Sidebar Speaker Series: How to Sell Yourself with Robin Zander
A practical workshop for professionals who want to advocate for their work – without selling out
Most professionals would rather do almost anything than “sell themselves.”
We associate selling with pressure, manipulation, and ego – and yet nearly every meaningful outcome in our careers depends on our ability to influence and persuade.
In How to Sell Yourself, Robin Zander reframes sales not as performance or persuasion, but as service: the practice of helping people do more of what they already want to do.
Drawing from real-world experience as an entrepreneur, storyteller, and reluctant salesperson, this interactive workshop introduces a humane, ethical approach to self-promotion that replaces pushiness with clarity, fear with curiosity, and avoidance with confident action.
Participants will learn:
Why everyone is already in sales—and why resisting that fact limits impact
How authentic connection, storytelling, and asking work together (and why most people get stuck before the ask)How to reframe fear, rejection, and resistance so they stop dictating behavior
How to advocate for ideas, projects, and careers without feeling manipulative or inauthentic
Simple, practical habits that make selling feel smaller, safer, and repeatable
This session blends short stories, concrete frameworks, and live reflection exercises that participants can immediately apply to:
Career conversations and promotions
Client work and business development
Leadership, collaboration, and influence
Creative and professional self-advocacy
How to Sell Yourself is designed for thoughtful professionals who care deeply about their work—and want that work to find the people it’s meant to serve.
Selling isn’t about convincing.
It’s about connection, clarity, and the courage to ask.
Speaker Bio:
Robin Peter Zander is circus acrobat turned entrepreneur whose work sits at the intersection of service, storytelling, and human behavior.
Raised by two generations of salesmen, Robin grew up learning that trust and loyalty are earned through connection rather than pressure — a lesson that has shaped his unconventional career.
He has built and sold multiple businesses, including Robin’s Café in San Francisco, which he grew to over $1M in annual revenue and sold on Craigslist. He is the founder of Responsive Conference, an international community of HR executives and entrepreneurs, and the Snafu Conference, a summit for reluctant salespeople.
Today, Robin runs Zander Media, a storytelling and brand strategy agency working with companies such as Airbnb, Zappos, Sequoia, and Boom Supersonic!
He is the author of two books, including the international bestseller How to Do a Handstand. He also writes Snafu, a weekly newsletter on authentic selling read by more than 7,000 professionals.
Learn more: https://www.joinsnafu.com/newsletter