Teach the Geek: Public Speaking and Communication Skills for Technical Professionals

Dr. Shelly Gruenig is the founder of Be Greater than Average, an organization that hosts workshops and camps for students that encourage STEM. She’s also the founder of R4Robotics, a robotics team for students. As if that wasn’t enough, she’s a podcaster, the host of STEM Southwest, where she looks to further her message of STEM importance and influence. We chatted about all her ventures and how p...

Nicole Price worked as a chemical engineer for many years, but decided that leadership training and coaching was her bag, so she started her company, Lively Paradox. I speak to Nicole about her transition away from chemical engineering, the services Lively Paradox provides, and her thoughts on public speaking. I learned something new about race, too... To get in touch with Nicole, visit http://liv...

Today my guest is Deb Coviello. Armed with a BS in Biomedical Engineering, she uses her extensive knowledge in Quality and Continuous Improvement to help companies grow. We chatted about her speaking work with American Society of Quality, her self-employment journey with her company, Illumination Partners, and her take on public speaking in general. Learn more about Deb at dropinceo.com TEACH THE...

Maynard Okereke is a man of many talents. A civil engineer by training, he’s also a science communicator, developing Hip Hop Science, which fuses music and science to engage the general public. In addition, he has his own line of vegan seasoning salts and even dabbles in marketing. We chatted about all his varied interests. To learn more about Maynard, check out: https://www.hiphopscienceshow.com/...

Jared, a 2nd time guest, stopped by with his associate, Nick Suell, to talk about the exciting things Kylar.io has been up to since his last visit. Here's a hint: Korean is involved.  Visit kylar.io to learn more about Jared and the company's mission. TEACH THE GEEK: teachthegeek.com anchor.fm/teachthegeek teachthegeek.slack.com @teachthegeek (Twitter) @teachthegeek (FB) @_teachthegeek_ (IG)

My guest, Moiya McTier, is pursuing a PhD in Astronomy. She doesn’t just do science, though, she speaks about it, too. And adds comedy to it somehow. Who knew science could be funny? It was great to speak with her and find out what she wants to do with science communication after she graduates. Find out more about Moiya at https://www.moiyamctier.com/ TEACH THE GEEK teachthegeek.com youtube.teacht...

I was keen to speak with Iris Wagstaff based on her work at American Association for the Advancement of Science. Her job is to increase participation in STEM, quite the undertaking. I was interested to find out more about the initiatives she works with to achieve that goal and how public speaking factors into that.  To get in touch with Iris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iris-r-wagstaff-ph-d-5...

I comment on an article by Brian Tracy listing ways to overcome the fear of public speaking. Knee bends are involved somehow... Full article: https://www.briantracy.com/blog/public-speaking/27-useful-tips-to-overcome-your-fear-of-public-speaking TEACH THE GEEK teachthegeek.com youtube.teachthegeek.com teachthegeek.slack.com @teachthegeek (Twitter) @teachthegeek (FB) @_teachthegeek_ (IG)

Written by Dorie Clark; tip by Mike Michalowicz; approved by Teach The Geek  Full article at https://www.americanexpress.com/en-us/business/trends-and-insights/articles/5-public-speaking-tips-from-the-pros TEACH THE GEEK teachthegeek.com youtube.teachthegeek.com teachthegeek.slack.com @teachthegeek (FB) @teachthegeek (Twitter) @_teachthegeek+ (IG)

Here are my thoughts on an article I read by Amy George writing for Inc. Magazine. I never really thought of grammar when it came to public speaking, but I do now! Check out the full article at https://www.inc.com/amy-george/7-grammar-hacks-to-elevate-your-writing-public-speaking.html   TEACH THE GEEK   teachthegeek.com  youtube.teachthegeek.com @teachthegeek (Twitter)  @teacht...

Betty Liu, writing for Inc Magazine, offers 10 tips to become a better public speaker. But it's tip #7 that really resonated with me. Check out the full article at https://www.inc.com/betty-liu/8-simple-ways-to-become-a-more-impressive-public-speaker.html   TEACH THE GEEK   teachthegeek.com  youtube.teachthegeek.com @teachthegeek (Twitter)  @teachthegeek (FB)  @_teachthege...

Matt Johnson studied neuroscience, got a PhD, and works as a professor. He also had an interest in business, though, and found a way to merge the two. He's now penning a book about it, due out in 2020. I chatted with him about what motivated him to study neuroscience, where business comes into his career journey, and how public speaking figures into it all.  Check out Matt's blog and learn mo...

Mechanical engineer Tiffani Teachey and I both want everyone to know that STEM is for everyone. To that end, we both put out children's books. Her book, What Can I Be? STEM Careers from A to Z, calls out various STEM careers based on the first letter. Could Z be anything other than zoologist? I think not.  To learn more about Tiffani's book, visit tiffaniteachey.com/books TEACH THE GEEK teach...

An article from the Harvard Extension School by Marjorie North goes over tips to improve in public speaking. I talk about a few of them in the video. To check out the article, visit https://www.extension.harvard.edu/professional-development/blog/10-tips-improving-your-public-speaking-skills teachthegeek.com @teachthegeek (FB) @teachthegeek (Twitter) @_teachthegeek_ (IG)

Don't pass out before a speech! Get some posture and breathing advice from a Harvard Business Review article by Allison Shapira of Global Public Speaking LLC. https://hbr.org/2015/06/breathing-is-the-key-to-persuasive-public-speaking

IESE Business School article written by Conor Neill in Forbes has some great tips on public speaking. 12 tips to be exact! Check out the article at https://www.forbes.com/sites/iese/2016/04/18/12-tips-for-public-speaking teachthegeek.com @teachthgeek (Twitter) @_teachthegeek_ (IG) @teachthegeek (FB)

Want to get people to listen to your presentation? Here's a tip that's bound to work. teachthegeek.com teachthegeek.slack.com @teachthegeek (Twitter) @_teachthegeek_ (IG) @teachthegeek (FB)

A guest didn't show up for the scheduled interview time, so I decided to do a solo video on timing presentations. It got me thinking that I should do more of these types of videos, so I will. I also decided to turn the videos into podcast episodes. This will take some time, so bear with me! One last thing. Check out my children's book. It's about my nephew asking me why his hair is the way it is a...

Chemical engineer Michael Benjamin was a presenter at the 2019 Professional Development Conference of the National Society of Black Engineers. His presentation was on being debt free at 23 (can you relate?). He’s also an author. He wrote The Power of Yet. We spoke about becoming an author, becoming a public speaker, and what exactly E.A.T. means? Connect with Michael at https://michaelobenjamin.co...

Steve Buchanan works as a Group Manager at Avanade, is a Microsoft MVP, and maintains a technology blog, Buchatech. We talked about what a Microsoft MVP is (I honestly had no clue), his motivation for getting into tech, and his plans for his blog.  To contact Steve: buchatech.com Twitter: @buchatech

Claude Jones is a man of many talents. His day job is as the site lead at WalMart Labs, but he is also the founder San Diego Tech Hub, the Elevate Foundation, and the Practical Leadership Guy. His talent for tech and public speaking is truly inspiring; I’ve heard him speak on several occasions. We talked about his involvement in tech, his motivation for his extracurricular endeavors, and his passi...

I learned about David Goldberg after watching his TEDx talk. He’s lead quite an interesting life. A PhD in civil engineering who ended up being a professor, there were entrepreneurial stints in between teaching gigs. He resigned his tenure track professorship and founded ThreeJoy Associates. He’s also an author, writing a book on revolutionizing engineering education. I learned about his journey t...

Sol Rosenbaum is an engineer who cares deeply about public speaking for engineers, among other things. According to him, networking, personal development - soft skills in general - are key to getting ahead as an engineer. Technical skills alone just won’t cut. We talked about his motivation to become an engineer, his perspective on public speaking, and his 3 keys for career growth as an engineer....

Stephanie Slocum is a professional engineer and the founder of Engineers Rising. She’s the author of “She Engineers: Outsmart Bias, Unlock your Potential, and Create the Engineering Career of your Dreams.” She started her career in structural engineering and now she helps female engineers create a path to the career and life they deserve. I learned more about her transition from worker to self-emp...

Luis Martinez is a veteran, a basketball player, an organization leadership expert, and a founder. He’s deeply entrenched in the entrepreneurship community in San Diego, as he heads diversity for San Diego Startup Week, is the head of SD’s Startup Grind chapter, and he recently started We tha Plug, an initiative to build an ecosystem for black and latino founders. I talked to him about his transit...