[Lil' Lavery]

Consider taking a year or two (or four) off. College is an opportunity to grow and change as a person, and sometimes you're going to need that additional free time to engage in other activities, schoolwork, and personal development. I jumped right into mentoring, and I don't regret it. However, I often find myself wondering how things may have been different if I had stepped back for a year or two. I wonder if I might have been a better mentor if I had stepped away and seen the rest of the engineering world and become more invovled in other activities in palce of FIRST.


What were some of the largest adjustments you had to make while undergoing this transition?
Figuring out the boundaries between myself and the students. It's a process that I'm still trying to figure out. Especially early on, your age is frequently much much closer to that of the students than it is to most of your fellow mentors. It'll feel more natural to be just another one of the students. As a result, I often pulled back too hard to try and separate myself as one of the mentors. You shouldn't just be another student, but you shouldn't be their "boss," either. Finding the happy medium is difficult.

What lessons did you learn from your first year of mentoring?
How to accept a different role than I was used to, and how to let students learn through experience. It takes a while to get used to being in a different role, and it's often a rocky transition. But sometimes you have to let the students make the mistakes and find solutions themselves, rather than solving everything. You also have to be aware that sometimes their answers will be better than yours.

Have you tried mentoring through digital media (ex: Skype video chat, emails, etc.), and if so, how? How successful is this method?
I have not directly mentored this way, although I have collaborated with other teams via e-mail, dropbox, IM, and phone calls. It has it's value, but it really depends on what type of work needs to be done.

What is it like suddenly belonging to a new team? Did you carry over many of the things you learned from your high school/previous team?
It was a little bit of a challenge, but I landed in a great spot led by one of the best mentors I have ever encountered. I had worked with three WFFA winners on my high school team, as well, which gave me plenty of ideas on how to interact and inspire students. But Rich Kressly was able to take me under his wing in many respects, and help show me the way to being a better mentor and being a part of Dawgma. I brought much of the technical expertise I had learned on Epsilon Delta with me, and I helped Dawgma take some leaps in design philosophy they might not have otherwise taken (and over time, as Dawgma has transitioned to new leadership, it starts to resemble certain aspects of Epsilon Delta more and more). It's certainly an experience I treasure. Being a part of Dawgma, past and present, means a lot to me.

Who or what was your inspiration to mentor after high school?
I always just assumed I would, and I did. I wasn't ready to be done with FIRST.