In this episode of Scott & Mark Learn To, Scott Hanselman and Mark Russinovich dive into the art of giving technical talks. With Scott preparing for a keynote abroad and Mark gearing up for an internal presentation, the duo reflects on their journeys as speakers, from their very first presentations to commanding stages with thousands of attendees. They discuss how preparation evolves with experience, balancing off-the-cuff speaking with intensive demo prep. From brown bag sessions to high-stakes keynotes, and even Scott’s upcoming TEDx talk, they explore how stakes and familiarity shape their approach to crafting impactful presentations. 

Takeaways:    

• Scott manages nerves with monitoring heart rate and using breathing exercises to stay calm 
• Mark’s time management techniques, dividing content into sections and time limits for each 
• Structuring talks in three acts and evenly divided segments in between 

Useful Links: 

Scott’s the Art of Speaking Class on Pluralsight: https://www.pluralsight.com/courses/hanselman-speaking 

Public speaking episodes from on-Net:  

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/shows/on-dotnet/public-speaking-scott-hanselman-kendra-havens-maria-naggaga-nakanwagi-kasey-uhlenhuth-donov 

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/shows/on-dotnet/tips-on-public-speaking-from-andres-phil-scott-and-cecil  

Who are they?     

View Scott Hanselman on LinkedIn  

View Mark Russinovich on LinkedIn   

Watch Scott and Mark Learn on YouTube 

Listen to other episodes at scottandmarklearn.to  

Discover and follow other Microsoft podcasts at microsoft.com/podcasts   

Download the Transcript

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