Successful Speaking for Technical Professionals

“As an evolving program is continually changed, its complexity… increases unless work is done to maintain or reduce it.”  — Meir M. Lehman, computer scientist and pioneer of the Laws of Software Evolution

Engineers can spend large portions of their time fixing legacy systems, addressing defects, updating documentation, and dealing with technical debt instead of designing and building something new.

When ...

“The extra effort that it takes to add new features is the interest paid on the debt.” — Martin Fowler, British software developer, author of Technical Debt, 2019, and international public speaker on software development

Engineers contend with technical debt daily.  But what exactly is technical debt?

Technical debt is the future cost created when an organization chooses a quick or suboptimal technical solution...

“Meetings are a symptom of bad organization. The fewer meetings the better.”
— Peter F. Drucker, management consultant and author

One of the most frustrating activities for engineers is attending inefficient meetings.

Engineers are taught in engineering school to always use the most efficient design.  Why can’t this apply to the meetings they attend?

The truth is, meetings can be more efficient if you ...

“When you get to about 70% of all possible data, it’s probably time to make a decision and not wait for the last 30. That’s judgment.” — General Colin Powell, former U.S. Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

You’ve delivered your technical presentation, hoping executives in the audience will decide. But at the end of your presentation, no decision is made.  How frustra...

 “Plans are worthless, but planning is everything.” — Dwight D. Eisenhower,General of the Army and 34th President of the United States

You deal with risk every day.

You deal with risk when you drive to work. You deal with risk every time your son or daughter plays soccer. You deal with risk as an airline passenger.

And you deal with risk every day as an engineer.  Risk management is part and parcel of your ...

“Bad news isn't wine. It doesn't improve with age.” — Colin Powell, American U.S. Army general, diplomat, and statesman

Are you intimidated by the idea of disagreeing with an executive in your company?  Many engineers are.  

You may feel that disagreeing with an executive will hurt your credibility, your chances for promotion, or even keep you from keeping your job. When done the right way, disagreeing wit...

“When you can measure what you are speaking about, and express it in numbers, you know something about it.” — William Thomson, Lord Kelvin, was one of the most influential physicists and engineers of the 19th century

Engineers routinely work with probabilities, assumptions, incomplete data, forecasts, simulations, and technical risk. 

The challenge is to acknowledge what is unknown while remaining clear about w...

“If you can’t communicate and talk to other people and get across your ideas, you’re giving up your potential.” --- Warren Buffett, Chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway

Technical competence may earn professionals credibility, but strong presentation skills help decision-makers see, understand, and trust that competence. 

For engineers and other technical professionals, presenting effectively can demonst...

"Seek first to understand, then to be understood." — Stephen R. Covey, from The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (1989). Covey (1932–2012) was an educator, leadership consultant, and internationally recognized author.

Technical expertise may earn engineers a seat at the table, but communication earns them influence. 

The engineers who are most respected by colleagues, managers, and executives consistently communic...

"Trust is equal parts character and competence. You can look at any leadership failure, and it's always a failure of one or the other." -- Stephen Covey, American author, educator, leadership consultant, and businessman

Senior executives often decide within the first few minutes whether a presentation deserves their attention. 

They are evaluating not only the technical content but also the speaker's credibility, confidence, and...

"Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple." — Steve Jobs (1955–2011), Co-founder, Chairman, and CEO of Apple Inc

Hybrid and virtual meetings have become a permanent part of technical work, bringing together team members, clients, and stakeholders from around the world. 

Technical professionals who adapt their communication style to these environments can im...

"Remember, you are there to clearly and concisely communicate important information—not to show off and use big words."   — Harry T. Roman,
 Engineer, inventor, educator, and author of Public Speaking for Engineers,

Technical expertise earns respect, which is necessary to influence your audience, but it is not sufficient to convince them. Memorable communication earns influence.

Make your ideas memorable...

"There's zero correlation between being the best talker and having the best ideas."   -- Susan Cain, American author, lecturer, and former lawyer.

Your ability to project confidence and executive presence is vital to your presentations and your career.

Audiences engage more with speakers who are confident in their material and delivery.

This podcast suggests three ways to do this.

References

• Goman, Carol Kinsey. The Silent Lang...

“Questions are never indiscreet; answers sometimes are.”  — Oscar Wilde, one of the most celebrated literary figures of the Victorian era, known for his wit, plays, and insightful commentary on society.

Most speakers dread audience questions.  This is unfortunate because questions reveal what interests your audience.

To ensure you are effective when addressing questions, in this podcast episode, we will ex...

“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.” -- Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, engineer, pilot, and writer known for his insights on simplicity and design.

You studied and practice your technical area of expertise because you like detail.  However, when you are delivering a technical presentation, detail can be deadly.

The detail in your technical presentati...

“Your audience is the hero of your presentation.”  - Nancy Duarte from Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences

Have you ever delivered a technical presentation to an engineering audience, and your audience members’ faces were like “deer in the headlights”

Audiences who aren't engaged by the speaker are bored and don’t retain or implement what you say.

In today's podcast, you w...

“Before you marry a person, you should first make them use a computer with slow Internet service to see who they really are.” — Will Ferrell, comedian and actor

Two weeks ago, my wife, Elaine, and I moved to Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, just outside of Charleston.  We loved living in Northern Virginia, but we wanted to move to a warmer climate.  

We weren’t disappointed.  The beaches, the Cha...

“In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity.”— Sun Tzu from The Art of War,

My wife, Elaine, and I recently moved from Northern Virginia to the Charleston, South Carolina, area.  To say our move was chaotic is an understatement.  The packing, moving, and unpacking (which is still ongoing) were and are stressful.

This chaos of moving to another state got me thinking about the chaos that speakers have ...

“People don’t want perfect; they want real.” – Modern audience engagement trend

Excellent public speakers keep up with the latest audience trends.

This podcast explores three audience trends for which public speakers should take advantage.

References

• Gallo, C. (2022). The Bezos Blueprint: Communication Secrets of the World’s Greatest Salesman. St. Martin’s Press.
  Discusses how tech-savvy lead...