VoV 033: “Panelists Contributing to Opensource” (Pt. 2)

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Panel:

• Charles Max Wood
• Chris Fritz
• Erik Hanchett
• Divya Sasidharan

In this episode, the panel talks amongst themselves on the topic: how does one contribute to opensource work? They discuss the various ways that they contribute, such as speaking at conferences, recording videos for YouTube, podcasting, among others. Check-out today’s episode to get some insight and inspiration of how YOU can contribute to YOUR community! Show Topics: 1:11 – We have decided we haven’t completed this topic 1:23 – Last time we went around the panel and see how we contribute? One of the ways I contribute to opensource is organizing events and conferences. Divya, you write some code – a little bit? 2:05 – Divya. 2:11 – Panelist: Divya, you speak at conferences, write blog posts, and code. Super top-secret project? 2:33 – Divya: I am trying to grow. Maybe I can talk about the secret project later? 2:56 – Panelist: Yes, I contribute through videos and education. I’ve tried in the past seeing issues in opensource, but I find that I am better at teaching. Charles you run a Vue Podcast? 3:29 – Chuck: Yeah, that’s what they say. I work on the podcasts, online conferences, eBooks, and online summits. Lastly, Code Badges that is on Kickstarter. 4:06 – Panelist: How we can contribute to opensource and still make a living. What is free and what we charge for? Finding a balance is important – we covered that last time. How to get into opensource in a variety of ways: How do you start speaking at conferences? How to you write code for opensource? Divya, how do they start? Do you need a public speaking degree? 5:29 – Divya: It might help. To get started with public speaking – it’s deceptively easy but then it’s not at the same time. You submit a proposal to a conference and it’s either accepted or declined. You have to learn how to CRAFT your ideas in a CFP to show the panel that this topic is RELEVANT to the conference and that you are an expert. It’s not the speaking that’s the hard part it’s the writing of the proposal. 7:00 – Panelist: You have talked about CFP – what is that? 7:09 – Divya: It’s a Call For Papers (CFP). It’s just a process of being accepted at a conference. Sometimes conferences have an open call – where they might have a Google form or some software to fill out some details. They will ask for your personal details, a short draft, the title of your talk, and a longer description (why you should be the speaker, etc.). It’s a multi-step process. Even though YOU are the right person to talk about X topic – you don’t have to be – you just have to SOUND like you know what you are talking about. Show that you’ve done your researched, and that you have some understanding. Also, that you are capable of presenting the information at the conference. That’s what I mean by being “THE BEST” person. 9:33- Charles: They aren’t looking always for the expert-level of explaining X topic. Even if it’s at the basic level that’s great. If you can deliver it well then they might pick your proposal. I have spoken at a number of conferences, and I started talking at Meetups. Most organizers are desperate for people to give talks. If you talk at these informal settings – then you get feedback from 10:47 – Divya: Yes, lightning talks are great for that, too. This way you are flushing out what you do and don’t want to talk about. 11:07 – Charles: A lot of people don’t realize that they are good speakers. The way to get better is to do it. I am a member of Toast Masters. You gain experience by talking at many different events. 12:23 – Panelist: I don’t know much about Toast Masters – what is it? 12:29 – Charles: Toast Masters, yes, they collect dues. As you sit in the meeting you have time to give feedback and get feedback. They have a “MM” master, and a grammatical master, and another specialist that they give you feedback. It’s a really constructive and friendly environment. 13:42 – I’ve been to Toast Masters and the meetings are early in the morning. 7:00 or 7:30 AM start time. Everything Chuck just said. I went to a couple and they don’t force you to talk. You can go just to see what it’s about. 14:21 – Charles makes more comments. 14:48 – Meetups is a great way to get into the community, too. What if Toast Masters sounds intimidating, and you don’t think you can speak at a Meetup just, yet. Are there more 15:18 – You can be the town crier. Stand on the soapbox and... 15:32 – There is someone sitting on a soapbox and screaming to a crowd. 15:43 – Chuck: You can do a YouTube video or a podcast, but I think getting the live feedback is super important. Toastmasters are so friendly and I’ve never been in front of a hostile crowd. You get up and they are rooting for you. It’s not as scary as you make it out to be. You aren’t going to ruin your reputation. 16:48 – Local Theater! That helps a lot, to me, because you have lines to read off of the script. You are a character and you get to do whatever you want. Also, teaching really helps. You don’t have to be a professional teacher but there are volunteer areas at a local library or your community centers and libraries. Find opportunities! 18:18 – Divya: Improvisation is good for that, too, back to Chris’ point. Improvisation you don’t have the lines, but it forces you to think on the spot. It helps you practice to think on the spot. 19:04 – Teaching is good for that, too. It makes you think on the spot. You have to respond on the fly. Life teaching is Improvisation. 19:31 – Charles: You learn the patterns that work. 19:57 – Panelist: There are some websites that can track your CFP due dates. You can apply to talk to 5-6 different conferences. You pitch the same idea to 5-6 conferences and you are bound to get picked for at least 1 of those conferences. 20:51 – Divya: There is an account that tweets the CFP due dates that are closing in 1-2 weeks. Check Twitter. 21:25 – Chuck: Take your CFP and have someone else look at it. I know a bunch of conference organizers and ask them for their feedback. 21:48 – Title and description need to be there. 22:48 – Divya: Look at past events to see what was already done in past conferences. This is to see what they are kind of looking for. Divya talks about certain conferences and their past schedules. 23:52 – Eric was saying earlier that you could send in more than 1 proposal. Another one suggests sending in 3 proposals. Someone would love to accept you, but say there is someone else you beats you by a hair. 24:31 – Divya: The CFP process is usually blind and they don’t “see” you until later. Most conferences try to do this so there is no bias. They will ask for no name, but only focusing on content. 25:28 – Sarah May has some great suggestions. Look at the show notes under LINKS. 25:57 – Advertisement – Get A Coder Job! 26:34 – We have talked about how you submit your proposals. Maybe let’s transition into another topic, like education. Eric – do you have any tips into writing blog posts and such? 27:36 – Eric: Find a topic that you want to learn and/or you are expert on. Going out there and putting out content for something you are learning. If you get something wrong then someone will probably call you out. Like Reddit you might get more criticism then vs. your own blog. I look for topics that interest me. 28:30 – Panelist: How do you get people to see it? 28:40 – Eric: Consistency – sharing on your social media channels. Reddit, Frontend, and/or other sites. I’m doing this for myself (first), and secondary I am teaching other people. 29:23 – Getting feedback from people is great. 29:40 – Eric: It’s a process to build that audience, build quality content, and keep up with it. Facebook groups – hey I put this content out there. Another way you can do it is work with a publisher and try going to a site called PluralSite. 30:47 – Do you have to be famous, like Joe, to get onto their site? 31:09 – Chuck: The audition process I got screwed on. They ask you to record a video, fix anything in the video, and then they will tell you if they will accept your courses or not. 31:37 – People who will distribute your content, there is a screening process. Guest blog, too, will get your name out there. 32:23 – Chuck: You just have to be a level above the reader. 32:37 – Odds are that you can explain it better than someone who learned it 5 years ago. Even if it’s a basic JavaScript thing that you JUST learned, who cares put it out there. If you made X mistake then I’m sure thousands of other developers have made the same mistake. 33:17 – Twitter is a great platform, too. A short and sweet Tweet – show them your main idea and it can get 34:01 – Comments. 34:04 – I use Ghost for my blogging platform. You can start off on Wordpress and others write on Medium. 34:25 – Divya: I like to own my own content so I don’t write on Medium anymore. 34:40 – I like my content on my OWN site. That’s why I haven’t been using M