What I’ve Learned from Speakers Around the World
By Poornima Vijayashanker For the past few months I’ve been doing a lot of speaking internationally. I was invited to speak at the Frontiers of Interaction, a design conference in Milan, Italy, and...
View ArticleHow One CTO Gained the Confidence He Needed to Put His Best Ideas Forward
Alex Kazakov has been passionate about technology for as long as he can remember. Now CTO of Glownet, a now 25-person company that makes RFID wristband technology for the event industry, he is often...
View ArticleWhy You Don’t Need to be an Expert to Speak
Have you ever watched someone get up on stage and think to yourself, “Wow they look so confident, and sound articulate.” Then you think, “I could never do that! I’d be too nervous… They must be...
View ArticleWhy We Don’t Send Technical Talent to Speak at Conferences and Should
Last week I talked about why you don’t need to be an expert to speak. I also shared the Inventory Method with you, as a method for extracting your expertise, no matter what your experience level is....
View ArticleHow to Champion Ideas That Move People to Take Action
This interview is taken from Karen Catlin’s and my latest book: Present! A Techie’s Guide to Public Speaking. Oftentimes the voices that appear to be missing in public discourse are those of people of...
View ArticleHow One Software Engineering Manager Took His Speaking to the Next Level
Most people pick up a copy of Present! because they’re curious about getting into public speaking, but we’ve also had some readers who have been speaking for awhile, like Sebastian Gębski dig into it....
View ArticleWhy An Introverted Software Engineer Embraced Public Speaking
Heather Tovey is a passionate developer and co-founder of NerdLab YYC in Calgary, Canada. In recent years, Heather has merged her love of technology and teaching through giving talks about, among other...
View ArticleWhy Even A Five Minute Lightning Talk Requires Preparation
Yash Prabhu is an Android developer who leads a team of four at DramaFever – a Warner Bros. company that specializes in streaming international media content. In late 2014, Yash first tried her hand at...
View ArticleHow Lightning Talks Make You A Better Presenter
Despite being an avid public speaker who has been speaking for 20+ years, this was the first year that I gave a lightning talk. The reason it had taken me so long to embrace lightning talks is because...
View ArticleYour Presentation Won’t Please Everyone
A couple years ago, I was invited to give a talk a pretty prominent conference. I wanted it to be a well received, so I checked in with the organizer to understand who was going to be there, their...
View ArticleWhy Staying Heads Down Prevents Us From Getting Ahead
Happy new year! Every new year bring us all hope. Our parents, professors, peers, and mentors tell us that this is THE year that all our hard work, countless hours, and efforts will pay off. But didn’t...
View ArticleWhy Public Speaking Is Essential For Non-Native English Speakers
English not your first language? I’m sure the last thing you’re thinking about is public speaking. Why would you bother to speak in public, when in everyday conversations people ask you to repeat...
View ArticleHow Your Company Would Benefit If Employees Were Better At Communicating
I bet you and your team are working hard to develop, market, and monetize your products. You’re working at a breakneck pace, but there never seems to be enough hours in the day. Most days, you’re stuck...
View ArticleASKing Is Hard But Missing Out On An Opportunity Is Worse
Earlier this week I wrote a post on How Your Company Would Benefit If Employees Were Better At Communicating. I received a number or responses to the interview, and there was one in particular that...
View ArticleHow An Online Course Improves Presentation And Communication Skills
A Behind-The-Scenes Look At Femgineer’s Confident Communicator Course One question we hear from a lot of prospective students is: How is an online course supposed to help me improve my communication...
View ArticleYour Next Talk: Wing It! What Could Possibly Go Wrong?
Facing a presentation, don’t know where to begin, and think, “I’ll just wing it! What could possibly go wrong?” Lots Of People Wing It You aren’t alone in wanting to wing your presentation. A lot of...
View ArticleHow Lightning Talks Make You A Better Presenter
Despite being an avid public speaker who has been speaking for 20+ years, this was the first year that I gave a lightning talk. The reason it had taken me so long to embrace lightning talks is because...
View ArticleYour Presentation Won’t Please Everyone
A couple years ago, I was invited to give a talk a pretty prominent conference. I wanted it to be a well received, so I checked in with the organizer to understand who was going to be there, their...
View ArticleWhy Staying Heads Down Prevents Us From Getting Ahead
Happy new year! Every new year bring us all hope. Our parents, professors, peers, and mentors tell us that this is THE year that all our hard work, countless hours, and efforts will pay off. But didn’t...
View ArticleWhy Public Speaking Is Essential For Non-Native English Speakers
English not your first language? I’m sure the last thing you’re thinking about is public speaking. Why would you bother to speak in public, when in everyday conversations people ask you to repeat...
View Article