Problems participants of hackathons struggle with
Here's a few things participants have been known to struggle with from an organizer's perspective
Before we take part in any activity, we as humans usually want to know what we are really getting into and usually we do this by surveying the worst scenarios possible so we know what we could possibly lose. Many are scared of what they might face at hackathon events, my advice is that you go with friends and have fun.
From an organizer’s perspective, the following are some of the problems I’ve seen participants struggle with in hackathons:
Lack of clarity as to what has to be built: They end up doing 100 things and not even finishing one. I’ve always instructed them to build one unique feature that works and then they can concentrate on the others they have thought about.
Unclear Problem Statements: Sometimes, hackathons confuse their participants with too many ideas/problem statements or very limited problem statements.
Air Conditioning: Saw this almost at every single hackathon. Some people need AC and some cannot handle it. Make sure you get a hoodie if you are expecting this to happen as it is hard to get AC at a temp which is comfortable to all at hackathons that happen in huge halls.
Being alone: Go with a team to a hackathon as that definitely gives you an edge. Being alone will be a little tough even though I’ve seen many hackathons where people who didn’t have teams, come together and win the event itself.
Their own devices give up on them: I’ve had participants whose laptops crashed or died randomly during the hackathon. You won’t get devices from hackathon organizers, make sure there is a backup or make sure your devices are stable and you trust them.
Sleep is not a problem: It’s part of the hackathon. If a participant cannot control their sleep, I would advise them to take a nap happily. There is nothing wrong with that nor is it weird. You are a human at the end of the day and your body needs sleep if you want to make sure you give a good demo.