Taught by me, "Alex" (mangopdf)
Alex, having worked on the Red Team at Atlassian, spent considerable time hacking the company the way a real cybercriminal would, and then writing incredibly detailed confession letters. They have been the keynote speaker at multiple security conferences, and wrote many popular technical blog posts, including one about finding former Prime Minister Tony Abbott's passport number. See their blog posts and conference talk videos for yourself on their portfolio website.
Best Speaker
BSides Canberra
Best Speaker
Red Team Summit
Best Speaker
Kiwicon
As seen on
It's hard not being understood
You know what's wayyy slower than slow build times?
Spending 12 months
building the wrong thing because the other team didn't understand you
in the first place.
You are an expert, unfortunately that's a liability when talking about your expertise to non-experts.
You spend so much time making technical presentations and writing, so it's such a waste if people don't get it.
Being understood by people is good for your career! It's hard to do anything on your own.
What we'll learn
Fundamentals
How to not be boring
Fundamentals
How to not be boring
The goal: When you write/present, nobody is bored, nobody is confused
Audience attention and understanding
Why do we write/present how we do now?
Exercise: Playing Articulate
One-way vs. two-way communication
Cognitive load theory
Perspective-taking and theory of mind
Anticipating the audience's reaction
Words, and how they mean different things to different people
Communication is context
Formal language is for withholding information
Using your real voice
...more in the full version
Non-expert Communication
Being understood by non-experts
Non-expert Communication
Being understood by non-experts
The curse of knowledge: being an expert makes you worse at explaining things
Understanding the audience's context and choosing a level of detail
Audience profiles
Jargon and analogies
Explaining by example
Exercise: Identify and fix hidden assumptions
Exercise: Explain your job to different audiences
...more in the full version
Writing
Writing-specific tips
Writing
Writing-specific tips
Using a lot of headings
How to title things without being clickbait
Writing a tl;dr;
Active vs. passive voice
Using pictures instead of words
Exercise: Writing an announcement post
Exercise: Formal language vs real voice
...more in the full version
Presenting
Fast, simple slides
Presenting
Fast, simple slides
Presenter view and slide software
Slide design
Presentations are about speed
Making fast slides
The split attention effect
Visual density of diagrams
Using my fast slides template
The process of actually writing a talk from scratch
Dot point slides are your speaker notes, not for the audience
Exercise: Make a 1min presentation explaining a technical concept
Exercise: Rehearsal and feedback
...more in the full version
FAQ
How long are the classes? For how many students?
How long are the classes? For how many students?
The class is half a day (including time for breaks), and can fit up to 15 students.
Where are classes held?
Where are classes held?
Typically at your company's office, but we can arrange something else if you prefer :)
Can you help with a presentation/some writing I'm working on?
Can you help with a presentation/some writing I'm working on?
Yep! I can help you design it, or do more personalised 1:1 coaching. If you're looking for feedback on writing though, may I suggest I give you feedback on your blog post but you don't send it to me?
Can you help me with my startup pitch deck?
Can you help me with my startup pitch deck?
Sure! I can help hyper-optimise your pitch deck, since it's so important to get it right. Book a call or email and let's talk about it!
Are classes available remotely?
Are classes available remotely?
Maybe one day, but for now it's Australia-only. It's gotta be in person for it to get results, I suspect. The 1:1/startup pitch coaching are available remotely though.