🛠️ Buildathon alumni — we need your wisdom 👀

At the NYC Buildathon, I made a mistake by coming unprepared. I didn't look into the format, rules, or what was expected. On top of that, I had a long early morning commute, so I started the day already low on energy. Instead of building right away, I spent a lot of time just trying to figure out what I needed to do.

Then I had setup problems. I had to install few tools there, but the WiFi wasn't good enough. Even when I got things partly working, Airtable had issues, it didn't load at first, and later AI field agents stopped working. I asked for help, but they couldn't find a fix it in time. In the end, I couldn't finish, and submit it.

So... Here's my advice:

• Manage your time from the start. Don't spend the first hours figuring things out, start building as soon as possible.
• Prepare in advance. Understand the rules and expectations, and make sure all your tools are installed and tested beforehand.
• Don't rely on event WiFi. Plan as if it won't work.
• Focus on functionality first. Get something working, then improve the details later.
• Set a small, clear goal. Decide the one thing your project must do by the end, and stay focused on that. Everything else is optional.
• Cut scope aggressively. If something risks your timeline, remove it. You can explain ideas, but you can't demo what isn't working. (This happened to me!)
• Have a backup plan. If a tool fails, know what you'll switch to right away. A simple workaround is better than being stuck.
• Plan your demo early. Make sure you can clearly show your project in a few simple steps without relying on anything fragile.
• Keep it simple and reliable. The more complex it is, the higher the chance something breaks—especially under time pressure.

I hope this helps, good luck everyone!

I also didn’t prepare like I should have and had no idea what to do going in.

Breakfast began at 8:00, and I arrived around 8:15, which still gave me enough time to find a seat, grab breakfast, and meet a few people at my table before the 9:00 kickoff. The breakfast spread was great, with a nice variety of pastries and eggs. The Wi-Fi was unreliable, but my phone’s mobile hotspot worked surprisingly well.

In NYC, they set us each up with our own base, with dummy data, and were to complete the bounties all within it. This gives you full access to all the features and unlimited use. :)

One recommendation I would make is to work on more than one bounty, since ideas and directions can shift throughout the day. It also helps to open the bounties and get them started early so you are not dealing with setup details at the end while trying to submit.

Submitting was a nightmare. I hope they figure out a better way, but if it’s just “record a video and run-through” then my biggest piece of advice would be to give at least an hour for recording and submitting your video. I underestimated how long that process would take and ended up trying several different video tools before someone at my table kindly offered to record my demo on my phone. However, then I tried to upload to submit and was not able to get it submitted in time. I didn’t stress over it, the event enough was worth my time.

The room was also quite loud, which made it harder to concentrate. While I really appreciated how many people stopped by to help, the interruptions made it difficult to stay focused and recalibrate. Since I am not used to working in that kind of environment, it was challenging to organize my thoughts and think through solutions clearly.

One thing I would have liked more of was time to connect with people. At my table, we felt that a group-based format might have encouraged more collaboration instead of having everyone work in direct competition with one another. 

Overall, it was a wonderful event, and I would absolutely do it again. There was a wide range of experience levels, and it was genuinely enjoyable to connect with other people who enjoy working in Airtable and to really immerse ourselves in it.

Good luck to the west coast! Hope you have as much fun as we did!

Thanks for sharing all of this ​@Melissa_Hanson 

Speaking of NYC event;
I felt the same about the environment. The room was pretty loud, which made it tough to stay focused, and that spotlight setup over the tables didn’t help either. The light was actually giving me a headache, so I ended up moving over to one of the serving tables along the wall just to be able to think more clearly.

I also get what you are saying about collaboration. I am not sure how I feel about being teamed up randomly with someone I do not know, but I do like the idea of structuring tables so there is only one person per track. That way, it could naturally encourage more collaboration and idea sharing while still keeping the individual competition aspect.

And I completely agree, overall, it was a really great experience, and I would absolutely do it again. Thank you to the Airtable team for organizing it.