Writing
Essays on craft, stages, and the stories inside software.
Storytelling doesn't stop at the stage door. This is where I think out loud, usually in an airport.
The take-offWhy the opening of a talk works like the take-off of a flight.
I still want to verify this informationNavi Pillay's response to winning the Nobel Peace Prize, and why verification is becoming the foundation of trust.
Two types of speakersWhy, from the audience’s seat, being confident and acting confident look exactly the same.
The Apple StutterWhat a stranger’s tweet taught me about speaking to an audience, and why giving credit freely wins it.
Never overrunWhy going over time is the one thing a speaker should never do.
The leg tapA simple rehearsal trick that stops a run-through turning into an editing session.
One keynote, one ideaIf you stopped people on the way out of your keynote and asked what it was about, would they all give the same answer?
Two people in PragueWhat to do when the room is not what you were promised.
Everything fails all the timeDr. Werner Vogels’s best-known line has a second half that most people miss, and that is where the lesson is.
The talk I hope you never hearWhy I always have a backup talk, and what to do when everything on stage fails.
Hello, New York!The small ritual I use to steady my nerves when I walk on stage.
I work better under pressureWhy leaving a talk to the last minute convinces you it is your superpower, and what to do instead.
Prepare so much it looks like you didn’tWhy the best speakers sound unscripted, and how a script gets you there.
Make it visualWhen I pitched it, people struggled to picture it. When I showed it, they got it straight away.
A Note About European Tech SovereigntyLLMs are quietly solving the compatibility problem that blocked open-source adoption for decades.
A big stage is secretly easierWhy speaking to ten thousand people can be easier than speaking to ten, once you get past the fear.
Your friends will tell you you’re greatWhy honest feedback on your speaking is so hard to get, and where to find it.
Make room for serendipityHow a night out alone at a comedy club in Amsterdam found us the star of a re:Invent opening film.
No amount of technology will turn a bad story into a good storyJohn Lasseter's principle applies as much to keynotes as it does to Pixar.
There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it soEvery generation panics about the new thing. They've always been wrong.
The pig and the butchersA chase at Edgbaston, and what cricket knows about tradition.
I do not understandHow a misunderstanding named a peninsula.
A brief history of client requestsFrom animated GIFs in 1998 to autonomous agents in 2025.
Nobody is lookingBots write the web, bots read it, and we're training AI on the wreckage.
How to name a browser by those who haveChrome was named because someone liked fast cars.