Let's talk more about the skills that require emotional labor.

Learning is a Skill You Can Practice

Presented by Magdalena Stenius

Learning is one of the most important skills in ones work life. It can also be exhausting, frustrating and hard. Especially in the beginning of your career, becoming good at learning new skills makes work a lot less stressful and more enjoyable! This talk discusses what learning is, how to find your own ways of doing it and how to set goals for your studies and progress.

The Breaking Point: Recovering from Burnout

Presented by Pauline Narvas

Being in an industry that technically doesn’t stop, we can all get caught up with chasing on what the next new shiny thing there is to learn or take part in. As someone who was keen and ambitious in “breaking through” the industry, I found myself thinly spread to a point that was unhealthy and potentially dangerous long-term. Burnout is real. In this talk, I’ll share experiences as well as tips on helping spot patterns that lead to burnout and how to deal with it before it gets out of hand.

The Art of Communication

Presented by Katie Walker

The stereotype of software developers working alone in a basement is far from the reality of open-plan offices and collaborating frequently with colleagues on projects. Therefore, good communication skills are a necessity, and you're not alone if you struggle with some aspect of this. For many people, everyday occurrences such as small talk and making friends can be a daunting and anxious experience.

Fortunately, just like learning to code, communication skills can be improved with time and some guidance. In this talk, I will be discussing principles to follow for strengthening work communication skills and to help with building meaningful relationships while becoming a more approachable, friendly person.

Feedback: How to have taste and not be afraid to use it

Presented by Ben Bartle

You're creative, made something great and want to tell people about it. In this talk, we will walk through some examples of how to maximise feedback on ideas from both your peers and managers to ensure your idea gets championed and you get the credit you deserve.

The Wonderful Thing About Tiggers: Tautology and Business Value

Presented by Heidi Waterhouse

You didn't get that cool programming job because you're a great programmer. You got it because the company you work for wants to make money and they think you can help. It's easy for us to feel like our worth/value/capitalist expression is tied to our employment, but it's also useful to flip that narrative and talk about how our companies need us, and how we can use that understanding to be more valuable employees and even better humans.

What is the value that you bring to your employer? Can you articulate it? Can you expand it? Can you take that value and use it for your own purposes?

Making #RemoteWork Actually Work

Presented by Lauren Schaefer

Shakespeare knew what he was talking about when he wrote "Some are born great remote workers, some achieve great remote work, and some have great remote work thrust upon them." Ok, maybe that's not exactly what he wrote. Whether you love working remotely or you were voluntold to work remotely, this is the session for you. Come discover tips and tricks to being a successful remote employee from a ten-year remote work veteran.

Lending Privilege

Presented by Anjuan Simmons

Diversity and inclusion have become hot topics in technology, but you may not know how you can make a difference. However, this talk will help you understand that, no matter your background, you have privilege and can lend it to underrepresented groups in tech.