Get Accepted to Speak at Tech Conferences

Where do devs keep their Dad Jokes?

In a Dad-a-base

Conference's I have spoken at

Why

You get a free ticket to a conference

Dan Abramov famously created Remix as part of a talk for React Europe so he could get a free ticket

Opportunities

Dan Abramov started working on the React Core team due to his talk at React Europe

It attracts people to want to work with you 

My friend became part of the Redwood.js Core team and is now writing a book due in part to his talks on Redwood

Connections

(Networking)

Presenting is a good skill to learn

Concerns giving talks

I'm not good enough

I'm not an expert

Everything I learned was from someone else

I don't have anything to offer

I'm not good enough

I'm not an expert

Everything I learned was from someone else

I don't have anything to offer

"Experts" can be bad teachers

Of course you did

If you solved a problem then you have something to offer

I don't like speaking in front of people

Many Conferences have moved to being hybrid or online

How

CFP

Talks typically need to be submitted many months before the conference

Talks are then chosen from a pool of submissions

How to be chosen

Choose a topic people want to hear

• Conferences often tell you what kind of talks they are most interested
• Ask the conference organizers
• Use Blog posts with high engagement
• Use your "perceived" expertise​
• Re-use talks
• Be creative in your topic's connection
  • The Universe in a Single Arrow: A Live Dive into the Lambda Calculus

Have spoken before

• Speak at meetups
• Record YouTube tutorials
• Live code on Twitch

Make it easy to be visualized on stage, delivering your topic

Chose a "pickable" title

Clickbait is Unreasonably Effective          

Component Layout Patterns

How to Achieve Layout Composition

Code Abstraction Principals

Stop Writing Reusable React Components

"The difference between spam and advertising is value"

The difference between clickbait and provocative is value

The little things make a big difference

• Get a proper headshot
• Don't wait until you're accepted to start sharing on social media
  • Tweet that you submitted a talk
  • Share the title
  • Start selling conf tickets

Final thoughts

You will get rejected more than accepted, especially on first

You don't have to do it alone

Reach out to people you know

I am available to help anytime