Leadership

[Eugenia Gabrielov]

Going off of what has said, I'll recommend a few tips that apply specifically to robotics meetings.

1) Hold student forums. This technique does wonders for our team. Advisors are able to have their own forum at the same time. You lead a student discussion on issues and ideas, which lets the students speak in front of their peer group. You are then able to take these issues to a head advisor/mentor and get them taken care of, without singling out students. This will definitly help you succeed as a leader. You don't need these every meeting, just at least monthly or maybe every 2 or 3 weeks.

2) Prove that you are open to criticism. The best leader can handle a situation maturely, step up to a task, and show that they're part of the team, not the powerful above-figure.

3) Delegate. Save yourself some time. Yes, you need to be able to step up to a task, but stepping up to a task doesn't mean sacrificing your sanity. As a leader, your job is to make sure things run smoothly and represent your team. Sometimes it just takes a challenging task for a student to step up and become a hard worker.

4) Try to give everyone a second chance. I understand how hard it is to deal with that kid in the corner that won't do work and can't stop talking, but you can take him aside and ask what he's interested in. Give him choices. Say something along the lines of. "I need help getting some things done. Would you rather mill this part or write biographies for the webpage?". Then check often to see that it gets done. Setting checkpoints will help you succeed as a leader.

Good luck!