Speaking

This is a relatively recent addition to my set of skills. Most of my presenting has been in the realm of technical communication, and has been done under the aegis of the consulting firm that I co-own. I'm also comfortable presenting and speaking on my own.

My presentation style is influenced by Garr Reynolds and his Presentation Zen concepts. I try to tell a story in my presentations, and also engage the audience. My style of presenting enables me to make a connection with an audience, and get them to take part. This makes for a more enriching experience, both for the audience and for me. I definitely believe what musician Robert Fripp pointed out: The perception of the audience is the interesting part.

Previous engagements

I've spoken at the following conferences and events:

DocTrain UX 2007 - Gaining a Foothold: Using Basecamp to Improve Productivity and Collaboration
DocTrain West 2008 - Part of the panel "Meet the Bloggers: Not nearly as disastrously funny as the movie"
STC Toronto (May 2008) - The Ears Have It: Podcasting in and out of the enterprise
DocTrain East 2008 - Creating Quality Content with Open Source Tools
DocTrain West 2009 - Think Simple: A Fresh Approach to User Assistance
Toronto Wiki Tuesdays (September, 2009) - Thinking Outside the Book: Wikis for writing and delivering documentation
FSOSS 2009 - Keep It Simple: Streamline your documentation to make it more effective
WritersUA 2010 - Think Simple: A Minimalist Approach to Documentation