Behind the Scenes at Config: Icon Design, Figma Variables, and Public Speaking Tips | Podcast Awesome

In this episode of Podcast Awesome, host Matt Johnson gets the post-Config download from Font Awesome’s resident icon heroes, Jory Raphael and Noah Jacobus. They dish on their experiences at the legendary Config design conference, spill the beans on what it’s like to speak in front of a crowd (or an empty room 😅), and reflect on the power of Figma’s tools—especially variables. They also talk about Adobe’s acquisition of Figma and why designer-led storytelling still reigns supreme. Whether you’re a Figma fanatic or just love a good nerdy confab, this one’s for you.

Spoiler: They also reveal the secret sauce behind prepping a slick design talk... and it’s not just coffee. ☕

💬 What We Cover in This Episode

• ✨ Figma’s future post-Adobe acquisition
• 🇮🇸 Insights from Halli Thorleifsson’s keynote (and that viral Elon moment)
• 🎤 What it’s really like to speak at Config
• 🧠 How structure helps defeat public speaking nerves
• 💻 Variables in Figma—big win or major whoa?
• 🎨 Icon design wisdom from the stage to your screen

⏱️ Timestamps

• 00:02:23 — Figma's acquisition by Adobe
• 00:06:06 — Keynote by Icelandic entrepreneur Halli Thorleifsson
• 00:10:28 — The awkwardness of speaking to an empty room
• 00:14:14 — Structuring a conference talk (with some serious prep tips)
• 00:17:25 — Virtual presentations & why feedback matters
• 00:22:07 — Exploring variables in Figma (🎉 design nerd gold!)
• 00:24:18 — Outro & reflection

🎤 Quotable Highlights from the Episode

On Conference Impressions

“It’s kind of poop-your-pants big.” – Jory Raphael

On Speaking Prep

“We got a couple little tee-hees out of our stage manager… we’re hoping for some good guffaws and chortles when we actually get people in the room.” – Jory Raphael

On the Power of Good Talks

“The ability to explain these concepts… and make it understandable and clear and funny and silly and memorable… it lingers.” – Bonnie Kate Wolf

On Conference Support

“They gave us a designer advocate, Miggy, who was our support throughout the whole process… it made the process a lot less scary.” – Jory Raphael

On Audience Energy

“By the 10th time through it… you wonder if any of it still makes sense. Actually being able to receive that validation from the crowd… was amazing.” – Noah Jacobus

🔗 Links & Resources

• The Font Awesome theme song was composed by Ronnie Martin
• Audio mastering by Chris Enns at Lemon Productions
• "Pixel Perfect" by Lesiakower
• "Legends" by Kim Lightyear 
• "8-Bit-Space" by Purrsahfef
• "Retrorace" by WolfBeat
• "Victory Screen" by Lesiakower
• "Elixir of Life" by 23843807

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