How to meet your Skills Pal
What to do once you get a match.
So, you’ve signed-up for Skills Pal. You’ve sent your first submission. You’ve waited in anticipation for a match and at last one has been found. Now what?
It can be a bit daunting meeting up with a stranger for the first time but you needn’t worry. Skills Pal is full of individuals just like you looking to learn and teach skills. However, if you’ve still got question about what to do or what to say, this guide will help answer them.
Making first contact
Once you match with another student on Skills Pal, you’ll get a notification with their details to get in touch. The first step is simply to say hello! Tell your Skills Pal a bit about yourself, what you’re interested in learning and why you signed-up.
If you’re still stuck, you could try asking some of the following questions:
- Why do you want to teach/learn your skill? Are you just learning for fun or do you want to improve your employability?
- How have you progressed with the skill so far? For some skills, e.g. photography or drawing, how about sending a link to some of your work?
- What other things are you interested in? Find out what your Skills Pal is studying and what their other interests are; you might even be able to swap your skills.
Remember, the more you tell your Skills Pal about what you can teach/learn, the easier the process will be for both of you.
Logistics
Hopefully, if you’ve made it this far, you don’t need reminding that you’ll need to pick a time and place to meet your Skills Pal. Coffee shops work great but for some skills (shooting, for example) you might need to think a little more outside the box.
You don’t just have to teach by yourself either. If you’re teaching someone to dance, for example, why not bring your Skills Pal along to your weekly dance class? Don’t be afraid to get other people involved too.
Work hard at home
When you’re learning any skill, there’s only so much any teacher can do. So if you’re the learner in the partnership, make sure you put in the effort at home too (and if you’re a teacher, don’t forget to remind your student of this).
If all goes well, arranging another meeting in the near future can be a great way of making sure you stay on track with your learning goals.
Say thank you!
If you’re a learner, although we hope you’ll eventually become a teacher at some point down the line, it’s always nice to give your teacher a personal thank you for their time too.
You could buy them a coffee when you meet up but sometimes the best ‘thank you’s come from showing them how far you’ve come with their help. Make sure if you’re drawing, you show your Skills Pal what you’ve drawn. If you’re learning to code, show them an app you’ve built. Or if you’re learning guitar, send them a quick clip of that song you were struggling with.
