…or your local user group, meetup, or code camp.
Becoming a Speaker
As someone who’s been speaking on technical topics since the late 1990s, I can say with great confidence that there are huge benefits to sharing your knowledge at local code camps and user groups. And if you’re in the greater Washington, DC metro area, I want to encourage you to submit a talk for the Northern Virginia Code Camp, which is coming up on April 30th, 2016. Here are 5 reasons to speak you should consider:
Top 5 Reasons to Speak
- Share Your Knowledge: When you present on a topic, you bring your unique experience and perspective on that topic. It doesn’t matter if you think you’re an “expert.” You still have knowledge you can share. That knowledge will help others, and in the long term, it’ll help you, too.
- Make Friends: Becoming a speaker will introduce you to a new set of peers, and you’ll find people who share your passion for technology, and who can help you find the next speaking opportunity, and more.
- Build Confidence: As anyone who’s tried Toastmasters could tell you, being able to communicate ideas can open many doors, and will provide you with a boost of confidence. Polishing this skill will help you in both your personal and professional life.
- Learn More: When you speak at a code camp, you are guaranteed to learn something new about the topic you choose to speak about. In fact, speaking (along with writing) can be one of the most effective ways of learning more about a topic you’re interested in.
- Earn More: One of the big advantages I found over the years from speaking was that it had both direct and indirect impacts on my earnings. Becoming a speaker signals to many employers that you have expertise, and expertise often translates to higher pay. Improving income shouldn’t be your only goal in speaking, but it can be a nice fringe benefit.
- BONUS REASON – User Groups and Code Camps are Beginner-Friendly: If you’ve never done a presentation before, local user groups, meetups, and code camps are the perfect venue to give it a try. The goal of these events is to have the community helping the community. The speakers are developers, too, and many of them may also be speaking for the first time.
Just Add You
So there you have it, 5 reasons to speak at a local user group, meetup, or code camp. Whether you have never done a technical presentation in your life, or just haven’t done one lately, consider submitting a talk for a local event. And if you’re in the DC area, why not submit a talk for NoVA Code Camp? These events rely on folks like you to share their knowledge, and they need your support!
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