How I Prepared for My Talk at MTPcon 2025
Being on a stage like MTPcon is both a privilege and a recognition of the effort put into crafting a great talk. It’s an opportunity to share ideas with an engaged audience and contribute to the product community. But preparing for a talk of this scale takes time, energy, and strategy. Here’s how I prepared for it.
How to Prepare a Great Talk
1. Start with One Clear Message
The biggest mistake speakers make is trying to communicate too many messages. People can only remember one key message, so what do you want yours to be? Before crafting the talk, I wrote down one main message that I wanted the audience to remember. Every part of my talk had to support and reinforce that idea.
Foe me it was: Investing into emotional connection is the perfect way for your product to stand out.
2. Build Around Stories
Storytelling is key. People don’t remember facts, but they remember stories. I made a list of personal and professional stories that supported my key message and mapped them to the right moments in my talk. I aimed for at least three stories to keep the audience engaged. More importantly, I made sure these were my stories—because people connect more with authentic, personal experiences.
Once I had my stories, I built my talk’s structure around them. The goal was to create a natural flow that kept the audience engaged while reinforcing the main message.
3. Define Your Presentation Style
A great talk is not just about what you say but how you make people feel. I asked myself:
• Do I want the audience to feel inspired?
• Do I want them to relate to my experiences?
• Should they feel heard, or should they laugh and have fun?
Defining the emotional goal helped me choose presentation techniques to enhance my delivery—like adding pauses, using humor, or acknowledging shared audience feelings.
4. Make It Actionable
A talk shouldn’t fade once the speaker leaves the stage. I focused on what the audience should do after the talk.
• What action could they take tomorrow?
I defined success criteria for my talk—not just how well I delivered it but how much impact it had afterward. In my MTPcon talk I presented the Delight Framework. While creating this framework I was obsessed about making it actionable for all products and all industries.
5. Create Slides Only After Structuring the Talk
Many speakers start by making slides, but this is the wrong approach. I focused first on:
• What I wanted to say
• and then: What visuals would enhance the message (only if they added value)
I personally prefer minimal slides so that the audience focuses on the talk, not reading text. Some people may prefer more content-heavy slides, but I believe in keeping attention on the speaker. (You can check out my MTP slides [here]).
Rehearsing: The Key to Confidence
Record Yourself (Multiple Times!)
I recorded myself giving the talk several times. This helped me:
• Find the right pace
• Adjust the tone
• Stay within the time limit
And of course practice.
Get Feedback from Trusted Friends
Instead of asking people to join a live rehearsal, I shared my recording with close friends. This gave them the flexibility to review it on their own time and provide thoughtful feedback.
Even if I didn’t change everything, I took every comment seriously. If someone pointed something out, it meant others might think the same during the talk. I used this insight to preemptively address potential concerns—for example, by saying:
“I know you might be wondering… and here’s why I approached it this way.”
(Shoutout to Abdo Wahba for this great advice!)
Having a profetional speaker coach could help alot to bring your presentation to professional level. A coach helps refine everything from tone to body language to presence. If you can, get one!
Most Importantly: Have Fun!
Confidence comes when you enjoy the moment. The audience can feel it and the energy you show is contagious. Stress is normal—especially in the moments before stepping onto the stage—but preparation and rehearsal helped it disappear right after my first hello to the audience.
MTP Con 2025 was an incredible experience, and I loved every second of it. If you’re preparing for your own big talk, I hope these tips help you craft a presentation that is memorable, engaging, and impactful.
All the best!