In June 2024, I was interviewed at an industry conference called HITEC to talk about the product vision for my company and speak to the impacts I foresee AI having on the hospitality industry. Normally, leading up to an event like this I would do a lot of preparation. I’d understand things like:

Goals of the interviewer
Research the target audience
Prepare a list of key talking points
Do some dry runs practicing with a peer

However, on this particular occasion I didn’t have the opportunity to do any of those things. Truthfully, I didn’t even know I was going to be asked to be a part of the interview. As it turns out, my company was announcing the next day that we were being acquired and our executive leader did not want to be put in front of a camera and asked a question he couldn’t answer related to the sale. Since I was the product leader attending this conference, my marketing team asked me to step in at the last minute and it turned out so much better than I could have expected.

When I showed up for the interview, the interviewer gave me a 30 second run down of his high level questions and then they mic’d me up and set the camera rolling. Being comfortable doing public speaking is something I didn’t realize I would have to develop a skill for when I first started in Product Management (I was fairly naive), but I’ve grown to love the opportunities to be customer facing and embrace the jitters. It’s certainly gotten easier over the years - as they say - practice makes perfect! But I’ve also learned to own my power. I work hard to be the best I can be and I need to tap into that well of knowledge to showcase my skills. I heard a re-phrasing of “fake it till you make it” at a networking event recently that as stuck with me which is “act like you’ve been there before” and in this situation it was my mantra.

To watch my full interview and read the article summary, check it out here!