I'm Team Captain! [Archive]

Brian Maher

23-05-2015, 23:14

From the perspective of a freshman, I think it's especially important that you communicate with your team very well. Proper communication within a team is a large part of what makes it so successful. :)

I can't emphasize this tip enough!

Make sure everyone has a way to meaningfully contribute to the team and feels included. This goes especially for new team members, since their first year will determine if they want to stay on the team or not.

You don't have to know how to do everything, but you need to have an officer team you can work well with to cover all the bases. Work work this officer group to set an agenda for every meeting, and lead the team to work toward it.

You will run the team. There will be a lot of things you'll want to get done. Delegate work effectively, so you aren't overburdened. Don't delegate too much, do no less than your fair share of work. In the vein of delegating, make sure the load is fairly distributed.

If you have any questions or problems to face, feel free to ask here or PM me. Being a leader isn't easy, but being conscientious enough to ask for advice here is a sign that you'll do a great job :)

Samwaldo

24-05-2015, 02:08

As a past captain:
I was constantly thanked and led our team to the best season yet, from being dead last to alliance captains the next year.

Being a captain for me was about being someone everyone WANTED to be led by.
-Find the perfect balance between being the leader, friend, teacher, and teamate.
-find an area of the team they lack in and work all season on inproving it. I realized we relyed on adults to much so when our lead techical mentor left, 2013 was our worst season. When i became captain in 2014 I made huge changes. Our robot for the first time was wired, CADed, and programmed almost 100% by students, just to name a few areas. It was our best robot to date and with the most student involvment.
-create support for yourself. When I was captain, i created subgroups (we called squads) for each area (programming, CAD, mechanical, Nonengineering) with a leader for each squad. It was amazing that i could trust each squad leader to monitor each project, report to me on progress, teach everyone in the group their skill, and come to me for help.
-choose your support team/subgroup leaders by who can you trust to do a good job but not by who are you friends with
-remember its just captain of a robotics team and your still a student. Dont be afraid to ask for help from others and adults.

I could list a million other things but the best advise is try something crazy and dont be afraid to ask for help.

216Robochick288

24-05-2015, 03:31

Former Captain of the Robodawgs, current coach of several teams.

Trust your kids. Listen to them. Everyone has valid ideas.
Deligate. Dont try and superman it you will burn yourself out.
Write down plans for the next day. If you are the only thing people go to for what happens next and you are sick...nothing gets done.
Dont be afraid to ask questions. Just becuase you are in charge doesnt always mean you know everything. If you tell your group to do something and they say no, ask why. You may not understand how something works and be assuming things wrong about it.

PM me if you have more, or worries mid season or anything at all! I would be more than happy to help.

protoserge

24-05-2015, 09:39

Congratulations!

I've seen many different characters serve as team captains. Here are some principles I would consider important:

Responsibility - take responsibility for tasks that you are assigned
Communication - communicate, communicate, communicate. Make sure what was said is what was heard.
Planning - a little planning goes a long way, even if you don't follow the plan
Representation - as team captain, take concerns that the other students have and bring them up with the lead mentor
Improvement - take the time to learn what your team does well and what it does not and offer suggestions to the lead mentor
Fun - don't forget to have it!

Note: many teams are led by the lead mentor. You will have a set set of responsibilities, understand these and perform the duties you agreed to. You may or may not be responsible for running the team.

Walter Deitzler

24-05-2015, 12:44

Former Captain of Robolions 3397 here, now an alumni. Congrats on being elected Captain, I will share what I can with you.

I will start off with what I feel is the most important part of being a Captain, respect.
Your teammates have elected you Captain, so that probably means they already have some form of respect for you. Having the respect of the people you are leading is the most important part, in my experience, of being a leader. Keeping respect is not always easy, nor does it always make you the most popular person on the team. To start off, it is important you keep this picture in mind as you are a Captain.

http://rs1img.memecdn.com/difference-between-a-boss-and-a-leader_o_2358201.jpg
(Sorry about bad formatting here, if someone can teach me how to create one of those spoiler boxes I will hide the image so it does not take up as much space.)

Be a Leader, not a boss. Just because you can tell people what to do does not mean you are exempt from the work.

Sometimes you have to make an unpopular decision, sometimes you have to break bad news, sometimes you have to give someone a job that they do not want to do. Sure, these things might make you a bit less popular at the time, but they need to be done. Don't shy away from making unpopular decisions, just because you want to be loved by your team.
This sounds harsh, but is not quite as bad as it sounds. This is a high school robotics team, and not an army or such, so hopefully nothing too crazy or controversial should come up :p .

Also, as a team captain, you have a much bigger time commitment to the program than the rest of the team. Inside robotics, you still have to keep track of all the building, programming, chairman's work, etc, but at home you often need to spend late nights working with various team members on various projects. (Examples of this would be when the Chairman's people want your advice on the essay, or the build team needs you to stay up to review the CAD they are working on.)

As others have covered, communication is important, so I will not go too much into detail on that. All I have to say is that you are often the median for communicating between the different sub teams, or the youth/adults.

Don't be afraid to ask for help! I assume this is not an issue though, as you did post this thread. Just remember that mentors will often be able to help give you guidance on decisions.

The other Gabe

24-05-2015, 17:21

I learned while being a scout lead that if you're dedicated to what you do, listen to others, and actually care about the people you lead, you'll usually gain respect. (although having a co-lead that is a little more forceful was nice too :P)

connor.worley

24-05-2015, 17:24

Be a role model and have fun and everything should turn out nicely. Was there someone on the team you looked up to before? You can try being like them.

http://media.giphy.com/media/rVZEejvVWEbug/giphy.gif

DampRobot

24-05-2015, 18:13

Some stuff I learned while in leadership positions on my team (not captain, but drive coach and mechanical lead):

Lead from the front: The only way to get respect is by working harder than anyone else and being the best you can be. You should not appear to be a manager (although that's your main role), but as someone who works on stuff just like any other member.
Planning is essential: Always have information about timeline and how long stuff takes at the top of your mind. You should know how long it will take to mill the drivetrain, how long is needed to assemble it, when the Vex Pro order is coming in, when it will be ready to be wired, how long it will take to be wired, and how long after that it will be driving. A lot of my role as leader was making sure that we did something today that we will regret not having done in three weeks if we don't do it now.
Massage egos: You will meet some people in FRC that are hard to work with, and it is your unfortunate job as manager to work with them. Let other people take credit for work they didn't do, and let them think that they're making decisions they're not really making. It may be hard to see this, but mentors and important members of the team will know that is was really you behind the team's successes. If people think they're in control, they'll generally be a lot happier than if they're "taking orders" from you.
Unemployment is bad: A lot of your job will be giving other people jobs to do. Make sure you have a (mental) list of things that need to be done, and match them up with people that can do them when they don't have anything else to do. Just because you can do something better than someone doesn't mean you should be doing it. On the other hand, try to give people jobs that they can actually handle. You shouldn't give off the impression of ordering them around either.
Be cool: If the kids working with you look up to you, your job as a leader is vastly easier. You don't have to be cool in the mainstream sense (skateboards and ripped jeans) but you should be someone cool in the sense that older kids are cool: they're confident, they know how to have fun and they have been through it all before.

Those are just a few things I picked up as mechanical lead and drive coach. YMMV.

DrewMatic

24-05-2015, 18:19

Thanks guys for all of your help! I appreciate it :)

evanperryg

24-05-2015, 20:46

1) Always remember, you're a student among students. You're both a leader and a peer, and there is nothing that will help you gain more respect among your teammates than working alongside them.
2) Share your special skills. Anything you do that sets you apart form your peers is something that could set your team apart from other teams, so apply it.
3) Anything you're not good at, invest yourself in learning it and encourage those who are good at it to share it with other students. The more advanced skills your teammates have access to, the more successful your team will be, regardless of whether it's robot-related, community-related or communication-related skills.
4) Make friends on local teams. You'd be surprised how much every team differs in their thought process and priorities. Learn from local teams who you can visit, it can help you gain a broader perspective on what makes a team successful.

BenGuy

24-05-2015, 21:16

Best Advice I can give from experience is to help out the new guys with the learning curve. We can all agree that FIRST has a HUGE learning curve and there are many people that have to be helped along with getting into it or else your team won't grow. Also, when people aren't doing anything, either get them doing something or have them sit over the shoulder of someone who is doing something that they don't yet know how to do so that they can watch / ask questions, and as a result, learn how to do it so that the next time they are asked, they can do that job. Keep everyone interested and getting better above all else.

And congratulations on the position! :o

Trevor1523

24-05-2015, 21:44

I would definitely try and be someone your team's members could talk to. Our leader this year definitely was a very positive influence on me, as well as the rest of my team. Also, don't take everything seriously, laugh a little (or a lot) and definitely embrace your mistakes and errors.

Another thing you should try to do is involve new members. When I joined my team back in 2014 I had no idea what I had gotten my self into. All these people shouting for zipties and ducktape?! Whenever I wasn't doing anything they involved me. I did that with the freshies this year too. At kickoff they were clueless about what FIRST even was, and now one is a human player and the other is one of the higher mechanical people!

Do these two things, and you'll do just fine, I am sure :D

IronicDeadBird

24-05-2015, 22:21

Please learn your leadership style. People listen to leaders more then they listen to people pretending to be leaders (not saying you are pretending) so don't let the title compromise your personality.
For example when tested on what kind of leadership style I have (if I can find the link I will bring it up) I got passive introverted leadership. That is to say while someone already posted the picture of the difference between a boss and a leader my natural state when leading isn't holding your hand or bringing you to a destination. I prefer to setup all the information and let someone piece together the lesson. It is less work for me.
That isn't to say this leadership style suits you on 1339 when I was a sophmore there was this certified can of awesome by the name of Tophurious Rex. He ran things classic point man up front leading the charge he took control of situations and he got results.
Both methods work just fine but my method wouldn't work for him and his method didn't work for me. Just figure you out.

Celia

24-05-2015, 22:52

Be the leader you would want to follow.

Take care of the team, Drew. I know you're good for the job.

Caleb McCune

24-05-2015, 22:55

Don't forget confidence, without confidence you will get no where.

AngusFailed

24-05-2015, 22:59

Look up to other Leaders. Everyone has had to follow someone before, and we liked certain things they did, but hated other actions. Remember you can draw inspiration from those experiences as well.

Unpopular decisions suck, but have to be made.

Don't be afraid to admit you are wrong, or that you don't know. I respect people that do that more, then those that don't.

In the end make sure you are having fun.

Good luck, you'll do fine

DrewMatic

25-05-2015, 08:32

Wow! Angus being nice. Thanks guys for your help!

Som.Rocks

25-05-2015, 20:54

So, a couple of things...

I am a newly introduced co-captain; however, this previous year I led the build team and picked up a couple of ideas that may be of some assistance.

1) Be extremely organized. Though this has been stated, it cannot be emphasized enough. When you know what you are doing, the job for the rest of the team becomes just that much easier.

2) Inform the team of everything. At 4607, we have weekly LGMs, Large Group Meetings, where the team gathers throughout the year on Wednesdays. This greatly improves the communication on the team (I will touch on communication in a minute) and makes everyone accountable for knowing important information about the team. These meetings are usually a half-hour long with a short presentation highlighting the important information for the team to know.

3) Though communication has already been talked about, it cannot be over-stated. One important thing to note is that it is better to over communicate than to under communicate. In other words, even if you think you may have told someone about an upcoming event or reminded them of a deadline, it doesn't hurt to bring it up again to ensure understanding. A great way to communicate is through Group text messages or mass e-mails.

4) Along with the LGMs, a weekly leader meeting is also very helpful. We usually hold these meetings a day before the LGMs, so all of the leaders of their respective squadrons (build, marketing, Public Relations, programming, etc.) can bring up any changes that they need and the captain, or co-captains, can bring them up at the LGMs or individually. This, again, increases responsibility for team members to stay updated on their squadrons.

5) Finally, (I'm almost done...) have the squad leaders take notes throughout the season and have them submit them when something significant happens within the squad. This helps to keep track of the progress of the team and is definitely a very helpful reference for the following year.

Good luck on the following year! I hope this information is helpful and make sure to enjoy being the captain, it's a great accomplishment!

Jeffy

25-05-2015, 21:03

Here is a nice excerpt from the Dwight D Einsenhower WikiQuotes.

"Character in many ways is everything in leadership. It is made up of many things, but I would say character is really integrity. When you delegate something to a subordinate, for example, it is absolutely your responsibility, and he must understand this. You as a leader must take complete responsibility for what the subordinate does. I once said, as a sort of wisecrack, that leadership consists of nothing but taking responsibility for everything that goes wrong and giving your subordinates credit for everything that goes well."

Good luck! Very good of you to get an early start.

GeeTwo

25-05-2015, 22:31

Every team dynamic is different, and some teams change style from year to year. The big thing to remember is that you've moved along the continuum of being a team member who builds a robot to a leader who builds the team. Have a good talk with your head coach/lead mentor about expectations - how much effort should you be putting into leadership vs mentoring vs robot building. Review the captains of your previous year(s) - what did they do right? What did they do wrong?

And always learn from your mistakes, or better yet, from the good examples and mistakes of others.

Derek Rouse

25-05-2015, 22:40

Not a Captain, but there are a few things I've picked up...

1.) You have to have constant and fluid communication between you and your leadership counterparts. If you don't have people at your side filling other specific roles, like safety and outreach, get that going. Having a group of people cooperate in team administration and management is key.
2.) Being a team captain is a VERY large time commitment. If you're not going to be able to dedicate a rather large portion of your time and life to the team, there'll be a problem. On the other hand if you're always readily available and committed, you're golden.
3.) Being a very powerful and inspirational public speaker and having a charismatic charm about you will help loads when giving speeches to your fellow members and getting them hyped up and inspired during events and build season.
4.) Make sure everyone has a role, or if people aren't sure what they want to do, guide them in the right direction. You're more than a captain, you're a leader and someone the other people look up to.

Glad everyone is helping you out, if you heed this advice you'll do great.
Good luck and congratulations on the position!

zcoops97

26-05-2015, 09:53

Make sure people respect you enough and you are capable of telling someone they need to be better or are slacking. The biggest fault you can commit is not practicing continuous improvement. Even if a team member is performing well, you must be able to tell them to become better. I was president of my team this past year and I was lucky enough to be in a class of seniors that all had that drive to be better and we performed well because of it. Nobody needed to tell us to continuously improve. My biggest piece of advice is to help other students find ways to be better at what they do. Dont be afraid to question or call out upperclassmen or other students and always be thinking of ways to improve efficiency and performance.

HolyDollar

26-05-2015, 17:26

The best advice I can give to you is to keep in contact with your team (communication is key), and try not to be too passive or aggressive (or even Passive-Aggressive for that matter).

Good luck leading your team! I'm sure you'll do great!

DrewMatic

26-05-2015, 19:48

Thanks!

31Josh61

10-04-2016, 17:35

really good ideas

rockinthespecs

10-04-2016, 20:22

Hitchhiker 42

10-04-2016, 20:37

I was a freshman this year and I think it would be really cool if you had a mentorship program with the younger and older students. I came into the team knowing nothing, and I felt intimidated. If you have a program where underclassman can learn from the older students, it might help new team members feel more welcome and less intimidated.

Our team essentially developed this program and implemented it this year for the first time (we call it the "mini-me program"). Each project leader and the captain is paired with a new member, to allow them to grow and learn a lot from the experienced members. Our team is pretty small, so it's worked out to be pretty 1:1, which worked out really well. I think it definitely helped some of our students decide to stay.

Charlie Randall

10-04-2016, 21:23

Communication with your team is very important, make sure they always know what your thinking. Also try to befriend as many teams as possible in your area. Lots of teams are always happy to help if you need it, and its great to actually know some people at an event, other than the ones on your team!

Hgree56

11-04-2016, 10:06

One thing I've learned as President of our team this past year is that you have to be at your top ability at all times. How can you expect everyone else to excel if you don't?

dirtbikerxz

11-04-2016, 20:33

Here are the main points that I try to follow:
1. Don't get arrogant and cocky because you are a captain. You have to continue behaving as you were before the selection. Remember your team picked you because of who you were originally, they wouldn't want you to change (especially for the worst).

2. Don't necessarily expect everyone to automatically start listening to you and start following you. You still have to earn their trust. And especially don't get angry at them if they ignore you. Calm down and try to talk to them.

3. Be someone who you would want leading you. Be friends with everyone, never isolate anyone from anything. Especially since you are a captain now, you cannot have bias without extreme reason.

4. Always listen to your coaches and mentors. They are still your "captain", and they run the team.... you don't.

5. Step in if there are any situations that are escalating. Sometimes you have to be the glue that holds the team together, especially in high stress situations like regional or end of build seasons. You have to be able to push your team through.

6. You still have to be one of the hardest workers. You have to do jobs that other people don't want to do, in order to motivate them to do it. Remember no one wants to do something that is hard and annoying, and especially don't want to do it when even their captain doesn't want to do it.

7. Enjoy your role, recognize that your teammates believe in you to be able to lead them, and understand your responsibility. That doesn't mean you get to slack off the work though.

I will add more if I think of anything else! Hope you have successful years as captain!