// Hey everyone, You’ve probably seen tons of things written from me (after all I do write the blog), but this time is a little different. Now that we’re a little less than 20 days away from the competition, I want to give my personal take on our journey, what I’m looking forward to on the mall, and the lessons I’ve learned.

I’m going to start with 5 lessons I’ve learned.

1) Always take care of your people: Without the people on your team, you’re nothing. Thank them everyday and let them know they are amazing. That goes out to everyone on Team California, and especially my water team =)

2) Don’t be afraid to ask for help: It’s better to quickly learn rather than being stubborn and knowing nothing. This specifically relates to my experience with plumbing.

3) Unless there is clear authority, don’t waste too much time putting systems and protocols in place: Without someone to enforce them, they just wiggle away.

4) Keep your eye on the big picture: The big picture for this project has always been representing California, communicating with the public, and getting our home to the mall. If there was a tour that needed to be given, I would do it even if I had other work, because that is one of the core goals of the project, to educate.

5) Trust people and let them trust you: People have an expertise for a reason, whether it is architecture, construction management, or thermal engineering. You can’t question them at every turn, otherwise it means you don’t believe in them. However, when you really feel things are going astray, always lend a helping hand (or voice).

I am so glad I got involved in this project. From when we first tossed together the first deliverable (which really looked bad compared to the final set) to our cheers as the house was set on trucks, it has been a great experience at every turn. I’ve learned so much, especially considering the amount of hats I’ve worn (appliances leader when I first started to strawboard panels, to roofing, to water and digital communications).

More so than anything else though, I’m thankful that I was able to meet the people I’ve spent the past 18 months with. I’d mention names, but everyone on this team is worth writing 100 pages about.

I’ve learned the distinctions between right-brain and left-brain types, and experienced the interesting individuals who build bridges between those two sides. I’m seeing the beautiful fruits of collaboration, yet I’ve also seen how much tilling it has taken to achieve them.

On the mall I can’t wait to see all the teams together and see what we’ve all achieved. I hope we represent California well, but more so than that, I want to celebrate with all of the teams there. We’ve all won by making these strong steps towards the future.

When it’s over, I don’t know what my life will be because this has been my life. Saying bye to this family of mine will be sad, but I’m sure I’ll be glad for where we’ll be going next.

To everyone,
Preet