I got requests for speaking at user groups, conferences, workshops and hackathons or to participate in panels, so it’s been a while that I’m thinking about doing a blog post on speaking requests: I think it makes more sense now since there is a specific process at Mozilla. First let’s split the requests by two categories: technical topics, and personal one.
Technical topics
Part of my role as a Technical Evangelist is to speak at events or run workshops, and hackathons all over the world. All those events, or topics, are technical ones or related to a topic for people in IT. Primarily, it should be related to Firefox OS, but it can also be anything related to mobility, and the Web (HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript). Some examples, but not limited to, of the topics I can do are:
- Firefox OS tools, get your hands dirty
- Firefox OS Web APIs, taking it to the next level
- Firefox OS apps, get ready to be successful
- Fixing the mobile Web
- Mobile First
- Responsive Web Design
- Building mobile experiences that don’t suck
If you want me to speak on a technical topic (or anyone from Mozilla) the process is simple:
- Go at https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/form.dev-engagement-event
- If you don’t have an account, create a free Bugzilla one or create one using Persona (suggested)
- Enter the information requested about your event like dates, descriptions, what you are looking for…
Be sure to fill the “Are you requesting a specific person to present or participate at this event? If so, please list their name(s).” textbox with my name if you wanted me to talk. It’s also the same process if you are looking for a sponsorship or both, sponsorship, and having a speaker. What can you expect after? Our team is getting together on a frequent basis (we tried to, but with travels, events, different countries, it’s not always easy, so we won’t commit to a delay, but of course, the sooner you contact us, more chances you have to get an answer on time), and Robyn Chau will get back to you either to get more information, or to let you know about our decisions. Keep in mind that there are different reasons which can prevent us to participate or sponsor your event, and we receive many requests.
Personal topics
You know me: I like to share with others. So it’s why I’m also speaking on a personal side, but in those cases, the topics aren’t technical as I’m not just an IT guy! For now, I mainly have two topics I’m sharing with others, but still not limited to:
I realized a couple of years ago that thinking about myself as a brand could help me achieve my goals, and I want other to understand this also. I, as well, want people to know that public speaking is great, and I want to help them to try it: it’s less complicated than it looks like, and you can give as get a lot out of it. For those kinds of presentations, since I’m doing this on my own, it needs to be, either in Montreal, or anywhere else, but you need to pay my travel, and expenses. If you want me to speak about those one, just send me an email, and give me some details about your event, and about what you are looking for exactly: I’m open to suggestion, and of course, to go out of my comfort zone.
Simple rules
Firstly, as you know, I can do those presentations either in French, or in English. I’m not your usual speaker, and you can expect me to go on stage, no matter the type of events, with my jeans, and t-shirts as an example. On top of that, I have some simple rules. It’s not to sound pretentious; those are just rules I set with previous experiences, and how I’m dealing with public speaking. Those simple rules will help us to have a win-win situation:
- I won’t provide the slides in advances as I usually make modifications until the last minute;
- My slides will be made public right after my presentation (on slideshare, and I usually do a blog post about the presentation);
- My talk will be recorded, and I’ll make it public after the conference (if you record the talks yourself, I’ll be more than happy to promote it after you release the recording);
- I want to use my own computer as I have many configurations needed for my talks (even for the non-technical one, no surprise on stage).
So, I hope this post will help you manage the speaking requests at Mozilla, but also if you want me to speak at your conference or user group. You can see a list of events I participated or even the slides I used. It’s a simple process that will make my life, and yours, easier! So, what’re the next events I don’t want to miss? Let me know!
