Life rules of GDG Lviv: Part 2
In the first part we’ve described motivational moments and things that inspire us. But the life of an organizer is not so bright and fun as it could appear. Each of us did a lot of mistakes and suffered from different problems. Maybe you won’t experience them after the article [and will be able to do your own mistakes😬]
What is the most rewarding part for me…
Oleh: To have the opportunity to challenge me in various fields: starting from development to marketing and managing. Also, it’s a great place to meet people that know what they are doing in their lives and inspire others.
Sophie: After a year of hard work, see the result and understand that it really was worth it
Vasylyna: I met a lot of great people, made new connections and friends since our first event. My life transferred from introvertive to socialized and I’m happy!
Diana: A feel that I helped someone (to become smarter, to meet new great people, get some inspiration etc).
Vitaliy: To see how DevFest is shaping the perception of Ukraine in the world. To hear from people from US, France, Netherlands who learned about DevFest “I didn’t know that IT is so big in Ukraine” or “I wish we had such a big community similar to yours…”.
Alina: There is no doubt we are a team of crazy perfectionists — like we don’t enough on our plates with a full-time job and organizing DevFest 😄 But when you see everything running like clockwork, and people appreciating all the small details — you understand it’s totally worth it. Another reason why I didn’t run away after the first crazy year, is this team of talented and extremely dedicated folks. Even though it’s a volunteering thing, not a regular job you are getting paid for, this kind of commitment, motivation, and energy is just hard to find.
Ostap: The most rewarding, though not the one you experience very often, is when you hear some life-changing stories which include “So I went to this GDG event and it changed my life completely…”. Usually, this happens months after the event was held.
Marta: Feelings when you’ve worked hard and finally did it. And it’s very pleasant to hear warm words about DevFest at the end of the conference
What I would never do again is…
Oleh: Do everything on my own. At the beginning, it was hard to delegate tasks but then I realized that have one of the best team in the world and I should rely on them.
Sophie: Buy a ticket to DFUA — I will organize it (bought one in 2014)
Vasylyna: Trust our subcontractors without double check. My advice for each of you is never rely on people when it comes to money&service. Sign the contract, where you will describe the fines for fuckups. It will make them talk to you as to professional people and work more responsible. If you want to look like a professional — act like professional!
Diana: Organize an event without thinking about all the timeline and the big picture. Last 2 years I coordinated volunteers work and I did a lot of fuckups when people arrived on the location too early and did nothing waiting for few hours, when they constantly asked me what to do and I couldn’t give an adequate answer.
Vitaliy: Start preparation for the conference opening speech at 4 AM, six hours before going to the stage. First and the last time was in 2015 :)
Ostap: I will always make sure, I get good 7–8h sleep 2 weeks before DevFest or similar event.
Marta: Don’t go home to sleep the day before the conference and stay at the venue with other organizers till the late night even when my part of work was done. I did it this year and I overslept next morning when I really was needed.
Once I unexpectedly did…
Sophie: run into the men restroom to put stickers during the conference (oops, sorry for interrupting someone).
Vasylyna: Wrote to Larry Page and Sergey Brin to ask them to record a welcome video for our attendees. Of course, they didn’t answer. Huh as I told I grew a lot from that time.
Alina: Unintentionally stole one of the catering tables for sponsor’s booth 😊
Marta: Ordered “poop“ cupcakes for a coffee break 💩😬
A person, who is an example for me is…
Oleh: Elon Musk. Even when everything was so bad he managed to make all shit done! As an example, after three unsuccessful launches of Falcon 1, SpaceX had money only for the one launch. In September 2008, year of economic depression, with a mass simulator as a payload they did this and you know what, in 2018, they plan to release an updated version of Falcon 9 and have 30–40 launches!
Alina: There are many people I’m fond of — I enjoy communication and getting to know somebody closer always inspires me and gives new perspective. Though I can’t say there’s one role model for me — I enjoy picking particular traits from different people, such as persistence, leadership qualities, outcome orientation and more.
Diana: I like a lot of people and their role models, especially stubborn ones who are not afraid to fail. Let me mention here Sheryl Sandberg, whose book gave me an additional boost of energy and more self-confidence. People who inspire me in the daily life are GDG Lviv organizers, that’s a pure happiness to learn from them and follow as an example.
A book, that helped me in organizing #dfua…
Alina: One of our must-reads is “Everything is negotiable”. Organizing events means running negotiations with your contractors, partners and other sometimes unexpected parties on a daily basis. We strongly recommend this book, whether you are an experienced negotiator or don’t feel very confident about it — this book will help you take a fresh look at the process, learn some pro tips and actually start enjoying it.
“Everything is negotiable” is our doubtless leader, almost every team member wrote about it, but we’ve left one of the brightest reviews.
Oleh: I have enjoyed “Work rules!” that helped me to change my mind on team management and, hopefully, I become a better leader afterward. Conference organization is stressful and it’s important to keep the team healthy, so if we notice that somebody is exhausted or depressed, we have to help them overcome this.
Diana: Let me add one more great book, it’s “Peopleware”. I really appreciate the chapters talking about the team crystallization and the main points that “It’s all about the people”. Also, now everybody on our team knows what is the “Black team”, especially when we printed dark hoodies with GDG Lviv 🙌
Ostap: I wish there was an “Event Organizer’s Playbook”. But there’s none. So I’d suggest “The Hard Thing About Hard Things”. It’s the one which tells you how to deploy your creativity and solve problems when there are no rules or frameworks.
Vitaliy: “Start with Why”. The book that pushed me to spend a lot of time defining for myself “Why do I invest so much energy into the community?”. I highly recommend to everyone to do “Why?” exercise before starting any project. Understanding your “Why” will help to go over the tough moments, when your motivation drops to zero.
Honestly, I don’t like…
Oleh: when in big teams there are people that do nothing when the rest working on some ideas or projects. It’s crucial to show share your progress and inspire your fellows to be possible to do great things together.
Sophie: Cut out stickers from paper :)
Alina: I hate all kinds of injustice, and one of them is when somebody’s hard work isn’t recognized — because of shyness, lack of attention, or just because somebody is better at showcasing their efforts. That’s why I always try to make everyone’s effort noticeable and appreciated.
Diana: When people cannot organize themselves and their time: do their tasks after they’ve promised, arrive somewhere in time etc. I have a role of the “Bad policemen” in our team and constantly annoy people with boring reminders.
Ostap: Doing repetitive things. Everything that can be automated, should be automated!
Marta: When work becomes routine or doesn’t bring satisfaction.
An advice I would give to younger me…
Diana: Don’t be shy! I had so many ideas on the start and didn’t even tell about them to my managers because I was sure that they are silly and I’m not good enough to propose that. A few years later I realized that it was so stupid and I’d better ask than regret later.
Oleh: Do not try to do everything alone! It would be a much better result and more fun if you do things with the team.
Sophie: Don’t be afraid to fuck up — it’s the best way to learn. No pain — no game!
“Success is the ability to go from failure to failure without losing your enthusiasm.” — Winston Churchill
Vasylyna: Turn everything you don’t like doing into your skill. Do not be afraid to share your ideas, to bargain and ask for a help because two heads are better than one.
Alina: Constantly try something new — you can never know which adventure is just around the corner. Do what inspires and motivates you; and all the rest, like career achievements or recognition, will come along.
Ostap: Persistence and grit make every impossible thing possible.
Marta: Don’t be shy to offer some ideas.
Oleksandr: Try to d̶e̶v̶e̶l̶o̶p̶ ̶y̶o̶u̶r̶s̶e̶l̶f̶ sleep more. Try to do impossible things, cause possible things are boring and make no new value.
