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?

 

[Nella95]

karlbamforth - a square peg will always fit in a round hole if you hit it hard enough

 

[PawelMaselko]

:

fall down 6 times
stand up 7 time

:


pozdrawiam

cad - designer
i-deas 11nx sworks 2006 ug nx 4.0

IMB InteliStation M Pro

 

[bushel3]

"Projects always get done, keep working and stop worrying."

 

[Strider17]

Advice from my father (also an engineer) when I
was considering careers: "There are two types
of jobs in the world. There is the type where
you take a shower before you go to work, and
there is the type where you take a shower when
you get home from work. You want the first kind...."

TL

The more you know, the more you
know you don't know....

 

[NickelMet]

In reflection on working for my uncle (an engineer) during college...

Don't be afraid nor ashamed to pick up and use a shovel. It is as important as using a computer, your brain, or a book full of information.

AND...

It's not the size of the wall that will stop you. It's the size of the sledgehammer you're using to break through it.

Think about it...it has only taken me 15 years to start realizing the importance of those thoughts.

Later
~NiM

 

[Cosimo]

Best advice ever, from my college geotech. professor:

You work with dirt, you make dirt.......You work with money, you make money.

 

[RikuY]

"Never trust an engineer who writes with a pen."

Not 100% true, but keeps me thinking about it...

 

[Ashereng]

If you can't pull the tree stump out with your cow, you don't make a bigger cow.

You go and get 2 cows.

The corollary: You go and get a tractor.

 

[boffintech]

oldrunner (Structural) wrote: "Write your letters and reports “idiot” style."

Would some one mind explaining this?

 

[ewh]

KISS?

 

[strokersix]

"The lazy man works twice as hard."

 

[HgTX]

Which translates into "rework costs more than taking the time to do it right to begin with". One of this morning's topics of discussion...

Hg

Eng-Tips policies: faq731-376

 

[RDK]

Strider17

I gave my son (now also am engineer) the same advice when he was in grade 9.

The occasion was take your child to work day and I was working on the reconstructing of a sewage treatment plant. We were standing in the control room watching some workers wearing hip waders up to their waists in sewage working on some equipment.

Nothing like a practical demonstration to drive home the point.


Boffintech

Write your reports idiot style. Most information can be translated at a grade 7 or 8 reading level. This will make sure that your information gets through to the majority of the people. While most people, especially those reading engineering reports, can read at a higher level this is the level of the most information transfer and reading comprehension.

You can check reading grade level with the spell checker in Word. Simply check the box in the spell check options to show the reading ease score after a spell check.

To lower the score use simpler words and simpler sentence structure.

This post has a reading grade score of 8.0


Rick Kitson MBA P.Eng

Construction Project Management
From conception to completion

http://www.kitsonengineering.com

 

[Maury]

A saying in our office is that we never have time to do a project right, but we always manage to find the time to do it over.

 

[dogleg43]

********************************************************
RE:"oldrunner (Structural) wrote: "Write your letters and reports “idiot” style."
********************************************************

I was taught to write letters as if the audience was a judge and jury. Make your points clearly even if you think your customer/vendor already understands the background. This way if a dispute arises you can refer to a a previous letter that clearly explains your position. Believe me, it works.

 

[berkshire]

Well guys,
Having checked all 255 replies up here, nobody mentioned a cute saying which is also good advice.
It came from a department head after a young engineer had messed up a project, twice, very rapidly.
" Speed is neat son, but right is final."
Brian Evans.

 

[SmartEngineer]

I can add the following:
- The first step of success is failure
- To success, love your work
- To have interest, learn something new everyday 7 leran others with what you know
- To enjoy your work, brainstorming & challange

cheers
SmartEngineer

 

[Ashereng]

Well, after all these years, now I get a great advise.

Go into optometry.
- a professional occupation
- most optometrists work for themselves
- great pay
- about the same amount of schooling required
- you work with "non-sick" people (just people with vision problems)
- a baby boomer mass that is getting older and weaker eyed

I wonder if it's too late?

 

[Sprocket59]

"When failure is not an option, success can get expensive."

 

[SmartEngineer]

“Science is too long, and life is too short"

SmartEngineer