June-O-Ween Archives - Ignite Denver

Ignite Denver 17 Speaker Lineup is Here!

May 19, 2014 Guest Writer

Ladies and Gentlemen, we are proud to announce the lineup for Ignite Denver 17 and our second annual June-O-Ween Costume Party!

We’ve got everything from Xboxes to puppy raising, shitty meetings and weaponized nature; so you’re definitely going to want a ticket to this show! Plus, along with the great presentations, we’ll have a costume contest, Fat Sully’s pizza and much more!

We’re offering early bird ticket prices again for this show, so be sure to get your $5 tickets before June 6 to save a little extra cash for a drink at the bar while you’re there.

Take a look at the lineup we’ve got in store for you and check out our presenters on Twitter to stalk find out more about who they are:

Aurora Arlet: The Creativity Crisis: Why we need more sandboxes and less Xboxes
Paula Stephens: How A Recycling Program Lead To My Discovery Of An Unidentified Stage of Grief
Mary Kuehner: You’re not OCD, you’re just anal retentive
Pete Winterscheidt: Shitty meeting syndrome, your office has it, here is how to fix it.
Aaron Templer: When good things happen to good people: Accepting advantage and becoming allies in the fight against discrimination.
Keith Hagen: Clarity trumps Persuasion.
Scott Rohrig: Humanize Yourself
Nathan Hildreth: Flow ain’t just the Aunt of unwelcomed visits!
Erik Wolf: Marketing & Testicles: They Have More In Common Than You Think
Khalana Gocken: Nature Is Our Weapon
Jeff Macco: What if colleges were treated like a business?
Natalie Plowman: The Art of Puppy-Raising

June-O-Ween is extra special because we give you the opportunity to wear all those excellent costumes you’d like to wear in October, but it’s just too cold to pull it off properly. That’s why we have Halloween in the ideal month: June. Dress to impress or win! Last year’s costume contest winners were the Sexual Predator and a Bad Habit. What clever costume ideas do you have up your sleeve?

Now you know what you’ve got in store for you, what are you waiting for? Get your early bird tickets to Ignite Denver 17 today and start planning your costume for June 13^th at The Oriental Theater.

June-O-Ween Voting Starts Today!

May 12, 2014 Guest Writer

(Cue Marvin Gaye music)

Aww yeah, kiddos. It’s that time again. That time when you run your cursor over all of our sparks and press our buttons.

Ok, cut the music in your head and get your mind out of the gutter. Just for a second, then you can get back to singing “Let’s Get it On” to yourself in muffled tones while sitting in your cubicle hoping no one else can hear you.

We’ve had some fabulous people submit some fabulous topics and now we’re ready for your all important votes! It’s simple really you just click this link right here, and then rate the topics from 0-4.

“But, Kelly, I don’t want to judge just on the title of the spark alone! That’s unfair.”

Relax, brohirim. If you scroll below the fold, you’ll see all the full descriptions of each spark. It’s just that easy.

Voting is open all week so spread the word!

If you’re interested in learning how to create a great presentation for Ignite Denver, swing by Shift Workspaces next Monday, May 19^th at 6 pm for a full on run down of what to expect.

I also like to think that there are some valuable life lessons in there for the folks that have to present for their jobs as well. Sure, you may not be able to swear as much and the slides will likely advance much more slowly, but there are some good organizational techniques to be learned as well.

Now, lets get it on, Denver.

Ignite Denver 17: Submit a Spark

April 28, 2014 Guest Writer

You'll absolutely nail your Ignite Denver presentation with you attend our workshops! — You’ll absolutely nail your Ignite Denver presentation when you attend our workshops!

Ignite Denver 16 in February was the first Ignite event I ever attended and when I left the Oriental Theater that night, I thought to myself, “I should speak at an upcoming event.”

If you’ve been inspired by a past speaker, the Ignite Denver organization or you just think it’s about time the city heard your perspective on a specific topic, then it’s time for you to consider submitting a spark.

Mark Twain once said, “There are two types of speakers. Those who get nervous and those who are liars.” In a study conducted by the National Institute of Mental Health, 74% of people suffer from Glossophobia, more than the percentage of individuals who fear death.

Just think about the last time you spoke in front of a large group of people. Did your knees lock? Did you immediately sweat through your shirt in an embarrassing manner? Well you’re not alone. If you decide to submit a spark to speak at Ignite Denver, we recommend that you attend our magnificent workshops (don’t worry, they are really helpful and super awesome). All workshops are at Shift Workspaces and start at 6pm:

Monday, May 5 – Presenting at Ignite
Monday, May 19 – Creating a Good Ignite Presentation

Also, before you submit your spark, there a few requirements you should consider.

It’s a no-brainer but obviously you must be available the evening of Ignite Denver 17, Friday, June 13. (We’re sorry but we have to mention this little tidbit. Thanks for bearing with us.)
Attendance at the two run-throughs prior to June 13th is required. These run-throughs are scheduled for Tuesday, May 27 and Monday June 2 at our home-away-from-home Shift Workspaces.
Ignite Denver is not an opportunity to sell your product or services. If you want to creatively inform or inspire Ignite attendees, then you’re just the person we need.
If you spoke at Ignite Denver 16, we appreciate your enthusiasm but we’re going to ask you to participate as an attendee rather than a presenter so that everyone gets a chance to share their stories.

Sparks aren’t due until Friday, May 9 so if you’re still on the fence about submitting, attend our May 5th workshop at Shift Workspaces to connect with Ignite Denver volunteers and learn more about being presenter. Of course you can reach out to us on Facebook or Twitter with any questions, comments or concerns.

Second Annual June-O-Ween at Ignite Denver 17

April 14, 2014 Guest Writer

Last year at Ignite Denver 14’s June-O-Ween extravaganza, you wonderful people brought your A game. Of course there were incredible presentations from Erika Napoletano, Kevin White and many of Denver’s finest minds (as you all have come to expect from Ignite Denver events). What really made the night a one-of-a-kind soiree though was all the attendees dressed to the nines in their Halloween finest. (If you haven’t seen all of the wonderful Chipper Booth pictures from that night, be sure to check them out!)

Ignite Denver 14 presenters in their June-O-Ween costumes

So we just couldn’t resist bringing a night filled with ghouls and goblins back to the summer season with June-O-Ween at Ignite Denver 17 on Friday, June 13 at the Oriental Theater. It will be a Friday the Thirteenth to remember as we combine some of Denver’s most innovative thinkers with alcohol and everyone’s scary, skanky, and just plain bonkers costume creations.

Thinking about presenting at Ignite Denver 17? WONDERFUL! Be sure to attend our workshop series to learn everything you wanted to know about Ignite Denver (and probably a couple of TMIs along with it). All workshops are at Shift Workspaces and start at 6pm:

April 21 – Creating a Compelling Pitch/Spark
May 5 – Presenting at Ignite
May 19 – Creating a Good Ignite Presentation
May 27 – First Run Through (required)
June 2 – Second Run Through (required)

Please don’t hesitate to contact us through Facebook or Twitter if you have any questions about upcoming workshops or topics for a presentation.

Strap on those thinking caps now and start brainstorming your spark and/or costume for Ignite Denver 17! Don’t forget to check back in with us for more announcements about June-O-Ween speakers, sponsors and other exciting surprises.

Oh What a Night!

June 14, 2013 Guest Writer

We’ve stowed away our costumes for October, packed up the VGA cables for September and properly hydrated after an Ignite Denver to remember.

Wowee, was last night a great time and we’re so glad for all the people who came out and experienced it first hand, as well as the folks who watched our live stream (which, btw, had 100 watching at one point, a new Ignite Denver record, thanks to flawless execution by Ethan and his team at Rocky Media). You dressed up, you joked around in the photo booths and laughed and were inspired by our splendid speakers.

We would like to thank all of our sponsors, and in particular the food sponsors that donated goodies so that we could give you a little trick or treat bag as you left The Oriental for the evening. Here are the sponsors for the goodies included in your bag:

Congrats on our costume contest winners: Erika Napoletano (as a Bad Habit) and Amy Little (as a Sexual Predator)! They’ve got a pretty awesome prize coming to them from Enjoy Wishlist. Plus our speed round contestants that won credit to name.com!

The photo booth photos from Chipper Booth are up on their Facbook page for you to tag as well as hi res versions (that you can download for free) available on their website. Thanks also to Kia Ruiz for taking photos of the speakers and audience throughout the night and we’ll have those up on Facebook page in the next few days.

We hope you had as much fun as we did putting Ignite Denver 14 together and we hope to see you at Ignite Denver 15 for Denver Startup Week!

Announcing the First Ever June-O-Ween at Ignite Denver 14!

May 7, 2013 Guest Writer

I won’t lie. Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. I love coming up with costume ideas (I plan them for months, actually), I love seeing other people’s costumes and I love candy corn, the official disgusting candy of Halloween.

The one thing I HATE about Halloween in Colorado is that it always manages to take place during the first cold snap of the year. So all these great costumes are covered by bulky North Face parkas or ladies in skimpy costumes look miserable rather than jovial as they freeze their little butts off in the cold.

Well, NOT ANYMORE! We here at Ignite Denver are changing the rules and we’re having Halloween in June (or June-O-Ween, if you will)!

June-O-Ween Ignite Denver — Someone please, pretty please, wear this costume.

That’s right; Ignite Denver 14 is going to be Halloween themed. Come decked out in your favorite costume and don’t worry about having to cover it up with bulky flesh-toned tights or a turtleneck underneath. Wear that costume the way it was meant to be worn: in dead sexy fashion.

Gorillas, ghouls, school girls or Tarzan. We want to see you in an outfit you’ve never worn to Ignite Denver before! We’ll be giving away prizes for best speaker costume, best audience costume and best group costume and local awesome photo booth company, Chipper Booth, will be there to capture your most ridiculous poses and memorial moments.

We have to give credit to the Denwhere? crew for helping to make Ignite Denver a June-O-Ween dream. If you haven’t heard of them, Denwhere? is an organization that recently formed in order to facilitate community, entrepreneurship, and education in Denver and Ignite Denver is their flagship event.

We’ve got a couple other surprises up our sleeves for June-O-Ween and Ignite Denver 14, so stay tuned for more awesome announcements.