don’t forget to mention people and companies

Slide 35

Slide 35 text

Tagging is useful

Slide 36

Slide 36 text

Step 4: Help your users fi nd you of fl ine

Slide 37

Slide 37 text

No content

Slide 38

Slide 38 text

Help your users fi nd you of fl ine - Get to know people of fl ine - If you use someone’s OSS and meet them: approach to say thanks (or complain)

Slide 39

Slide 39 text

Open source promotion: steps Step 1: Organize your docs Step 2: Use small iterations to maintain consistency Step 3: Help your users fi nd you online Step 4: Help your users fi nd you of fl ine

Slide 40

Slide 40 text

Problems

Slide 41

Slide 41 text

People can hate my OSS - Fail fast - Work with negative feedback

Slide 42

Slide 42 text

Is Hacker News toxic?

Slide 43

Slide 43 text

Fail fast

Slide 44

Slide 44 text

Rules to work with negative comments - No need to rush to respond. - Don’t respond to purely insulting comments. But don’t delete them. - If you are told about something as a fact, and this fact is wrong, you cannot leave this statement without an answer. - If it’s sane, reasonable critics, start asking questions. People just need to talk.

Slide 45

Slide 45 text

I cannot write,   I’m bad at writing!! - Conduct an interview with yourself - Get your friends to help you - F-words - Start writing from any part, not from the title or the very beginning

Slide 46

Slide 46 text

Scienti fi c research about swearing - Swearing arouses the emotions (and this can be measured!) - Swearing might activate parts of the “limbic system” that takes part in aspects of memory and emotion processing (that’s why people who have suffered brain damage and struggle to speak as a result, still can swear). - Cognitive effects because swear words command more attention and are better remembered. - Produces pain relief: vocalising a swear word leads to higher pain tolerance. Source: https://theconversation.com/the-power-of-swearing-how-obscene-words-in fl uence-your-mind-body-and- relationships-192104

Slide 47

Slide 47 text

No content

Slide 48

Slide 48 text

Summary: How to promote your OSS Step 1: Organize your docs — Rethink your READme — Create a really good description — Use more pics, lists, bolds and guides — Avoid «marketing b.s.» Step 2: Use small iterations to maintain consistency — Make your iterations bigger every time — Plan several pieces of content — Establish your routine — Show that your project is not dead Step 3: Help your users fi nd you online — Create more keywords combinations in different types of content — Always leave your imprints online — Mention people and companies Step 4: Help your users fi nd you of fl ine — Get to know your audience personally — Help other OSS creators

Slide 49

Slide 49 text

Summary: Any problems? Haters? — Fail fast: make your audience bigger every time — Work with negative comments Doubts in your writing style? — Try different approaches (interview, recording and transcribing, start from any part, describe it with F-words) — Add emotions!!! Imposter syndrome? — Welcome to the Evil Martians’ world!