Last June, I finished my most extensive quest of some time. I overcame my fear of public speaking, and I picked a topic that was very new to me.
TLDR
Here For me, it’s painful to watch and I’m working on improving my presentation skills and going deeper into the topics.
Challenges and goal-setting
Having a deadline works like magic. Knowing that the day you need to present a topic is creeping up sharpens your motivation. You will learn faster. And out of nowhere, you will find time to prepare within your busy schedule.
I have always struggled with public speaking. Some bad experiences as a teenager eventually led me to skip classes if I needed to speak up in front of everyone. Not smart.
It’s essential for me that commitment to a challenge comes from within. External motivation only goes so far. It’s great when your environment supports you and gives you some tailwind, but they can’t push you over your limits.
My takeaway from this is the following. I want to challenge myself more often. What I will do differently the next time is how to shape these challenges efficiently. Focused blocks that last between 4-6 weeks, separated by weeks of leisure and coasting. Each block ideally introduces one new skill or subject. One is plenty :)
Parkinson’s law states that work expands to the available time. For me, running a 108-day marathon felt exhausting. Evenings and days off were filled with guilt.
Pitching a talk
I was reading Tom Hombergs newsletter when he gave me a little push just at the right moment. He wrote that you don’t give a talk because you’re an expert but to become one.
Some of the most interesting people I know tell me they have nothing to write or talk about but like the idea of doing something. Even if I had already listened in awe for hours about their experiences and projects, they were pulling off. I met people who have everything they want to share readily written down and prepared but don’t feel ready.
The best advice I got when I doubted myself was that I just shared what I wished to know a few months ago. And I doubted myself a lot. No one expects you to share some groundbreaking revelations that will change the whole world at once. It’s like going on a hike together. Many people are faster, fitter, and more experienced are ahead of you. This is not your audience.
But to some, you’re two or three steps ahead of them. Chances are, they can relate to your situation and will be happy to hear from you how you navigate that slippery stone ahead of them. That is your audience.
Practical takeaway: There are countless meetups and conferences going on all the time, and all of them ask for speakers. Do you best when submitting your proposal. But remember, worst they can say is no. Sign up before you’re ready. Sign up as soon as you have an exciting idea. Don’t wait until you finished preparation. The following sounds like an American sales mantra, but there is some magic in committing first and figuring out later.
Prepare and deliver
I made a big mistake. I spent the first 100 days working behind closed doors, stressing out because I thought what I had was crap. With the deadline approaching, I was desperate enough to ask for feedback. It turned out that my topics were onto something. Lots of people were able to connect with my experiences and give valuable feedback.
Looking back, that approach of building something without asking my potential audience sounds very waterfally to me. My takeaway here is that I will throw ideas around as soon as possible, see how people react, and double down on the best of them. Surprise, iterating fast works and avoids waste. Even being aware of the 80/20 rule, I couldn’t help myself from wasting a ton of time while making the most progress during the last week of the week, when I recorded my talk 18 times, each one slightly more refined than the one before.