Sql Saturday #89

bobby    Community, Sql Saturday    

The Event

Last weekend I spoke at Sql Saturday #89 in Atlanta, GA.  This was my first time speaking at an event like this.  Normally, I’m the guys behind the scenes making sure that the volunteers are in place, there are plenty of drinks, and the doors are unlocked the day of the event.  This time around it was Tim Radney (blog | twitter), Julie Smith (blog | twitter), Audrey Hammonds (blog | twitter), Aaron Nelson (blog | twitter), and countless others.  As a whole, the event went very smoothly.  The location was the beautiful Alpharetta location of Georgia State.  The facility was very new, with fantastic A/V equipment, seating, and space in general.  The vendors were located centrally, but not underfoot.  The sessions were split between the first and second floor, but traffic moved smoothly thanks to the excellent volunteers provided by TekSystems.  Generally, I frown on having vendors provide help, but the individuals did a fantastic job of focusing on the attendees.  Lunch was the standard fare of catered sandwiches, but was fairly good.  The speaker dinner was held at Bahama Breeze.  The food was great, though it was a bit loud.  The after-party was at 5 Seasons Brewery, just around the corner from the event facility.

All-and-all, everything went really well.  I heard no complaints from the attendees.  There was no speaker room, which made things a bit awkward.  Having never spoken before, I’ve always considered the speaker room an after-thought.  After my experience this time-around, I’d say that it’s a necessity.  Though I always try to encourage my speakers to get out there and mix with the attendees, it’s nice to have a place to sit and just relax for a few minutes.  The only other observation I would have is in that the closing ceremonies were a bit awkward.  Though it was a beautiful day, and the area outside in which it was held somewhat lent itself to a larger crowd, it was still tough to not only focus on Geoff Hiten (blog | twitter) (note I did not say, “hear” ;) ), but to congregate.

My Session

This was my first time speaking in this type of forum.  As a consultant, I speak with clients and co-workers daily – individually and in groups.  I have spoken in front of hundreds as well as been interviewed on camera.  Training in a seminar format is a bit of a different vein for me, though.

This time I decided to talk about something that is very close to my heart: professional development.  I developed a fairly thorough outline as well as a nice story in slides.  After thinking about it a bit, I decided to ditch the slides.  In nearly every presentation that I have attended, unless the subject is the slide (i.e. a specific spreadsheet, diagram, or chart), they tend to act as more of a distraction.  Considering the focus of my talk was on individuals and interacting with others, I felt it more important to focusing on the individuals in the audience.  The talk went well, I felt, but there was room for improvement:

1. Bring slides.  You do not need to have slides for every point that you are making.  The rule of thumb I have heard is one slide for every 6 – 10 minutes.  In my talk, it would have been nice to have an introductory slide, a slide with the references I specified (a few books that I usually recommend), and a closing slide reiterating the important bits.
2. Practice! I practiced a bit the week-of and night before, but every little bit counts.
3. There is no Fourth Wall! This might not be as important during technical sessions; however, in non-technical settings, it is very important to realize that your audience is there to learn.  Learning does not always mean regurgitating information and sometimes might mean not being afraid to talk to the people in front of you.  I tried to keep the interaction and energy high during my session.  Next time, I might kick it up a notch.

I had a great experience and would recommend it to anyone!  Going-forward, I would like to try to emulate Jon Skeet’s (blog | twitter) style.  It’s much more free-form and focuses on telling a story.

The Panel

I was very lucky to be invited by Brian Moran (twitter) to speak on a panel focusing on topics introduced by Seth Godin’s (blog) book, LinchPin.  Along with myself, there was Julie Smith, Audrey Hammond, Mark Tabladillo (blog | twitter), and Jen Underwood (blog | twitter).  There was a lot of great ideas flying around and some fantastic interaction with the audience.  I would highly recommend catching this or any professional development presentation by Brian.  He has a passion for people and love of the community.

Overall, I had a great time.  It was good to get out of town and hang out with a few old friends, and make some new ones.  If you have the opportunity, check out a Sql Saturday in your area.  They are great events run by great people and I guarantee you will make a few new friends.

If you enjoyed this article please consider sharing it!