First, I wanted to mention that I’ve been a volunteer, an organizer, and a lead organizer of a WordCamp before. So I fully realize how hard it is to think of every point of view to accommodate everyone. This is meant to be constructive criticism, and hopefully a suggestion that can be considered when asking for speaker applications to any upcoming event!
I’m very fortunate to be sponsored to contribute to the WordPress project full-time through Bluehost’s participation in the Five for the Future program. I’m given a ton of freedom and autonomy to choose how, where and when I contribute to the project, but I am encouraged to speak at WordCamps to support the community. It’s something I enjoy doing and would likely do even if I was not sponsored or encouraged to.
I apply to speak at a fair amount of events. I have a family now, so I’m a bit more selective in my applications. But my current methodology is apply to speak at:
- all three flagship camps (Asia, Europe, US)
- any within driving distance
- one or two others in the United States throughout the year as my family’s schedule allows
There’s one common question on the applications that I constantly struggle with:
What kind of session are you applying for?
This is typically a multiple choice question with the ability to select one answer, usually with these 3 options:
- Standard talk (long form, 30-45 minutes event dependent)
- Lightning talk (short form, 10-15 minutes, event dependent)
- Workshop (duration varies).
I’m not against this question entirely, and I do think it’s useful in some ways. For example, someone looking to present a workshop will usually not have an interest in giving the same presentation strictly as a talk without the teaching interactions. But when it comes to the length of a talk, I think there’s a better question we can be asking.
Would you be open to giving this talk as a shorter, 10 minute lightning talk?
When I apply to speak at an event, I submit topics that I feel passionately about, or that I strongly feel the community would benefit from. For events with a two application maximum, I typically submit one of each. But in most cases, the length of my talk is not important. It’s the opportunity to share my perspective, experience, or insight that’s important to me.
When accepting submissions to speak at a camp, we should be accepting the submissions that provide the most value to our attendees. Value could come in many forms: knowledge gained, experience and insight, exposure to a new idea, opportunity, etc..
If an organizing team feels that my submission is important for their community, I am more than happy to adjust my presentation to fit into any amount of time available whenever possible. I can always tell attendees to find me off stage to discuss further or guide them somewhere else to learn more. I’d rather focus on the quality of my idea when submitting a talk than having to choose one format or the other.
There will be some submissions that cannot be trimmed down, especially ones that require more time to tell a full story. When phrased this way, it gives the applicant the opportunity to opt-in or out of the lightning talk. This approach also gives the speaker team more flexibility and empowers them to accept the best talks for their community, being free to manipulate the schedule in order to fit the best ideas in.
What do you think about this question? What are some common questions that you would change?
This blog is part 2 of my gift for Matt’s Mullenweg’s 40th birthday following his request that more people blog. If you missed it, here’s part 1! I’m hoping to make 2024 the year that I finally start blogging more.
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