Remember when you first arrived in Second Life and how it seemed so confusing? There was so much to learn, not just how to move and talk, but “How do I do really cool things?” and “Where do I fit in here?” Then you met someone. Some very talented resident took time away from the very important things they were doing to explain how Second Life works and helped you make sense out of all the possibilities. And now zoom back to the present. Now you are part of Second Life, helping to build an amazing new society. But there are still newbies arriving everyday. And they need that insight that someone gave you during your first challenging days. It’s time to pass it on. It’s time you became a Mentor.
On Monday, March 31, we are making history as we move the “Welcome Area” from Ritch to the new regions west of Lusk. This is a specially designed area dedicated to making the newbies feel welcome and offering newbies and vets the chance to gather for events.
As a part of this move we are planning a series of nightly mentor events and we are looking for a few great people to take on the challenge of enlightening the masses. We will start with three events each night, Monday through Friday, since that is when most of the newbies arrive. Each event should last only half an hour.
6:00 P.M. – Mentor Show-and-Tell - Your chance to tell your Second Life story. Start with what it was like in your first days. Describe how you found your own way in SL and what you are up to now; where you live, any group you are a part of, and your favorite SL activities. Show pics of your own place, other interesting buildings or events you’ve experienced and some of your friends. Display different avatar costumes if you are into that. The half-hour will go by quickly and you should allow time for the audience to introduce themselves and ask lots of very “basic” questions.
6:30 – Mentor Guided Tour – Find three cool locations in SL and create landmarks. Meet up at the “Guided Tour Starts Here” sign, introduce yourself and hand out the landmarks. At each stop, describe some background/history of the location, what makes it special as a building, and maybe something about who built it. Ask the tourists to introduce themselves and encourage them to ask questions. If you are proud of your own place, make that the last stop and offer refreshments.
7:00 – Mentor Mixer – You’d be surprised how easy it is to help the newbies learn about each other and have fun. Here are some of the party games that we have tested and that worked really well: Trivia contest (especially fun if based the profiles of the players); Best/worst Joke Contest; Truth-Truth-Lie (each player tells three things and others guess which is false); and Caption Contest – show a funny few pics and see who can yell out the funniest caption. Or do something of your own.
So, you are thinking, there must be a catch. In fact, there are a couple. There are only 15 event slots open and some of you magnificent people are going to want to do more than one event a week. So we are really looking for about 10 mentors. One more thing: you must have been in the world for at least one month.
Someone, somewhere, is going to ask – “Do I get Linden Bucks?” Being a mentor is it’s own reward – respect, admiration, and the inner glow that comes from knowing that you are doing the right thing.
There is only one first group of mentors and only one chance to be a part of this historic moment. You will never be forgotten.
We will start on Monday, March 31st. If you are interested, send your preferred event and day of the week (and any questions) to [email]mentor@lindenlab.com[/email].