"I'm not that smart"

[RyanN]

I get this problem all the time and also the "Dang smart kid." thing as well. Really, people think of robots being complicated and hard to make (go figure...) Really, it's all about your talents and focus to achieve certain goals. When people think of football or any other physical sports, they think "Muscle is the way to go" when really, smarts matter just as much.

I find that most people that say "I'm not that smart" don't want to get involved with something they're not sure they'll like. My best friend last summer said basically the same exact thing, but I told him that there is something for everyone. He ended up being on the 3D max crew on Fusion and really enjoyed the whole experience. He said that he wishes he had gotten involved 4 years ago when I first asked him.

So basically, the people that say "I'm not that smart" don't know what FIRST robotics is all about. Give them some examples of stuff we do.

If they like video games, tell them they're good for a driver.
If they like wiring stuff up, then it's self explanatory... Electrical!
If they like photoshop or video editing, tell them photography, 3Dmax, Autodesk.....
If they like hammering and bashing, tell them they're good for the pit crew.
I'm sure I'm missing plenty of stuff here, but those are some good examples. Tell them to come one day to really see how it works. Explain things to them in simple terms (The robot controller sends a signal to the speed control to make the motor turn) Don't go in depth with PWM cables, polarity, or anything somewhat complicated right off the bat. Start simple.

Ask them why they don't think they're smart enough. They will most likely not be able to answer the question, or just give a general answer. Ask them about what they're good at and how they got good at it. They'll answer practice, or if they don't, ask them if practice helped them. Tell them it's the same way with robotics. Practice makes perfect!

There is really so much on a robotics team to do, that even with 25 members of Team Fusion, I find myself extremely busy and often wondering what I'm going to do next year when I go to college. It will be hard to mentor my team from 300 miles away, but there is a team off the campus of my college that need help. I got many calls from past members last year asking me about the electrical and programming helping that team.