How do you stay motivated? 14

[Leftwow]

As I approach my PE test I find myself with books and time in front of me, yet I can't get motivated. Any ideas or suggestions?

 

[JAE]

Perhaps you chose engineering...poorly?
If you don't have enthusiasm for your chosen profession I would be concerned that you are in the wrong profession.

Getting licensed as an engineer was one of my primary goals in my career and it meant furthering my ability to provide engineering services, earn more money for my family, and grow in knowledge and abilities.



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[JohnRBaker]

For me personally, the fear of poverty was always a good motivator...

John R. Baker, P.E. (ret)
EX-Product 'Evangelist'
Irvine, CA
Siemens PLM:
UG/NX Museum:

The secret of life is not finding someone to live with
It's finding someone you can't live without

 

[kacarrol]

I have a book on my shelf "Becoming a Master Student" which has some great tips on how to regain focus and get the most out of your studying. My copy is old...Canadian third edition...the tips are still good. For instance, it can be daunting looking at one huge task relatively undefined task (ie study for the exam) but if you break it down into smaller "bite size" pieces, measurable pieces, you may have an easier time getting started (ie today I plan to complete three chapters of a particular text book). Set time lines and achievable goals, and cross them off so you have a visual display of what you have accomplished to help keep you motivated.

A recent study shows that the most productive people work for 52 minutes, then take 17 minute breaks.

 

[msquared48]

I chose not to fail. And I didn't.

Mike McCann, PE, SE (WA)

 

[Leftwow]

awe come on JAE you are my favorite.

 

[JNieman]

You're probably young if you're just coming to your P.E. exam.

Consider how many years are ahead of you. Are satisfied to plateau right now?

I don't know if I'll ever change my mind. Maybe eventually I just stop associating age into the equation but: I am far too young to stop growing and advancing. I don't want my career to "stay the same" for the rest of my life, based upon today. I love what I do and where I'm at but a huge factor in that is my continued education and professional growth.

What doors will be closed to you if you don't pass?

 

[TheTick]

Stop asking yourself if you feel like working, and work.

 

[JAE]

Leftwow - I guess I just wasn't sure why you think you aren't motivated.

One of the things that has personally affected me over the years is that I discovered that I do love to get up in the morning and go to work.
The old saying: "If you love what you do you'll never work a day in your life." always seemed to apply to me attitude.

There were days, and sometimes weeks, when I was working on something that wasn't all that fun and did make it hard to get motivated.
Money, food, etc. are certainly motivators in a way, but taking the PE exam (I've taken PE, SE1 and SE2) all were challenges that I found I was naturally motivated to take on.

For you not being motivated to prepare for the PE could be caused by many things so I guess I was a bit too abrupt with my response...my apologies.





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[TehMightyEngineer]

For me the problem wasn't getting motivated but rather avoiding getting distracted. A lot of "I shouldn't be looking at eng-tips right now..." moments during my studies.

Professional and Structural Engineer (ME, NH, MA)
American Concrete Industries

http://www.americanconcrete.com

 

[IRstuff]

Perhaps a lesson from method acting; act like you're motivated, and you might feel motivated.

TTFN (ta ta for now)
I can do absolutely anything. I'm an expert!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKorP55Aqvg

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[ornerynorsk]

I heard an old timer once say, "Ain't nobody else gonna pull them bootstraps for you, now get to work!"

It is better to have enough ideas for some of them to be wrong, than to be always right by having no ideas at all.

 

[fel3]

I suspect Leftwow's lack of motivation applies only to studying for the PE exam, rather than to engineering as a profession. Some people dread tests and test preparation more than other people, often because they overwhelm themselves with too much preparation instead of efficient preparation. It may have nothing to with love/ambivalence/hate of profession. Other people just get too nervous when confronted with tests and that kills their motivation. I learned years ago to handle the nervousness by telling myself, "It's only a test (of the Emergency Broadcast System). There's nobody dying on the operating room table." The right frame of mind is worth a lot of points on the final score.

When I was getting ready to take the California Civil PE in 1983, I created a realistic study schedule that focused on efficient preparation and avoided taking over my life. This was especially important because I had a wife and toddler at home (still have the wife and the toddler is now a mother of two herself). Except for one week down and out with the flu, I stuck to my schedule.
[ul]I limited my study materials exclusively to Lindeburg's PE review manual…well, darned near exclusively. I made this decision after watching a co-worker/friend run himself ragged preparing for the test the previous year. This guy is the best technical engineer in my age group that I have ever worked with. He's smarter than me, but he made several bad decisions related to his preparation. Oh, he passed the test the first time, but until he got his results he thought he had failed and failed badly. Here is what he did wrong: [1] he bought three different review manuals and went through them all, and [2] he took a 12-Saturday review class at a university 90 miles away and across the Los Angeles metro area. He also had a wife and toddler at home at the time.[/ul]
[ul]When it was my turn, he loaned me two bankers boxes full of his review materials. To be polite I took them, but I didn't even look at them except to note what was in the boxes. I had already decided that Lindeburg's manual was better than the other two he had bought.[/ul]
[ul]Here is what I did instead. My Lindebrug's manual had 17 chapters, so I set up an 18-week schedule. On Tuesday night (after my daughter went to bed) I would read a chapter and take notes. This usually took about about an hour. On Thursday night (again, after my daughter went to bed) I would work through the example problems in the chapter, which also took about an hour. Then, on Saturday (during my daughter's afternoon nap time), I would work on the problems at the end of the chapter. This took anywhere from less than an hour to about two hours. Wash, rinse, repeat the next week. I had set aside an 18th week for a "flip the pages review". However, since I lost a week due to illness, I compressed the last week's chapter to Tuesday and Thursday night, did a quicky review on Friday, then took the test on Saturday. BTW, if I ever finished early for one of my study sessions, my reward to myself was time to write programs for my HP-41 calculator for topics in that chapter.[/ul]
[ul]When all was said and done, I felt perfectly prepared AND well-rested. The California Civil PE in those days was 8 word problems in 8 hours. You were given 20 optional problems and 1 mandatory seismic problem to choose from, show your work, and partial credit is scored. As I worked through my 8 problems I kept a running tally of how I thought I scored on each one. Halfway through the afternoon, I knew I had already reached the cut score, which was a big boost of confidence.[/ul]

I hope this helps. Good luck.

==========
"Is it the only lesson of history that mankind is unteachable?"
--Winston S. Churchill

 

[HamburgerHelper]

Hang around someone that has a PE license and is an a--hole. They will rub it in to no end.

 

[SLTA]

I love engineering. I hated studying for and taking the PE. But gosh it was worth it, and I've had my own company for almost 6 years now.

Good luck!

Please remember: we're not all guys!

 

[fairlane46]

I found this INCREDIBLY helpful getting ready for my FE:

YouTube: Marty Lobdell - Study Less Study Smart

Its a little long but the advice is logical, effective and comfortable.

 

[zelgar]

Reasons to be motivated to study for the P.E. exam:
1. You've already paid to take the test and for the testing materials.
2. Potentially more employable, eligible for promotion/raise
3. Future possibilities (e.g., business ownership)
4. It's better than watching reruns on TV
5. P.E. can do some things that other engineers cannot legally do
6. Given all things are equal, a P.E. will probably stay employed longer than a non-P.E. during layoffs
7. May be required to maintain current job
8. It's easier to study alone, than with an infant that is <6 weeks old & mommy just went back to work (promise me, I know)

Even if a P.E. isn't needed for your job, having it gives you a lot more employment possibilities than a non-P.E. I work for a State agency where a P.E. is not required, but every few years management indicates they're considering requiring all of the engineering positions to have a P.E. For myself, since I have my P.E. I don't have any anxiety when these things are announced, but the non-P.E. do get a worried look.

 

[djm883]

zelgar,

Another reason that should be added to your list would be to not have to retake the exam.

I know several engineers that struggled with passing the first couple of tries. They felt there was more pressure every time they would have to take it again.

 

[Jboggs]

Hunger - in all its many meanings.

 

[ScotchWhisky]

Discipline not motivation