|
| 1 | +--- |
| 2 | +title: "How to interact with new community |
| 3 | +members" |
| 4 | +--- |
| 5 | + |
| 6 | +{{< notice warning >}} |
| 7 | +This is a draft document. |
| 8 | +{{< /notice >}} |
| 9 | + |
| 10 | +As a maintainer, you will be the first point of |
| 11 | +contact for new community members. It is important |
| 12 | +to embody a positive and helpful force for the |
| 13 | +health of your community. |
| 14 | + |
| 15 | +### Be welcoming |
| 16 | + |
| 17 | +Always behave in a manner that is polite, patient, and understanding. |
| 18 | +Many contributors are acting on their own time so |
| 19 | +try to create an environment that is energizing, |
| 20 | +not draining. Don't forget that on public forums, |
| 21 | +potential new contributors will be monitoring |
| 22 | +the community dynamic before getting involved! |
| 23 | + |
| 24 | +Use language to show that you are excited and |
| 25 | +grateful about their contributions to the project. |
| 26 | +Avoid saying things that could be construed as |
| 27 | +meaning otherwise or being too short. |
| 28 | + |
| 29 | +Many first-time contributors are intimidated and |
| 30 | +nervous about making mistakes, so keep in mind for |
| 31 | +both you and them that mistakes are natural and |
| 32 | +part of the learning process. Assure and empower |
| 33 | +them with your help and mentorship so that they |
| 34 | +feel supported and comfortable contributing to the |
| 35 | +project. |
| 36 | + |
| 37 | +### Provide resources, not solutions |
| 38 | + |
| 39 | +While some level of shepherding is needed, be |
| 40 | +careful not to micro-manage contributors, as it |
| 41 | +hinders the learning process and can be |
| 42 | +frustrating for both parties. First offer guidance |
| 43 | +before using more hands-on approaches, for example, |
| 44 | +try talking a contributor through the changes |
| 45 | +they need to make instead of typing the solution |
| 46 | +for them. |
| 47 | + |
| 48 | +For tasks that may be too advanced or daunting for |
| 49 | +a first-time contributor, such as comprehensive |
| 50 | +testing, benchmarking, or doc-building, offer to |
| 51 | +handle that part or to lend your support while |
| 52 | +they try it themselves. |
| 53 | + |
| 54 | +Avoid excessive nitpicking as requesting constant |
| 55 | +small changes can be discouraging to a new |
| 56 | +contributor. Instead, you can make a follow-up PR |
| 57 | +after the merge to fix these or use an opinionated |
| 58 | +formatter, such as |
| 59 | +[`black`](https://github.com/psf/black), to handle |
| 60 | +most style-related nitpicks. |
| 61 | + |
| 62 | +### Recognize contributions |
| 63 | + |
| 64 | +Remember that contributions are a good thing that |
| 65 | +should be celebrated and encouraged. Communicate |
| 66 | +your appreciation for the work your community |
| 67 | +members are doing and connect the impact their |
| 68 | +contributions have to your project's goals and how |
| 69 | +it will help many others. |
| 70 | + |
| 71 | +By providing a positive contributing experience, |
| 72 | +you can create a positive feedback loop where |
| 73 | +community members enjoy and want to continue their |
| 74 | +amazing contributions to your project! |
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