We're excited to welcome proposals for talks and presentations! Whether you're an experienced speaker or new to public speaking, these guidelines will help you submit a strong proposal and deliver an engaging and effective talk. Keep in mind that these are high-level guidelines, not hard and fast rules. The most important thing is to learn and have fun! And we are always here to support you through every step of the process!
Please note that all talks are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
We have both 25-minutes (20 minutes for the talk, followed by a 5-minute Q&A) and 5-minutes (lightning) talks in our monthly meetups. Your talk proposal should be Python-related. Our audience consists largely of Python beginners, but advanced topics are also welcome if you explain them in a way that's accessible. If your topic requires specific knowledge, clearly mention any prerequisites in your proposal.
Even if your idea is still in development, submit a proposal! We're available to provide feedback and suggestions. Don't worry about communication skills or English fluency—our focus is on the content, and we're happy to help you refine your talk.
Provide as much detail as possible in your proposal. If you already have slides or a brief video summarizing your talk, include them. More detail helps us better understand your talk and give it a fair evaluation. This also helps the audience understand what to expect.
We start reviewing proposals as soon as they come in, so the earlier you submit, the more time you'll have to receive feedback and refine your talk. Proposals submitted early tend to get more attention. Keep in mind that our meetups are held on the third Saturday of each month, so factor that into your availability.
If your talk requires prior knowledge or preparation, make sure to state this clearly in your proposal. Providing links to additional resources or reading material can also help the audience better prepare for your talk.
We have a strict Code of Conduct that all speakers and participants must follow. Please take a moment to review it before submitting your proposal. Our community is committed to being welcoming, inclusive, and respectful, and we expect the same from all participants. Any form of derogatory or exclusionary language is not tolerated.
Here are some tips to help you effectively communicate your message and keep your audience engaged:
Begin your talk by getting to the main point within the first 3-5 minutes. Avoid long introductions, as they tend to lose the audience's attention. Try to get the attention of the audience with an interesting title.
For lightning talks (5 minutes), focus on sparking curiosity rather than covering every detail. If your talk has prerequisites, make sure the audience is aware upfront.
Engagement is key. Make your presentation interactive by asking questions, encouraging participation, or conducting small activities throughout the talk. You can use tools for audience interaction to gather real-time feedback or conduct polls.
Simplify complex ideas by using real-life examples or analogies. This makes technical concepts easier to understand and more relatable to the audience. You can also stick to one motivating example that you can refer to throughout your talk. This helps maintain audience engagement and creates a clear narrative that ties all your points together.
Avoid text-heavy slides. Use visuals, diagrams, or videos to illustrate your points. Keep slide text to a minimum (4-5 lines max) and use images to support your message. Visual content helps convey information more effectively than blocks of text.
A well-timed joke or light comment can lighten the mood and help you connect with the audience really fast. However, make sure that your humour is appropriate and relevant to the context.
If done well, please include it. Otherwise, it could overwhelm the audience, as real-time tutorials during talks are usually not recommended by many. However, meetups are a safe space where you can try new things without judgment. We are very open to people experimenting with different formats and styles at our meetups.
Add points/hooks in your talk that will encourage the audience to approach you after the talk for further discussion. This not only adds value to your talk but also creates opportunities for networking and deeper engagement with attendees.
Engage with the audience by moving around the stage and making eye contact. Moving with purpose helps keep the energy high and reduces the risk of losing your audience’s attention.
Keep your delivery lively by varying your tone and pitch. A monotone voice can easily lose the audience’s attention, while vocal variation can highlight key points and keep the audience engaged.
When discussing code or technical processes, especially when demonstrating live coding, emphasize best practices such as security and ethical coding. For instance, never display sensitive data, like API keys, during your presentation.
Courtesy: Anand B. Pillai, Aditi Juneja
Happy contributing!