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Business & Tech

The Woz Reveals How He's Become World's Most Sought-After Tech Speaker

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak on public speeches: "I speak openly and answer every question and I'm always telling the truth, even when it dispels myths."

By Sheila Sanchez (Editor)

Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak will be the featured speaker at the 2014 Local Search Association Conference April 27-29, 2014 in Huntington Beach.

Los Gatos Patch messaged the "Woz" on Facebook to inquire what he would be speaking about, discussion topics and such.

The longtime Silicon Valley icon and philanthropist said although he couldn't tell us exactly, he does a lot of such presentations but he writes a new set of notes, a few bullet points, each time.

The Woz stressed he's never reused note speeches in his life. "That would not be creative," he said.

He usually writes some notes in the morning of the speech or he just creates it "extemporaneously" as he delivers it. "Just my creative style," he noted.

Almots all speakers of his level, he explained, give the same speech night after night.

One blogger, he complained, had written about a speech he gave recently in San Mateo and said that he had two "stump" speeches, based on one she had heard him give off the top of his head a month ago regarding the Homebrew Computer Club and the one in San Mateo.

But had the blogger seen all four speeches of the series—Marin, Oakland, San Mateo and Marin again—she would have seen that the speeches were very different, the Woz said.

"People see things the way they want them. I speak openly and answer every question and I'm always telling the truth, even when it dispels myths," he said.

The conference website said the Woz would be speaking about:

  • The founding of Apple Computer Inc.
  • The intersection of future technologies, including mobile and wearable devices, and local marketing opportunities for national and small- and medium-sized businesses
  • The defining characteristics of an entrepreneur and the role of an entrepreneur within a large company
  • Ways to nurture creativity and innovation within organizations


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