Why Engineers Struggle to Communicate (And How to Fix It Fast)

Recorded on-site in Austin, Texas, at AutoCon 4 (Network Automation Forum), Andy sits down with Colin Doyle to talk about the human side of technical communication and why it matters more than ever in technical careers.

They dig into practical speaking advice for engineers: how to slow down without losing authority, why “dead air” feels scarier than it is, how to stop relying on scripts, and how to structure a talk so your audience can repeat your message when you leave the room. Colin shares the “audience-first” mindset shift: don’t tell your story, tell the audience’s story with you in it.

Then the conversation widens into the network automation adoption problem: why network automation still lags behind other IT domains, why tooling fragmentation creates anxiety (“what if I learn the wrong thing?”), and why starting with Python is often the safest first step. Colin also reframes overlays (EVPN/VXLAN) as a fundamental shift: abstraction changes operations, pushes configuration to the edge, and makes intent-based operations and assurance the real job.

If you’re a CLI lifer preparing to level up, or you’re giving your first big talk, this episode is a practical, grounding guide.

In this episode: communication fundamentals, talk prep, booth culture at AutoCon, automation adoption barriers, overlays → intent → assurance, and why you don’t need to be a “kung fu wizard” to start automating.

Full show notes, transcript and links: https://artofnetworkengineering.com/episodes/why-engineers-struggle-to-communicate-and-how-to-fix-it-fast

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