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?

 

[Tobalcane]

Jims99
I would say that you should pick any two. Just doing analysis with out correlation can come back and bite you in the butt.


Go Mechanical Engineering
Tobalcane

 

[BLadewig]

"There will be a five dollar charge for answering any question you could have Googled yourself."

Written on the whiteboard just outside the door to my cubicle. Sometimes I idly wonder how many people have turned away to try it themselves before coming in to ask something.

 

[jmw]

Ah! memory returns... the quote is from St Ignatius Loyola.

JMW

http://www.viscoanalyser.com

Eng-Tips: Pro bono publico, by engineers, for engineers.

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips Fora.

 

[Tunalover]

Understand the principles. If you understand the principles, then the details will come easily.

Tunalover


Tunalover

 

[PSE]

Build it as if you were going to buy it.

Regards,

 

[GSC]

To stupid questions you can only get stupid answers.

GSC

 

[Sparweb]

There is no such thing as a stupid question!

I've recently been embroiled in an attempt to procure hi-tech safety ropes that must be spliced just so.... Everybody said they could do it, some said they've done it a million times in the past. When it came time to splice, nobody has succeeded.

The manufacturer of the basic ropes changed their product design, and none of the people splicing them realized the impact this would have on their ability to splice it. I asked some of the right questions, but I didn't ask enough of those "stupid" questions - the ones we are afraid to ask for fear of offending someone.

There are stupid times to ask certain questions - moments where exposing your ignorance destroys all your credibility, for example. Tactfulness... a quality that eludes some engineers, particularly young ones...


Steven Fahey, CET
"Simplicate, and add more lightness" - Bill Stout

 

[HgTX]

Not a piece of advice I've received but a response to SparWeb. Sadly, I've learned not to worry about insulting people's intelligence. Specify and double-check everything. I also tell people not to worry about insulting my intelligence when reporting something to me. I'd rather have detail in the report that I already knew than have to get back to them later to get the missing information. The only way to really insult my intelligence is to assume that what I don't know can't hurt me.

If one really is concerned about seeming insulting, the question can be phrased like, "You already know about XYZ, right?"

Hg

 

[GeneratorGrrl]

One of the most valuable pieces of advice given to me was "Walk and listen." This was told to me by my mentor, who ran the boiler room where I took my steam time. Every morning before starting any other tasks, he would walk around and listen to the environment - not only to the machinery, but also to the people. In this way, he often got forwarning of any trouble brewing, mechanical or otherwise.

I've followed this advice and its proven its worth for me as it did for him.

Good thread.

 

[InspEngr]

Don't burn bridges.

You never know if the company you're leaving today (hopefully for better pay/advancement) is the company you may want (or need) to work for tomorrow.

-InspEngr

 

[Stripper2]

You don't know what you don't know... Ask lots of questions from anybody and everybody.

 

[PSE]

For newly minted engineers or hires (on technological "arrogance").

Don't make the boss look like an idiot (even if they might be one) you won't be forgiven by anyone in management. Yes you might know the latest techniques and technologies but you also will need to learn how to integrate into the existing corporate culture. Listen and learn first.

Regards,

 

[joekm]

Just recently I was told this:

"At the end of the day, all an engineer really has is his personal integrity."

It is very easy to lose that in practice. Customers will put financial pressure on you to make a more expedient decision. Sometimes your own employer will put pressure on you to go against your better judgement. At other times - and this can be very subtle - they will even try to manipulate your ego to get you to bend thier way.

The thing is, when all is said and done, all you've got to rely on is your honest-best judgement. It's one thing to be wrong (and there will be times when you will be wrong), but it's quite another to get pressured into compromising your best engineering judgement. Once that line has been crossed, the same people will pressure you to cross it again and again and again.

 

[JPatten]

Stay away from the person who feels the need to tell you how good they are and tells you about all the great things they did on the last project.

 

[GeneratorGrrl]

JPatten, you just described our weekend relief operator.... the one nicknamed "Mr. Incompetance"

"Eat well, exercise regularly, die anyways."

 

[Ron]

Don't measure with a micrometer that which will be marked with a crayon then cut with an axe.

If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck...it's probably a duck.

 

[DRWeig]

My first mentor said over and over again, "Cover yer butt. Don't ever forget to consider the downside of every design decision."

Although being in the real world with the sword of lawsuits hanging over me is depressing enough, that fellow's advice has kept me out of the courtroom for almost thirty years now....

Occam's Razor is nice too.

Peace all,

Old Dave

 

[imagitec]

"Don't go into programming. Programmers don't make any money."

(circa 1989)

Rob Campbell, PE
Finite Monkeys -

http://www.livejournal.com/users/robcampbell

 

[sprintcar]

Some of my favorites in no particular order with apologies for dupicates

Coworkers:
"Never get mad at the person - get mad at the situation"
"TACT is the ability to tell someone to go to hell such that they look forward to the trip" (Also saying 'nice doggie' until you can pick up a rock....)

Team Building: "Rule #10 - have some fun"

Engineering:
"ATTN: SALES... Good - Fast - Cheap .... Pick 2"
"Two things that are not the same are different"
"Experience is a hard teacher - it gives the Test first, then the lesson"

Ethics:
"Integrity is doing the right thing when nobody is watching"
"Part of your job is to keep your boss's boss of your boss's back"




Keep the wheels on the ground
Bob
showshine@aol.com

 

[vt001]

Hi,

I've really enjoyed this thread. I was wondering if anyone would mind if I copy some of the really good ones down and put them into our little news pamphlet that my branch of the South African Institution of Civil Engineers (SAICE)distributes every month? I would of course make reference to the fact that the golden nuggets came from the Eng tips website.

Regards,