Your Public Speaking Journey
For those of us working in IT, chances are you're not a huge fan of interacting with people outside of the tech bubble. This isn't the case for everyone, but it is for many of us.
Many of us are more comfortable interacting with others who "speak our language" and understand our challenges. Explaining your work life, and more specifically, technical concepts to someone who doesn’t understand the basics, can feel like a chore or leave us feeling misunderstood. For introverts, frequent social interaction, especially with people outside of a professional context, can be draining.
There are also unfortunate stereotypes about IT professionals being socially awkward, which I definitely don’t agree with. Whether or not it’s true, the pressure to break out of those stereotypes can make socializing feel more stressful.
One other thing I’ve encountered a lot while working in IT is people being hesitant to put their work out there. I can relate to this myself, impostor syndrome plays a big role. That little voice in your head might say, "Who am I to talk about this?" or "What if I get called out for being wrong?" But public speaking is more important than we often realize. It’s not just about helping others, as it’s often seen, but about helping yourself too.
Why I think public speaking matters
Growing professionally through speaking forces you to simplify your ideas, organize your thoughts, and explain things in a way people can actually understand. These are skills we all need, but especially in IT, where good communication can really set you apart. I am constantly reminded by Luca Mezzalira, how he helped me realize that we often assume people will understand what we explain or write without considering that they might not. The IT world tends to be built for those who are already experienced, but that's something we need to change. When we communicate clearly, we create a space where anyone regardless of experience can engage, learn, and contribute.
Getting Your Work Out There If you've built something cool, public speaking is one of the best ways to show it off. Whether it's a side project, a new framework, or a weird but awesome hack, putting it out there helps people notice and appreciate what you've done. Who knows, it might even lead to collaborations, job offers, or other unexpected opportunities. The Open Source Day organized by Schrödinger Hat is my all favorite event to show your project and give back to the open source community. (Also their mascot is incredibly cute)
Sharing the Tough Stuff Ever run into a massive project issue? Guess what, someone else out there has either been through it or is about to be. Sharing your experience, even if it feels painful or embarrassing, can save others from making the same mistakes. And honestly, there's something satisfying about knowing your struggles made someone else's life easier.
Making Connections When you step onto a stage, you're not just talking, you're connecting. The people watching you might have similar interests, struggles, or goals. You never know who you'll meet — a future collaborator, a mentor, or even a new friend. I love making new friends on the conferences I visit. Ryna Vysh, one of my favorite people out there and always my supporter.
Building Confidence Public speaking can be terrifying at first. But the more you do it, the less scary it becomes. And that confidence? It spills over into other parts of your life.
Inspiring Others Your story matters, even if you don't think it does. The challenges you've faced, the lessons you've learned, and the wins you've had — all of that can inspire someone who's in the middle of their own struggle. You never know whose day you might change just by sharing your journey.
Giving Back to the Community At the end of the day, public speaking is about giving back. You're adding to the collective knowledge of your field, helping others grow, and maybe even inspiring them to pay it forward. It’s a ripple effect, and it starts with you.
How do I get Started?
To get started, creating a profile on Sessionize is the first step. Think of it as the LinkedIn for speakers. The platform allows you to showcase your expertise, set your areas of interest, and define the topics you're passionate about, making it easier to find relevant calls for papers. But Sessionize isn't just for speakers, it also serves as a resource for event organizers looking for the right speakers. In addition to managing calls for papers themselves, organizers can actually use the speaker directory to find the perfect match for their event.
Although there are lots of calls for papers on Sessionize, some events/conferences use other platforms such as PaperCall, which means you could miss out on some opportunities if you aren't actively checking all platforms and following each event/conference page.
This is why I love Developer Conferences Agenda, which is a community-driven platform listing developer/tech conferences and Calls for Papers (CFPs) worldwide with a list, a calendar, and a map view. It helps organizers, speakers, sponsors & attendees. I prefer to use the source version, for its simplicity. Huge thanks to Aurélie Vache for starting this project and all the other contributors for making it easy to discover different events.
In addition to creating your profile on Sessionize and searching for calls for papers, I highly recommend staying active in local meetups. If there isn't a community in your area, consider organizing one yourself. It’s a great way to get involved and make a positive impact. And honestly, finding speakers is not that easy, as a co-organizer of a community myself, it is a tough job to find speakers (PS, searching for speakers for our Rust Tbilisi Meetup. This is why I encourage you to never hesitate and apply, and don’t be afraid to reach out to community organizers. You can propose ideas or offer to deliver a talk if they’re struggling to find speakers.
How do I prepare for a speech and how do I know what topics are going to be of the greatest interest to my audience?
When preparing for the speech part, think of Aristotle's three core elements: Logos (Reasoning), Ethos (Credentials), and Pathos (Emotion). These components work together to help you create a balanced, impactful presentation.
Logos (Reasoning): This is about having strong, logical arguments and supporting your points with facts, data, or real-world examples. When preparing your speech, think about the key takeaways for your audience. Organize your thoughts in a logical flow so the audience can easily follow along. Include well-researched points that show your subject matter expertise.
Ethos (Credentials): Ethos refers to your credibility. For a speech to resonate, you must build trust with your audience. Share your qualifications, experiences, and why you’re the right person to speak on the topic. This not only establishes your authority but also makes your audience more likely to value your insights. If you're new to speaking, it helps to show your passion for the subject and why you care about it.
Pathos (Emotion): Pathos is about connecting with your audience on an emotional level. People remember how you make them feel, not just what you say. Infuse your speech with passion, humor, or personal stories that reflect your message. This makes your talk more engaging and memorable. For me, Pathos stands as number one out of the three.
But! A great speech can lose its impact if the slides don't support it effectively, your presentation is like the visual companion to your words. As an example, the most common rookie mistake — long, endless text on every slide without any visuals — will overwhelm your audience, making them focus on the reading more than listening to what you have to say. Slides should complement what you are saying, not distract from it. Kenneth Attard is the prime example, and truly deserves an award, of how one should design a PowerPoint presentation to complement his message.
Some things I can recommend:
- Use slide templates and themes to make your presentations stand out. My to-go is Slidesgo by Freepik. The designs are already created, you just have to add the content and specific visuals. It is a great place to start from to save time on not starting from scratch or to draw inspiration from.
- Definitely check out Luis Urrutia's YouTube channel. He is a professional Presentation Designer who customizes presentations for businesses. On his channel, he shares all the tips, tricks, and useful templates to level up your presentation skills.
How do you know what topics will interest your audience? Well, here's the thing, you don't have to follow the trends. Sure, it can be tempting to add trendy words like 'AI' to your title just to get your talk accepted, but I strongly believe that's not the way to go. In fact, if you don't follow the trends, it can actually help you stand out more. The key is to pick a topic you're genuinely passionate about. When you speak from the heart about something you care about, it's more likely to resonate with your audience. Passion is contagious, and it makes you more memorable and relatable to those listening. Authenticity is what people really click with.
For the topics themselves, I like two approaches: First, to check what's missing or hasn't been covered yet. Maybe it's something painful from my own project that I haven't seen anyone talk about. This can bring a fresh perspective to the conversations. Second approach I take is to think about what I've personally experienced or learned that others might not have. It could be a specific technique or tool that I've used in a project that's made a huge difference.
Creating a presentation and organizing your speech
Creating a presentation and organizing your speech is a lengthy process, especially if you want it to be quality material. However, what can be just as time-consuming is preparing to actually deliver it in front of an audience.
This is where the real challenge begins. It's one thing to feel confident while preparing your slides and speech, but standing in front of an audience requires a whole new set of skills. Why? Because you need to make sure you feel comfortable, ensure your message comes across clearly, control your voice and tone, stay within the allotted time, learn how to make effective pauses, avoid filler words, etc.
You'll need to rehearse your speech multiple times, ideally in front of a mirror or with a trusted friend. What I don't recommend is memorizing everything by heart, it's a big mistake I've made in the past. When you try to remember every word, anxiety can kick in, and suddenly everything flies out of your head. Instead, focus on understanding the key points you want to make and practice speaking naturally around them. This way, you can adapt to the flow of the presentation and remain flexible during your speech.
Public speaking anxiety
Now that I've mentioned anxiety, it's important to highlight that public speaking anxiety is very common. Most people feel some level of nervousness before speaking in front of an audience, even if you are an experienced speaker, it's completely normal to feel those butterflies in your stomach or that racing heartbeat. The key is learning how to manage it.
One of the best advices I've heard comes from Kenneth Rohde Christiansen, he taught me to jump around, take a big breath, and shake your body before going on stage to release all that built-up energy. Really simple but from personal experience, it definitely helps.
Another technique I've found helpful, although I really cannot remember where I heard this from, is to take a few moments before stepping on stage to visualize yourself speaking confidently. I like to picture myself delivering the speech smoothly, with everything going as planned and imagining the audience reacting positively by clapping and cheering for me.
Additional Things To Remember
A big misconception is that you need a brand new session for each event you will speak at, but in reality, most speakers I have met and even myself, prepare 5-6 sessions and reuse them on different events throughout the year.
Some events don't cover speaker accommodation or travel fees, and events often come with a lot of other costs that need to be covered. This is why it's important to talk to your company about potential support. Many events offer silver sponsorship spots if your company covers your travel expenses, which is a win for your company, since it gives their name exposure. Don't be afraid to approach your manager and ask about this, it's an opportunity for both your personal growth and your company visibility.
Wrapping Up
Thank you for reading! Happy to answer any questions you might have, and if you are a speaker, I would be happy to hear your tips and tricks that you have learned from your journey as a speaker! I will update this article again at the end of 2025!