FIRST - Reason for existance

[Sean Schuff]

It strikes me that this conversation could be titled "________ - Reason for existence", the blank could be filled in with any of 100 different company or organization names, and the conversation would be strikingly similar. FIRST is what it is and the cool thing is that it can be something different for each person who gets involved.

We've got/had students on our team who have absolutely no intention of getting into a tecnology/engineering related career. They have an interest in business (just like Jessica Boucher! ) or a talent at putting together awesome videos for team sponsors and awards banquets or they're just looking for a place to fit in and belong! Whatever the "reason" for their wanting to be a part of something really cool, it's their reason and just as valid as anyone elses.

Usually missions/visions are pretty broad, they're conveyed in that way so that a multitude of people can relate with them.

This feeds the premise that FIRST is what it is to every person depending on what THEY want to get out of it.

For me, I just want to see students learn something. Every one of the kids on our team will be able to regurgitate my canned speech for our team banquets but the message holds true every year and it is just as general as a mission/vision statement. I tell them it doesn't matter if we come home with a trailer full of awards or we come home empty handed, it's the process and experience that is important. Then I ask them the same question I've been asking for 5 years - "Did you learn something new?" If the answer is "yes" it doesn't matter if what they learned is directly related to engineering or is something else that has personal relevance to them. They've learned something and grown as an individual AND as a member of the team.

Garrison Keillor said it best when he said "I'm 56 years old and no longer question the motives of those who ask me to do what I want to do." I WANT to mentor young people in FIRST and I don't worry about my motives or theirs...unless they're looking for a cheap trip to Atlanta!

Just a little different twist on the discussion.