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Anurag Kochar
Anurag Kochar

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5 Things I learned from participating in 25+ hackathons (winning 7 of them)

⚠ No, this is not written by Chatgippty; it is coming straight from my experience :)

  1. Have a simple goal - Before going, have a simple goal in mind. It can be anything such as making three new developer friends, approaching recruiters/seniors for internships/referrals, trying new hot tech in a fast-paced environment, getting in the top 3, or creating content around the event.

  2. Use starter kits - Just focus on the core features (the USP of your project). Start with templates/starter kits which already have UI components, a landing page, authentication, and database setup.

  3. Be ready for pitching - Most probably, judges are going to ask you some startup-related questions instead of tech questions (the common ratio I have experienced is 7-8 business-related questions and 2-3 tech-related ones). This can be shocking for first-timers, and yes, they don't care whether you are using React Server Components or PHP.

  4. Prerequisites - Have a few things ready before going, such as an elevator pitch, a plan for how your core features will be built, and a strategy to implement on the way.

  5. Deadlines - Setting these was never smooth nor pleasing, but it puts some sweet pressure on you, by which you can save some hours for later networking and exploring. Don't underestimate setting deadlines.

Wanna partner up for some hackathons? DM me on twitter (@ anurag__kochar), I am always up for collaboration.

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