Ask HN: First time giving a speech at a conference. How do I prepare best?

Dear HNlers

I recently submitted a proposal for a conference without expecting anything to happen. To my big surprise I got accepted and after the first excitement has settled I'm slowly getting the chills ;-)

The conference is in a significant niche for what I do so I'm going to meet and present to people who could be quite important for me.

To those who have done this before, how did you prepare yourself for the experience? I'm talking less about the content of the speech but everything else.

Any tips highly appreciated, many thanks in advance!

Try to present your ideas/content in form of "storytelling".

Read this post:

http://waitbutwhy.com/2016/03/doing-a-ted-talk-the-full-stor...

It resonated with my experience a lot, especially the bit about finalizing and rehearsing the talk the night before a conference. :)

Overall, don't overthink it. It's not that hard and scary as it seems.

Try giving your talk at a smaller, local meeting (if possible) for practice.

Know that everyone gets stressed when presenting - it's normal. Take deep breaths, practice, and visualize it as a conversation between you and your audience. They really want you to succeed and want to hear you speak.