Gems of Wisdom

Make sure that you can find the spec sheets for the parts that you buy

Make use of the free lab parts

Foam core and hot glue are your friends!!!

If you have spent more than an hour debugging the same thing, either move on or ask for help.

Keep all of your wires clipped so that you do not accidentally short parts in the circuit.

Test early with your actual power supply.

Put electronic parts in their final configuration early.