Growing New Speakers through Co-Presenting

Written By Allison Pollard

Photo by mezhen

Public speaking can be terrifying. I remember my hands shaking as I gave a prepared speech in the seventh grade. My notes were visibly moving and showing my nervousness in the front of the class. Two boys in the front row were trying hard not to laugh.

Thankfully that experience feels like a lifetime ago. Thanks to nudges from coworkers that boosted my confidence and provided me ample opportunities to develop as a speaker, I'm now comfortable presenting to audiences of nearly any size.

Over the last two years or so, I've been more intentional in helping others become more confident speakers and get experience presenting at conferences. It's been super-fun and rewarding. Barry, one of my co-presenters, wrote about his journey as a speaker. He's one of my favorite people in the world, and I'm excited to be co-presenting with him again soon at Agile Arizona.

Allison Pollard

Allison Pollard is a coach, consultant, and trainer who brings the power of relationship systems intelligence to go beyond tasks, roles, and frameworks to create energy for change. She engages with people and teams in a down-to-earth way to build trust and listen for signals to help them learn more and improve. Allison focuses on creating alignment and connection for people to solve business problems together. Her experience includes working with teams and leaders in energy, retail, financial, real estate, and transportation industries to help improve their project/product delivery and culture. Allison currently volunteers as program director for Women in Agile’s mentorship program. Her agile community focus is championing new voices and amplifying women as mentors and sponsors for the next generation of leaders. Allison earned her bachelor’s degrees in computer science, mathematics, and English from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX. She is a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC), a foodie, and proud glasses wearer. Allison is a prolific speaker at professional groups and international conferences, including Scrum Gatherings and the Agile Alliance Agile20xx conferences. Allison is co-owner of Helping Improve LLC.

http://www.allisonpollard.com
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