What is the best engineering advice you ever received? 205

[tulum]

I would like to continue engineerdaves series of threads; what frustrates you at work, and what satisfies you at work...

I just finished reading one of Donald Trumps books entitled "the way to the top". What he did was he asked the top executives across the US to submit the one single most important thing they learned to help them achieve businees success.

For example one qoute was (and is very applicable to engineering):

"Although you can't always control where you are planted-to which department or specific project you are assigned-you can control the experience while you are there...bloom where you are planted."

So my question to the forum is: What is the best engineering advice you ever received?

 

[HgTX]

And if "in bed" doesn't work for your particular fortune cookie (it works for most but not all), try "with a chainsaw".

Hg

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[KENAT]

So is anyone going to put these in a book or pamphlet and hand it out to new graduates!

Or on second thoughts would that scare them off before they've even started.

As for advice, despite what the written spec or requirement might say if at all possible get input from the end user, they might come up with some really great ideas/needs/requirements that aren't in the spec. (Obviously you have to be carefull about any financial/timescale impact and you can't put everything in but hopefully you get the idea)

Ken

 

[SylvestreW]

I work in a consulting company and my boss likes this one:

"Everyone who goes there is capable, and least partially, so really, getting hired comes down to who likes you."

I'd like to think the best people get hired but it's pretty obvious that the social aspect always wins, even (especially?) if the product/service isn't superior.

Makes me realize, it's easy for engineers to forget that those soft skills are sometimes more important than elegant designs/systems.

 

[Boothby171]

My boss told me something the other day that I thought was very helpful in being successful at whatever engineering job you have:

"Stop spending so much ^&%$%^&@ time on the Internet, and get some of your ^&%$%^&@ work done!"

 

[VeryPicky]

Do your best, expect the worst...

Putting Human Factor Back in Engineering

 

[VeryPicky]

Integrity is what you do when nobody watches...

Putting Human Factor Back in Engineering

 

[Maui]

"The tool you make is only as good as the heat treatment that it receives."

I have given this advice to customers for well over ten years, and will continue to do so for the balance of my career.

Maui

 

[SnTMan]

Advice I wish I'd gotten:

Design engineering is the process of discovering what the company thinks it sold and what the customer thinks he bought.

Regards,

Mike

 

[PMR06]

You can't polish a turd!

 

[VeryPicky]

That's why we drink coffe...BTW interesting task.

Putting Human Factor Back in Engineering

 

[rnip]

Enjoy life while you can, don't wait till you're too old to try to reach for your dreams.

 

[Ashereng]

Just read this one:

Each generation seems to inherit not only new knowledge but also new ignorance. Thus far, our generation has been supremely confident about our new knowledge. The really interesting question that remains is the exact nature of our ignorance.

"Do not worry about your problems with mathematics, I assure you mine are far greater."
Albert Einstein
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[MechNorth]

I was working engineering support for the first time after about 3 months at a new company. I literally was running around trying to get stuff done so it didn't have to be passed on to the next guy. I got a call from the Refurb group with an urgent support issue, so I ran into the shop & said "OK, what's up?" to a group of maybe a dozen people, including my manager, another manager, and their boss. My boss later took me aside and gave me this sage advice..."Take your time to get to know the guys you're working with. You'll get more information and better participation in the future if they know you care about them as people. If the work gets passed on to the next person on Support, that's not a problem." It seemed like a kick in the seat then, but I've passed the same advice on to others since then.

Jim Sykes, P.Eng, GDTP-S
Profile Services
CAD-Documentation-GD&T-Product Development

http://www.profileservices.ca

 

[satchmo]

When you are asked how long it will take to complete a project you have just been given:

If you are not sure how to do it, take your best guess and multiply by 8.

If you are sure how to do it, take you best guess and multiply by 4.

Daily disruptions and minutiae always make things take longer than you think they will.

 

[KENAT]

The above are good for 'calendar dates' for actual work hours (I assume 'man hours' is too un PC) they can be reduced slightly.

 

[FOETS]

Any fool can produce a complex solution to a problem. It takes real genius to make it simple.

FOETS
"social drinker with a golfing problem"

 

[CADALL]

The secret to art is knowing when to stop

http://www.illustrativedesigns.com

Product Designer of Contract

 

[MALK]

A ringing phone is a request.

Walk like you've got somewhere to go.

 

[GregLocock]

"If you understand what you're doing, you're not learning anything."

Cheers

Greg Locock

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[winpop123]

Best advice: stay in school and become a medical Dr. instead!