How I became a conference speaker (and how you can too!)

Ever wondered how developers end up speaking at those big tech conferences? Well, I've got a story for you. I'm going to share how I started speaking at international conferences. And I'll throw in some tips so you can follow in my footsteps if you're interested!

A bit about me

First, let me give you some quick background. I've been a professional web developer for about 7 years now, mostly focusing on JavaScript. I've worked with React a ton, both on the front-end and back-end. My career's been pretty varied:

1. Started at a marketing agency
2. Moved to a startup
3. Worked at a full-service agency
4. Now at a front-end and Node.js focused consultancy called FrontValue

So, how did I end up on stage talking to hundreds of developers? Let's dive in!

Baby steps: Meetup talks

It all started when I was about to switch to my second job. There were these front-end meetups in Eindhoven, Netherlands, that I sometimes attended. One day, they were looking for speakers for short 10-minute "lightning talks." And I thought, "Why not give it a shot?"

My first talk was about the Svelte framework. They had just released version 3, and not many people knew about it yet. Here's a pro tip: if you're nervous about speaking in front of more experienced devs, pick a topic that's so new, nobody can one-up you! 😅

That first talk went pretty well, and it was actually pretty fun. But then... the pandemic hit.

The conference speaking challenge

Fast forward a bit. The pandemic was winding down, and I started doing more meetup talks at my new job. Then, when I was interviewing for my current role at FrontValue (a front-end consultancy), something interesting happened.

I asked my now-employer, Martijn, "Is there anything I can do in the first year that would make you go 'Wow, hiring Eddy was such a great decision'?" His response? "You can speak at two conferences."

Challenge accepted! 💪

Crafting my first conference talk

So, how did I go from agreeing to speak to actually getting on stage? Here's what I did:

1. Come up with a talk idea: I started by creating an outline for my first talk.
2. Submit to conferences: I looked for conferences with open "Call for Papers" (CFP) and submitted my idea.
3. Get lucky: I barely caught the talk submission deadline for Code Europe 2023 in Krakow and Warsaw... and I still got accepted!

Let me tell you, that first conference experience was amazing. Code Europe took great care of their speakers - booked flights, scheduled airport pickups, the works. It really eased my nerves about the whole thing.

Within a few months of starting my new job I had already achieved my goal of doing 2 conference talks. A great start! I ended up speaking at 4 conferences during my first year at FrontValue.

Want to become a conference speaker? Here's how

Alright, so you're thinking, "This sounds cool, but how can I do it?" Don't worry, I've got you covered. Here are some practical tips:

1. Start with an outline: You don't need a full presentation to submit a talk. Just a solid outline is often enough.
2. Think like an attendee: Ask yourself, "If I were in the audience, what would I want to get out of this talk?" Use those answers to structure your outline.
3. Submit to multiple conferences: Many allow you to submit several ideas, which increases your chances of getting accepted.
4. Don't stress about the slides (yet): Most conferences don't require you to have your slides ready when you submit. You'll have time to prepare if you're accepted.

Creating a talk people want to watch

The first group of people you need to "sell" on your talk idea is the committee which chooses the talks that get accepted for the event. There are a few things you can do to make your talk stand out from other talks during the selection process.

As I mentioned before, the takeaways for the audience should be valuable and obvious. You need to think about the people selecting the talks from potentially hundreds of submissions, and you also have to consider the people attending the event.

Besides providing good takeaways, another thing I did in my talks is providing people with an open source Astro template when I was giving my Astro talk. I showcased it in the talk with a live coding demo as well, which when performed correctly can really help drive home the point if you want to showcase how people can use a library or a framework. It's also great for visual learners in the audience.

You should consider the type of event you want to present at, and potentially adjust your talk to make it a better fit for the conference. Right now, I have two very different talks.

One of my talks is about Astro and is more about how and why you would use Astro. Another is about building SaaS (Software as a Service) applications outside of your job.

That last one is more like a case study, but I could adjust it to be more about how I'm using specific technologies for different conferences. I could make it more React.js heavy for a React.js conference, or maybe lean more into the AI side of things for conferences about Artificial Intelligence.

The ups and downs of conference speaking

Since that first talk, I've spoken at about 7 international conferences in places like Poland, Berlin, Texas, Wisconsin, Estonia, and North Carolina. Pretty cool, right?

If you're doing this alongside your regular job (like me), it can get tiring. The constant travel, airport hassles, and hotel bookings can wear you down. That said, I still love the actual speaking part and meeting new people at these events. It's a lot of fun, and I'm going to keep doing it!

Is conference speaking right for you?

If you're on the fence, my advice is simple: give it a try! You might discover that you absolutely love it. And who knows? If you really enjoy it, you could even look into jobs like Developer Relations or Developer Advocate roles where this is a big part of the job.

Wrapping up

So there you have it - my journey from nervous meetup speaker to international conference presenter. It's been a wild ride, and I'm excited to see where it goes next. Maybe I'll even speak at a Dutch conference someday! 😄

Remember, everyone starts somewhere. If I can do it, so can you. So why not give it a shot? Who knows, I might see you on stage at the next big tech conference!