I've been a part of and led a few tech-based student communities throughout my college life. Here are some things I've learnt:
- Every community needs a long-term vision if you want to survive. All decisions need to be made in alignment with that vision, and it can change, but it needs to exist. Without a long-term vision, there is no coherent direction on what actions to take, and more importantly, there is no north star according to which the community will align itself.
- People who truly believe in the vision are the ones who will take the community forward. The community will see many types of people who interact with it, but what differentiates the long-term folks from the passerby is that the long-term folks are believers at heart, and to whatever feasible extent, put the aims of the community before that of their own. The ideal situation is where the aims of the person and the community intersect in harmonious ways.
- People will remember the fun times much more than they will the work. That's where lasting memories are made. Being serious all the time with no room for goofing off is a recipe for much more of a corporate environment than is suitable for a student community.
- Build stuff together. It's the single highest ROI activity you can do as a tech community; it's a space for everyone to learn and grow together, and the pride of seeing your own code being used to make things happen is a fantastic thing to experience as a student.
- Conflict is human and cannot be avoided. It's important to remember that knowing how to manage conflict and work with other people makes you a much better engineer, because at the end of the day, it's other humans that you're working with, no matter how they write their code. Conflict can also teach us a lot about how to build things together, and how to bring together conflicting viewpoints to work towards the same goal.
- Proof of Work is critical. There is no better testament to how good a community is than the visible work they have, be it blog posts, projects (another reason to build stuff together), or even a well-authored reel.
- Mutual respect is key. Not having this makes it a toxic environment for everyone.