Hackathon Tips & Tricks_

(@mattiapomelli)

1. Build the right team. I recommend teaming up with people you’ve already worked with before and to keep the team small (2-3 people).

2. Keep your scope small. It’s better to build something small but do it well than having a big vision but not delivering on it.

3. Talk with the sponsors. Learn what the sponsors want and need. Often they're looking to see new use cases built with their tech, a new integration, etc.

4. Have a great demo. You should clearly show how your project works and allow people to test it themselves with low friction.

5. Build something new. Hackathons are the place to get creative. Use new trending tech, combine different sponsor tools, and find a unique use cases.

@0x_m_f

1. Don´t give up! Take a short break, figure out the bottleneck, and solve that issue. Allowing yourself to stay optimistic is a key element to win.

2. Avoid feature creep! The priority should be defined as the "Need" for your function to work. Find your "core" items and obsess about making them.

3. Time management is key. Don't waste time on irrelevant tasks, make quick decisions teamwise, and once your team made an agreement, don't argue anymore but focus on the next step.

4. Delegate and Conquer. Find each teammates best skill and let them focus on this. The responsible person gets to make the mandatory decisions for that part.

5. Diverge and Converge. Once you all have an agreed clear idea, diverge and work independently on your part. Come up with a few options if a team discussion is required, and then converge together to make a joint decision.

6. Democracy works. Make sure everyone is onboard before you finalise what idea you'll work on. Everyone deserves to be heard, which will push your team to work even harder together being onboard together. Bring up disagreements, and make an anonymous final vote to decide how to go forward.

7. Live, laugh, build. Make fun of the code, talk shit about the protocol you're trying to implement, joke on the provided coffee quality. Moral is important, not only for yourself, but also for your team. There will be plenty of tiresome moments, it's up to you to make those a good memory.

(@nicnode)

1. Pick 1 goal and put others as secondary priorities:

• Build a finalist project.
• Hunt for bounties.
• Work on a long-term project.
• Hiring.

2. Stop adding more features! Focus on MVP and create a list of priorities.

3. Focus on most basic features, understand the potential flaws and explore them only if you have time at the end (be transparent about them in your presentation).

4. Understand the roles of each member of the team, and make sure everyone manages expectations.

5. Don't be afraid to ask questions early on. Some things will save you hours of work by simply asking a partner or a mentor to point you in the right direction.

6. Sometimes you simply need to go talk to someone, take a walk, a nap or even shift focus for a bit and the problems will be "magically" solved.

7. Don't overcomplicate the narrative. Even if the tech is super complex and cool try to find a way to tell it with an example and in a way that can be grasped in the first sentences.

8. Simple pitch outline:

   • Team
   • Problem
   • Solution
   • Example use-case
   • Tech
   • Demo
   • Future/Vision