#21 Rizwan Javaid (SPA alum) - How to start public speaking

11/01/16 • 47 min

The Hacking UI Podcast - with Sagi Shrieber & David Tintner

Episode #21: Rizwan Javaid Today we are joined by Rizwan Javaid, a member of The Side Project Accelerator. Rizwan is a UX designer who is passionate about transforming ideas into engaging and profitable digital solutions. He is based out of California and works on a variety of projects both for mobile and web.

Rizwan is also a blogger and international speaker, who pushes his boundaries to reach new audiences and inspire them to release their creativity. He started speaking about sketching, as he found it helped him in a variety of ways, and now has several talks and a brand focused on the power of sketching.

In this episode, Rizwan shares how he faces his weaknesses head on while implementing feedback constructively. He also gives great tips for building a talk, how to reach out to get speaking gigs, and how important real relationships are when building a brand. Going forward, Rizwan is working on clarifying his focus on sketching and now plans to manifest this critical part of his venture into his newsletter and overall brand.

This is the ninth episode of the second season of the Hacking UI podcast, 'Scaling a Side Project'. In this season we interview designers, developers, and creative entrepreneurs who built and scaled successful side projects that we admire.

The Side Project Accelerator The program works in batches, with only 3 batches per year. Registration for the next batch of the

Side ProjectAccelerator is now open until November 10th, and there are only 50 seats available. Apply now to reserve your spot.

Apply now for batch #2 →

Key points from this episode:

Find out what the Side Project Accelerator program has done for Rizwan and his project, how it pushed him to new levels and the key role that a supporting environment plays in success.
Learn how Rizwan identified that speaking was one of his weaknesses, and how he chose to face it head-on and transform his weakness into a strength.
How do you become a speaker? Rizwan shares his tips on how to get started and how to build your confidence as a speaker in your industry.
Rizwan shares his views on the importance of sketching and how that can give designers an edge and open doors to greater success.
Find out how receiving feedback is a critical way to implement continuous improvement. Rizwan shares how he navigated the challenge of using feedback constructively.
What creates a compelling talk? Learn how Rizwan builds his presentations and why he believes in the motto of "less is more" when it comes to creating presentation slides.
Understand why it is important to focus on value and creating good content instead of being side-tracked by disappointing analytics.
Learn the value of starting small when creating a newsletter to ensure that you create something effective and engaging, without being overwhelming.
Automating secondary tasks can free up time to prioritize content creation. Rizwan shares how it is critical to find a balance and a rhythm of consistency.
What does true sacrifice look in order to achieve success? Find out how Rizwan maximizes his time as a "morning person" by waking up at 3 or 4 AM to work on his projects.
Understand why Rizwan values feeling good about the work that he does and how he implements this by prioritizing family time while sacrificing personal time to pursue his work ventures.
Find out what success means to Rizwan, and why having others appreciate his thoughts and ideas is an invaluable aspect of achievement for him.
Learn why Rizwan believes that it is not a numbers game, but that connections and relationships are more valuable than metrics. Changing the lives of others and helping them improve is key. Rizwan has the mindset of doing something small each day to move closer to his goals. Learn why this is so critical when first starting out.

Links from the show

Rizwan’s Website (where you can sign up for his weekly Sketching Machine newsletter)
Rizwan’s Twitter (@rizwanjavaid)
Conference Directory
ConversionCast

I Love this podcast - now what?

Show your love #1 - Talk: Talk about it with friends and get the word out! We started this podcast in order to learn and would love to see others learn from it too.

Show your love #2 - Leave a review: Review us on iTunes and tell us which guest you'd like us to bring on the show next. Here's how:...

The Side Project Accelerator The program works in batches, with only 3 batches per year. Registration for the next batch of the

Side ProjectAccelerator is now open until November 10th, and there are only 50 seats available. Apply now to reserve your spot.

Apply now for batch #2 →

Key points from this episode:

Find out what the Side Project Accelerator program has done for Rizwan and his project, how it pushed him to new levels and the key role that a supporting environment plays in success.
Learn how Rizwan identified that speaking was one of his weaknesses, and how he chose to face it head-on and transform his weakness into a strength.
How do you become a speaker? Rizwan shares his tips on how to get started and how to build your confidence as a speaker in your industry.
Rizwan shares his views on the importance of sketching and how that can give designers an edge and open doors to greater success.
Find out how receiving feedback is a critical way to implement continuous improvement. Rizwan shares how he navigated the challenge of using feedback constructively.
What creates a compelling talk? Learn how Rizwan builds his presentations and why he believes in the motto of "less is more" when it comes to creating presentation slides.
Understand why it is important to focus on value and creating good content instead of being side-tracked by disappointing analytics.
Learn the value of starting small when creating a newsletter to ensure that you create something effective and engaging, without being overwhelming.
Automating secondary tasks can free up time to prioritize content creation. Rizwan shares how it is critical to find a balance and a rhythm of consistency.
What does true sacrifice look in order to achieve success? Find out how Rizwan maximizes his time as a "morning person" by waking up at 3 or 4 AM to work on his projects.
Understand why Rizwan values feeling good about the work that he does and how he implements this by prioritizing family time while sacrificing personal time to pursue his work ventures.
Find out what success means to Rizwan, and why having others appreciate his thoughts and ideas is an invaluable aspect of achievement for him.
Learn why Rizwan believes that it is not a numbers game, but that connections and relationships are more valuable than metrics. Changing the lives of others and helping them improve is key. Rizwan has the mindset of doing something small each day to move closer to his goals. Learn why this is so critical when first starting out.

Links from the show

Rizwan’s Website (where you can sign up for his weekly Sketching Machine newsletter)
Rizwan’s Twitter (@rizwanjavaid)
Conference Directory
ConversionCast

I Love this podcast - now what?

Show your love #1 - Talk: Talk about it with friends and get the word out! We started this podcast in order to learn and would love to see others learn from it too.

Show your love #2 - Leave a review: Review us on iTunes and tell us which guest you'd like us to bring on the show next. Here's how:...

Previous Episode

#20 Kelsey Ruger (SPA alum) - The teacher who never stopped learning

Episode #20: Kelsey Ruger With us today is Kelsey Ruger, a UX consultant based out of Houston, Texas. Kelsey is a professor, a designer, a developer, and pretty much a jack of all trades. We met and got to know Kelsey because he's also a member of

The Side Project Accelerator. Kelsey has worked on web and mobile projects for Fortune 100 startups and agencies and was also named one of Houston’s 40 under 40 in 2012 by the Houston Business Journal.

Kelsey's mission is to help people use their creativity to make better things happen in the world. He loves learning and consumes a lot of books, articles, and podcasts. In this episode, he reveals his tips for how he reads about 50 books a year. He also produces tons of his own content. Before he joined the Side Project Accelerator he had already published more than 100 articles. He shares with us his method for coming up with ideas and how to build a dedicated audience using the concept of “1,000” true fans.

This is the eighth episode of the second season of the Hacking UI podcast, 'Scaling a Side Project'. In this season we interview designers, developers, and creative entrepreneurs who built and scaled successful side projects that we admire.

Please support our amazing sponsors This episode is brought to you by

Top Level Design.

Top Level Design now offers the new .design domain names. Just like Facebook.design and Airbnb.design, you can now buy your own .design domain. Whether it's for your creative portfolio or a side project, nothing beats having a custom-made .design web address that builds a positive first impression and improves recognition of your personal and professional brand.

If you'd like to become a sponsor of the Hacking UI podcast, contact us

The Side Project Accelerator The program works in batches, with only 3 batches per year. Registration for the next batch of the

Side Project Accelerator opens tomorrow, October 26 and there are only 50 seats available. Sign up for the waiting list to reserve your spot and to get notified of all events and updates related to the program.

Key points from this episode:

Learn how Kelsey uses his broad background as incredible experience to be a key problem solver in his industry.
What is a BarCamp? Find out how these "unconferences" first introduce Kelsey to the startup scene in Houston.
Get a glimpse into a day in the life of Kelsey Ruger, and find out how he juggles his time between all his many endeavors.
What sparked Kelsey's decision to completely rebrand his personal blog? Learn the importance of writing "evergreen" articles for a long-term blogging strategy.
Kelsey believes in pinpointing tasks that can be outsourced versus which to do yourself. Understand how he uses these critical distinctions to manage his time.
For entrepreneurs, one of the main struggles is distinguishing between working in the business and working on the business. Find out how this can be a major hindrance in your business growth.
How can you ensure that you hire the right people in a startup and mentor them to succeed in helping you grow the company? Find out why top notch employees are key to scaling your business.
What does it mean to make yourself "obsolete" in your company, and why is this important for your business to grow? Kelsey walks through the dangers of limiting growth with your own constraints.
Find out why a high salary job does not necessarily translate into freedom. Kelsey explains his views on pursuing career freedom.
How does Kelsey use small wins to get to his bigger goals? Understand why he values being on a schedule that he can stick to consistently and how this has helped him produce more content.
What is the concept of "1,000 true fans"? Learn how Kelsey applies this to his blog and newsletter and why it is his key to building a sustainable side project.
Kelsey used a unique method for building his email subscriber list. Find out why his approach was different, and how he applied the principle of "start with what you know, and who you know".
Understand the concept of "audience driven product development" and how Kelsey implements this strategy in creating his newsletter.
"The most home run ideas are the result of 100 bad ideas." Understand how Kelsey applies this thought to his writing when creating new content.
Kelsey reads an incredible number of books each month. Get an inside look ...

Next Episode

#22 Audience-driven product development (in-between-a-sode)

Today’s episode is what we like to call an in-between-a-sode. There are a few days left of the applications for our program, The Side Project Accelerator, so I wanted to quickly discuss one of the core philosophies we teach in the program - audience-driven product development.

This is the methodology that Sagi and I developed and used to build Hacking UI. We believe that this methodology works extremely well for side projects and can ensure that you will come away from each project with a new asset.

In The Side Project Accelerator, we guide you through how to start building your audience, establish your personal brand and get yourself out there - all so you can ensure success with your side project. The next batch starts on November 13th, and If you’d like to join applications are due by November 10th. You can find out more on sideprojectaccelerator.com or visit Hacking UI.