Session Abstract

A real story for introverts, late starters and “not good enough” minds: At 54, neurodivergent, introvert, mum, gamer, non-native English speaker and working in a niche – I spent years believing I was “too quiet” for the stage. Tech conferences looked full of confident, fast-talking, fluent people. I didn’t recognise myself in any of them. And yet, step by step, I ended up speaking at events like ECS, Experts Live and ESPC. This session is the honest story of how that happened: no overnight success, no “just be more confident”, no perfect English. Just a long series of small risks, rejected submissions, shaky first talks, saying yes even when my voice was shaking – and learning to use my age, my background and my quiet personality as strengths instead of excuses. We’ll talk about what it really feels like to start speaking when you think you’re too old, too quiet, too busy with family, too “not enough”. You’ll hear practical ideas on how to find your topics, write submissions, start small and grow at your own pace – without pretending to be a rockstar speaker. This session is an invitation: if you’ve ever thought “that’s not for someone like me”, maybe it is.

Sandra Kiel

I’m Sandra Kiel – gamer, Playpreneur and founder of Event Punks. I help organisations turn dry, complex topics into playful experiences: from gamified Power Apps and Copilot adoption journeys to learning quests in Microsoft 365 and Gaming Platforms like Minecraft. My heart lives where people, play and technology meet. I work with game design principles, storytelling and UX to make change, learning and new tools feel less scary and more human. As an introvert, a mum and a non-native English speaker, I don’t fit the classic “loud tech speaker” stereotype – and I’m totally fine with that. On stage, I share real-world projects, honest lessons and practical patterns teams can reuse the next day. My talks are for people who want less buzzword bingo and more concrete ideas on how to bring play, curiosity and adoption into their everyday work.