On public speaking
Despite the thrill of returning to London and being invited to speak at FOWD, my primary emotion leading up to the talk was terror. The Future of Web Design conference plays hosts to approximately 600 attendees, and this was my first time speaking to a group larger than 50.
Now that the presentation is over, I can say that I don’t think the size of the audience really matters. There’s a handful of rules that have always helped me when speaking to a group of strangers, and though I’m no expert I thought I’d pass them along:
- If you don’t know your material, it shows. This might sound obvious, but talk about something you’re genuinely passionate about, and be intimate with the material. I’m a chronic procrastinator, so my slides weren’t completely finished until the night before my talk, but I’d been obsessively reading about mobile web design since Louise first advised me to go with that subject.
- A Dan Cederholm Speaking Tip™: include humor. I couldn’t tell if anyone laughed during my presentation because the pounding in my ears was too deafening, but just attempting a joke made me laugh a little, which helped to calm the shaking.
- Bring water on the stage. I’m not sure what biological fight or flight role comes in to play that causes your mouth to dry up in moments of dread, but it happens. As I stepped on to the stage, my face felt like it does when the dentist has me suck on one of those hateful vacuum straws. I would have dived off the stage and stolen an attendee’s bottle of water if my feet hadn’t turned to cement blocks.
- Be as physically comfortable as possible. For me this entailed wearing my soft, breathable (product placement alert!) Charge Tee. (More sizes just posted!) I did make one crucial wardrobe error: I forgot to wear a belt, and was worried about pant sagging for most of the talk. SO! Bring a belt, avoid risky shoes (mostly talking to the ladies here), and don’t wear your lanyard on stage. They’re flappy and itchy and look kind of silly.
My biggest takeaway from presenting is that it’s sort of like lifting a car off a trapped baby.* At first it seems terrifying and impossible, but once your adrenaline kicks in it’s kind of a blur, and you just do what you have to do.
* I guess you could argue that lifting a car off a trapped baby is harder / scarier / more impressive. I guess.
I’ve never had to speak in front of that many people, but no matter what the size, I still get tongue-tied. I definitely agree with the Bring Water tip. It also helps if you start getting light-headed and feel like you’re going to pass out.
Nice round up. I just had my first public presentation (about wireframes) a few weeks ago at http://www.webdesignday.com in Pittsburgh, PA. I’m glad to hear you report back with a lot of the general thoughts/anxieties I had.
Definitely agree with the baby under a car analogy. It does seem daunting until you get it done!
Also, my slides weren’t finished until the night before either. So you’re not alone on the procrastination factor.
I bet you did great. Thanks for sharing! Hope to see you talk in Boston some day soon! (Wink wink: M&SS?)
Ahhh I thought I noticed a severe case of pant sag!
Only joking, it was a great talk and really inspired me to look into mobile web design for some upcoming personal projects.
Definitely one of my favourite talks of the day but it always amused me when speakers tried to see into the crowd with a dozen spotlights beaming on the stage!
I was at FOWD and really enjoyed your talk. Think you were more easy to relate to than some of the others; talking about what you were doing right now and that gave us something to go away with. Good plug of Cameron Moll’s book too
I’ve so far only done BarCamp talks or discussions and one panel. The first I didn’t stop shaking the whole way through but after a few I reckon I probably could talk to almost any size room. Like you say, if you know what you’re talking about the size of the crowd maybe doesn’t matter…?
Meagan, just to reassure you that the nerves didn’t show. The slide deck was really strong and the self-deprecating wit went down well. Your ‘I’m just like you, and you can be just like me’ approach put everyone at ease and, the crucial bit, on your side - I’d add ‘empathise’ to your list.
My only disappointment was that you didn’t have longer to speak - it seemed just cruel giving you only thirty minutes on a subject you clearly had so much good stuff to talk about! FOWD was a pretty uneven this year, but I think the consensus was that you did a great job.
This post is timed perfectly. I’m going through this tomorrow… Thanks Meagan!
Whoa, I didn’t know *that* was why we just missed each other in London. Man… wow! It’s so awesome that you spoke at FOWD, and I can’t wait to see the video of it.
Oh, and you’re right too. Coming unprepared to a big talk is pure fail. I’m sure yours rocked though.
Thnx for the tips!
bq. * I guess you could argue that lifting a car off a trapped baby is harder / scarier / more impressive. I guess.
I’d like to see your data on this.
I took a lot from your speech and loved the balance of content. The slides were fun and catchy too. Your nerves didn’t show at all so congrats all round!
Meagan, your talk was really good (I watched the video) and you should be proud. You are a hugely talented designer, and you can be sure that, whenever you speak, people will value what you have to say.
I have to say, there is nothing more comforting than being a web designer trying to work his way into the “in” crowd, and seeing you “buck up” and do it.
I was starting to think all great designers were born slightly pretentious, but you certainly don’t fit that stereotype and that is quite refreshing.
Thanks for the speaking tips, my biggest design-oriented group (I was quite the thesbian in college) is 50 or so. I’m glad to know 600 doesn’t feel all that different!
I saw your talk at FOWD, the slides were very well designed and the quality and attention to detail was inspiring….
looking forward to more tips on tackling mobile browsers
Thanks for the tips! Anything that applies to acting applies to public speaking. I’d add a few I’ve learned from acting: Never say the same thing, the same way, three times in a row - This is crucial for keeping interest. Use a dynamic voice - Don’t be a monotonous sounding robot, another great tool for the keeping of interest. And the last one that pops into mind is a reiteration of your last point, Don’t make the audience fear for your comfort - look, act comfortable and you will cultivate the same feeling in the audience.
You have such a lovely site! ^^
Is there a video or slides of your presentation?