December 15, 2016 — Cory Miller gives his keynote presentation at WordCamp Ann Arbor 2016.

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December 10, 2016 — Life is like an iceberg.

Too often we only see or share the good and great, the sunshine and success (or the above the surface stuff). But in reality, we all suffer and struggle at some point with things buried under the surface.

Particularly in the online world we’re immersed in, it’s too easy to get lost, or to suffer in silence.

My story is an example of that. In almost 9 years of entrepreneurship (10 in the WordPress community), I’ve had my share of above the surface successes (co-authoring a “For Dummies” book, building a great WP company) as well as below the surface struggles (divorce and depression).

I will be sharing my personal experiences and story and how I manage my iceberg in business and life.

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November 11, 2016 — For small businesses, one of the biggest and most overwhelming challenges is often the finding, managing and letting go of employees or subcontractors. This panel will consist of experts who’ve experienced first hand the pains of hiring the wrong people as well as the benefits of hiring well. There will be open Q&A on the topics of when to hire, what to hire for, when to fire, finding good talent and getting the most out of existing human resources.

November 11, 2016 — Keynote for WordCamp Birmingham 2016. Cory Miller talks about the importance of Pivot and Purpose to surviving and thriving in the near future.

July 9, 2015 — Got a product? Then you probably know the headaches of sales, onboarding, and customer support. In this panel, industry veterans share their top tips when it comes to sales, onboarding, and customer support. Bring your questions.

July 9, 2015 — As founder of one of the first commercial product companies in WordPress, I share the success and failures that we’ve had along the journey, including releasing our biggest, most collaborative, most expensive project for free (iThemes Exchange), and home runs (like BackupBuddy). I’ll also mention some of our miserable failures (trying hosting and services twice) and the lessons we gleaned from it.

July 2, 2015 — I’ve been through a divorce, had to fire friends, lived — almost daily — with insecurity no matter how successful we or I have been, felt the guilt of success as well. I talk openly about how I see a mental health counselor and am an advocate for good mental health, especially as an entrepreneur who now leads a team of 23 people. Would talk about some of the strategies outside of having a counselor that I have done/do to maintain good mental stability in this often crazy job.

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November 14, 2014 — Lightning Talks: Inspiring Stories
Over the years of working closely with people often associated with WP — from budding bloggers, talented designers and developers, I’ve realized that being able to release your work to the world is loaded with fear and anxiety and perfectionism and want to share my story to inspire others to click Publish and ship their work — whatever that may be. I share the stories of success (and failure) that living this philosophy has produced in my life.

November 13, 2014 — As a developer, you built some great software one day and then decided to release it. Only to wake up one day and realize you are now running a business. Maybe one with employees. The sudden realization that you’re not just a developer now, you’re an entrepreneur is daunting.

October 28, 2014 — Cory Miller is a former newspaper journalist turned full-time entrepreneur. In 2008, he started iThemes, which builds web design software and offers cutting-edge web design training for thousands of customers around the globe.

Named the 7th fastest growing company in Oklahoma City in 2011 by the Metro 50, iThemes employs over 20 people around the globe with headquarters in Edmond, Oklahoma.

Presentation Slides »