How can I prepare for speaking at an IGNITE presentation?

In a normal IGNITE Presentation, you'll have about 10 minutes to tell your story. Here are some suggested guidelines to follow:

Guidelines for a Successful Presentation Story

• Your background (starting with the teenage years)
• How you got where you are today (education, various jobs, likes/dislikes)
• What you do now
• The struggles, obstacles, and mistakes made along the way and how you learned from each of those

In addition, there are some questions to consider when planning your talk:

Questions to Consider in Planning a Presentation Story

• What were you like in high school?
• How did you decide what you would study in college?
• What obstacles did you face along the way? How did you overcome them?
• What is your career now?
• What is exciting to you about that career?
• What advice would you like to share with the girls that you wish you knew when you were in high school?

It's a good idea to write or record these questions and their answers as reminders or guidelines when preparing your story. They will help you identify parts of your story that you wish to share with your audience.

It's important to remember that telling your story honestly—not hiding the difficulties and not exaggerating the benefits—will make the stories most compelling. Teenagers appreciate honesty and are more willing to respond when they know the story is genuine. Also, it's not necessary to focus only on gender-related challenges. Your audience is interested in your general experiences in the technology field as well.