Sharing your unique voice at conferences
Thought Leadership: Amplifying your voice at conferences
In the previous post on thought leadership, we learned from Denise Brosseau about why we need to find and amplify our voice. As a continuation of the series, let’s dig into speaking at conferences as a way to amplify your voice. In this post, Anita Rao will share her perspectives on how she created a path for herself to speak at several events and how she curates the right conferences, the right topics, and how she prepares for them. You can find Anita’s bio and where to find her at the end of this post.
Anita, can you please share how you approach conferences to speak at?
In this three-part blog mini-series, I will cover the process and preparation for speaking at a conference or event. Some of the suggestions also apply to everyday presentations at work. This post provides food for thought to consider speaking at a conference. The next one helps you write a paper to submit your candidacy to speak at an event. The final post in this series will assist you in preparing for the actual event once your paper is selected. These are tips from real-world experiences.
When will I be experienced enough to speak?
Each of us has unique skills and knowledge to share with others. It is not dependent on our level of experience or seniority in an organization. Have you ever heard of reverse mentoring? Senior leaders learn so much from fresh college grads who have learned new skills. So it is never too early to start sharing and spreading your knowledge.
What are the benefits of speaking?
Throughout your career, you are building your brand. You are the best ambassador of your brand. What better way than to speak publicly and showcase your knowledge and work? Keep investing in promoting your brand every opportunity you get. Consider the opportunity to promote your brand on social media. You can reach millions with this one event. When you speak at conferences or events, you represent your company. It is an honor and a privilege to do so. Be proud of the opportunity and put your best foot forward.
Speaking at conferences allows you to hone your public speaking skills. Most of us have jitters speaking in public. That is Ok. We all go through it. The best way to overcome it is to go out and do it. The more you practice speaking in public, the better you will become at it. The biggest benefit of speaking at conferences is that you will establish yourself as a thought leader. This will help you become known to employers even before you start interviewing.
When you are at a conference or event, you can meet several people. They usually represent different industries with multi-faceted backgrounds. You build technical and professional relationships that you can nurture over the years. We grow and develop by sharing and learning from one another. Hence, consider this opportunity.
But, what can I speak about?
Think about your work. What skill can you share so that others can learn? What about your recent project?
Did you launch a product?
How did you conduct customer and market research?
What is the customer segment?
What customer problems did your product help solve?
What is the technology behind the solution?
What are the challenges you overcame to ship the product?
How are you selling it?
Any channels or partnerships in the go-to-market?
How did you launch the product?
What KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) did you pick and why?
How did you put the business case together and sell the idea internally to get funded?
Before you know it, you have enough content to write a paper to speak about the experience. Start writing these down. Just put all your ideas and thoughts together. You can always go back and edit it later. It is essential to capture the ideas first.
What are some pitfalls should I avoid?
A common pitfall to avoid is sharing any confidential product information or details of your company. Check on your organization's policies for speaking externally. You may need permission for the content. It is safe to assume that non-public product information should be avoided.
In the next post, can you please cover “How to submit a paper to speak at a conference?”
…
Anita Rao is a product management trailblazer and award-winning executive with 15+ years of exemplary performance for Fortune 500 leaders, including PayPal, eBay, Visa, Oracle, and NortonLifeLock. She tackles emergent, big-picture product/technology challenges with enthusiasm and strategic wit. In addition, she’s a recognized expert in product management, blockchain, decentralized identity, digital trust for Web3, and data lifecycle management.
A co-author of seven patents and a member of Trust Over IP Foundation, W3C, and Decentralized Identity Foundation, Anita continuously pursues excellence. Additionally, she’s a member of the WVCS Board and a tireless champion of product inclusion. She is a thought leader in the industry who has successfully been a featured speaker at various Industry Conferences such as Grace Hopper (3 years), World Product Forum, Stanford ICME (Institute of Computational Math and Engineering), Stanford’s Women in Data Science, and Women in Technology World Series.
You can follow her on Twitter or on her Blog
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