September 11, 2017

094: Speaking at conferences

If speaking at a conference is on your career goals list, this episode is for you. In it we discuss the public speaking opportunities we’ve had, and share advice for not only securing your own spot at an event but also how to plan and present your talk with confidence.

key takeaways

In order to be invited to speak at conferences, you’ll need to be networking and putting yourself out there online to build your reputation for your chosen topic. Writing blog posts, making videos and sharing your knowledge on your area of interest is a good way to make people aware you have something to say. However, you don’t have to wait to be asked! You shouldn’t be afraid to reach out to conferences you’d like to speak at with a brief synopsis of your talk, and a link to a video of you speaking to show your abilities.

It might be a good idea to speak at a meetup first before tackling a big conference. The audience will be smaller and you can treat it like a focus group for your talk. You’ll be able to get feedback from the meetup attendees and you can make changes to your talk accordingly.

Stage fright eases over time. The more prepared you are the less you will have to be nervous about on the day, and you should do whatever you need to calm yourself down; whether that’s some quiet meditation or giving yourself a pep talk in the mirror! It’s good to put yourself out of your comfort zone and try something new, and the more you speak in public the less nerves you’ll have.