The other night I had the pleasure of attending the Young British Arrows awards—a first for me and the award! Amongst the glitz and glam of the enviously employed, were some fellow SCA survivors: BOAT. (Or at least some of BOAT). 

Double parked with lukewarm Prosecco, we began to interrogate our predecessors, eager to know what might lie in store for us after SCA and how to navigate the occasionally rough seas of school life.

So, below is a collation of BOAT’s top three tips for hacking the SCA.

Number 1: Have Fun With It.

The word that pinged around us most was fun. Have fun. Once we’re out in the real world we probably won’t be able to seriously pitch chrome dildos to Hyundai (Fred and Rob have the right approach already), or burning bibles to Hasbro (I’m learning…). So let’s just have some bloomin’ fun. Marc and the mentors can always pull us back, rein us in, temper our ideas; it’s our job to take the idea to that furthest point. And that point is where the most fun usually happens.

Number 2: When Your Brain Stops, Stop. 

Like a (skinned) kiwi we are best fresh. When you hit the moment—and you’ll know when you’ve hit it—where your brain starts to feel like a blitzed kiwi and your ideas are leaking out in a putrid brown dribble, stop. For everyone’s sake, just stop. Go for a walk, see something new, or watch something mindless on YouTube, just make sure you’re switching off entirely. Don’t focus on collecting dots (if they’re there to be collected your clever little subconscious will do so), just quiet your mind and give your head some breathing space. You’ll be so much fresher when you return to the drawing board. 

Number 3: The Mentor Isn’t Always Right.

Yes, the mentors are very knowledgeable. Yes, the mentors are very useful. Yes, you should speak to mentors as much as possible. But you don’t have to follow their advice. It’s a classic case of “if Pete told you to jump off a cliff would you?” It can be tempting after he’s killed your fifth baby in fifteen minutes but the answer should, of course, be no. If you have an idea you really believe in, go with it. Mentor meetings should always involve some red-hatting: trust your gut. And when you get to know the mentors better, you’ll know who to go to for which things. Want your baby quickly killed? Pete’s your man. Want your baby nurtured and grown? Go to Mike. 

So, thank you to the Young British Arrows for having us, and thank you to BOAT for sharing your seeds of wisdom. 

@bryonystreets