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User:Martind: Difference between revisions
From London Hackspace Wiki
→The Hidden Laws of Hackspace
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== The Hidden Laws of Hackspace == | == The Hidden Laws of Hackspace == | ||
* The organisation is designed for minimal overhead. | Fundamentals. | ||
* We're not a school, company, or sports club: we don't provide structured guidance and training. | * The organisation is designed for minimal overhead. Nobody is being paid to help fix your problems. | ||
* We're not a school, company, or sports club: we don't provide structured guidance and training. | |||
* We're a social space that is heavily shaped by its interpersonal relationships. (We're not dogmatically democratic, there is no steering committee, and generally little leadership.) | |||
* It is wrong to say: "there's no-one in charge". You're in charge. If you are unable, then find someone who can take over. And if that fails the trustees will take over; they would prefer you do it instead. | * It is wrong to say: "there's no-one in charge". You're in charge. If you are unable, then find someone who can take over. And if that fails the trustees will take over; they would prefer you do it instead. | ||
* A little bit of passion goes a long way. Most work at the Hackspace happened because someone was curious. | * A little bit of passion goes a long way. Most work at the Hackspace happened because someone was curious. | ||
Learning at the Hackspace. | |||
* We're a community workshop. Your best first experience is when you come with a project in mind, and need a little bit of help or access to tools we may have. | |||
* If you come here unprepared: be patient and make time for a long learning experience. Observe, and talk to the people around you. | |||
* Don't be annoyed if you don't understand right away. Sometimes there's a good reason, sometimes it's simply a large group's path of least resistance. | |||
* We don't focus much on outreach, structured introductions, presentation. Consequently our "induction experience" sucks. | * We don't focus much on outreach, structured introductions, presentation. Consequently our "induction experience" sucks. | ||
** We have made many simple and complex plans to change this, but so far have failed to implement most of them. | ** We have made many simple and complex plans to change this, but so far have failed to implement most of them. | ||
** I don't know exactly why this is the case; it's certainly not out of ignorance, ill-will, protectionism, elitism, ... | ** I don't know exactly why this is the case; it's certainly not out of ignorance, ill-will, protectionism, elitism, ... | ||
** (This maybe already tells you everything you need to know about the abilities and limitations of the Hackspace.) | ** (This maybe already tells you everything you need to know about the abilities and limitations of the Hackspace.) | ||
The Hackspace community. | |||
* The mailing list may seem like a scary place at first, but it is also one of our greatest assets: the community hivemind. It can have great intensity but also often is a source of great wisdom. A place where many voices build on each other, but also a source of many irreconcilable contradictions. Becoming familiar with it this is one of the key rites of passage for new members. | * The mailing list may seem like a scary place at first, but it is also one of our greatest assets: the community hivemind. It can have great intensity but also often is a source of great wisdom. A place where many voices build on each other, but also a source of many irreconcilable contradictions. Becoming familiar with it this is one of the key rites of passage for new members. | ||
** Strong recommendation: always remain polite, and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Assume_good_faith assume good faith]. You're not being helpful if your own replies serve to escalate rather than clarify. | ** Strong recommendation: always remain polite, and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Assume_good_faith assume good faith]. You're not being helpful if your own replies serve to escalate rather than clarify. | ||
* When coordinating group work: [http://wiki-archive.emfcamp.org/2012/articles/m/a/r/User:Martind/Induction.html#Making_Important_Decisions Involve your community in larger decisions], don't just do it all yourself; otherwise there's a good chance you'll get distracted by silly misunderstandings and oversights. | |||
* Making change is hard: it involves lots of initiative, and the patience to try again until you find the right way to make it work. It may entail having to change the minds of many people who have no reason to listen to you. This is by design. (And yes, it's not always good.) | |||
Recommended reading: | Recommended reading: | ||
