Data Science & Communication Consultant and Advisor | AI, Machine Learning, Data Visualization
NDR is a family of machine learning/data science conferences. Their next conference will be held online on May, 28 and the agenda looks great.
Now, I’m not super objective here, because I’m presenting at NDR July event. But look at the topics, what an impressive selection!
NDR is a family of machine learning conferences in Romania. Last year, I attended the Iași edition of that conference, gave a data visualization talk, and enjoyed every moment. All the lectures (including mine, obviously) were interesting and relevant. That is why, when Vlad Iliescu, one of the NDR organizers, asked me whether I wanted to talk in Bucharest at NDR 2020, I didn’t think twice.
Since the organizers didn’t publish the talk topics yet, I will not ruin the surprise for you, but I promise to be interesting and relevant. I definitely think that NDR is worth the trip to Bucharest to many data practitioners, even the ones who don’t live in Romania. Visit the conference site to register.
In June 2019, I attended the NDR AI conference in Iași, Romania where I also gave a talk. Recently, the organizers uploaded the video recording to YouTube.
That was a very interesting conference, tight with interesting talks.
Next year, I plan to attend the Bucharest edition of NDR, where I will also give a talk with the working title “The biggest missed opportunity in data visualization”
In this post, I will try to convince you that speaking at a conference is an essential tool for professional development.
Many people are afraid of public speaking, they avoid the need to speak in front of an audience and only do that when someone forces them to. This fear has deep evolutional origins (thousands of years ago, if dozens of people were staring at you that would probably mean that you were about to become their meal). However, if you work in a knowledge-based industry, your professional career can gain a lot if you force yourself to speak.
Two days ago, I spoke at NDR, a machine learning/AI conference in Iași, Romania. That was a very interesting conference, with a diverse panel of speakers from different branches of the data-related industry. However, the talk that I enjoyed the most was mine. Not because I’m a narcist self-loving egoist. What I enjoyed the most were the questions that the attendees asked me during the talk, and in the coffee breaks after it. First of all, these questions were a clear signal that my message resonated with the audience, and they cared about what I had to say. This is a nice touch to one’s ego. But more importantly, these questions pointed out that there are several topics that I need to learn to become more professional in what I’m doing. Since most of the time, we don’t know what we don’t know, such an insight is almost priceless.
That is why even (and especially) if you are afraid of public speaking, you should jump into the cold water and do it. Find a call for presentations and submit a proposal TODAY.
And if you are afraid of that awkward silence when you ask “are there any questions” and nobody reacts, you should read my post “Any Questions? How to fight the awkward silence at the end of the presentation“.
Boris Gorelik 