"The Little Things" - Helpful hints for all

[Jacob Bendicksen]

Originally Posted by Siri

Has anyone ever had problems with velcroing (or wire-tying) electronics like motor controllers? We don't do it, but I've always been sketchy on the explanation.

We've been velcroing just about everything on the control board for as long as I can remember, and we haven't had any problems so far. However, don't velcro the main breaker. There isn't enough surface area on the bottom for velcro to effectively hold it in place, and it's too important to have flopping around in there.

As for things that I'd suggest, I've got:
-For Chairman's, always have at least one boy and one girl on the presentation team. Trust me on this one.

-Also for Chairman's, practice the presentation ridiculously slow in front of the entire team. In addition to making you look like fools, it serves a few purposes: giving the presenters practice under pressure, making the presenters used to going slowly, and giving the entire team at least a basic understanding of what the Chairman's submission contains. Which leads into my next one...

-Everyone on the team should be able to talk to the judges about the team's outreach. Without fail, judges always come by when the spokespeople are in the bathroom, so others should be able to cover until they're back.

-In terms of outreach events, I think Karthik said it best when he said that you should find that "pie in the sky" and MAKE IT HAPPEN. That's where amazing Chairman's submissions come from--that crazy idea that worked.