Why should I become a Leader? 8

[pandamon]

I'm an engineer and my dream is to design products that will provide solutions to problems our world faces.
Sometimes I question myself, why can't I just become a team member, why must I strive to be the leader of my team instead? Are there any benefits of becoming a leader? And will being a leader help make my dream come true?
I can see the draw backs alright, such as the extra responsibilities, time and sweat put in, but there's also benefits such as glory, but is there more to wanting to become a leader than just glory?
Why do people want to become leaders in the first place?

 

[GregLocock]

Because different personalities get their kicks in different ways.

The shouty ones enjoy shouting more than engineering, so they shout at everybody else that they too should want to be shouters, because shouter-wannabees are easier to motivate than engineers.

Me, I roll up for work, get paid less than the shouters, and have fun. My choice.

Cheers

Greg Locock


New here? Try reading these, they might help FAQ731-376

http://eng-tips.com/market.cfm?

 

[SWComposites]

"Are there any benefits of becoming a leader?" > well, you more or less get to have things done your way, and you don't have to put up with someone else's (pitiful, failed, etc) attempts at leadership ...

"And will being a leader help make my dream come true?" > maybe but likely not; its a job for cripes sake. how long have you been out of school?

"glory" > what the heck is that? its not a sporting event. yes, perhaps there is some "glory" to be had in some popular invention or such, but its rather few and far between in the engineering field. Better to strive for the respect of ones peers and a few important accomplishments along the way, have some interesting work, all the while earning enough to be able to have fun outside of work, support ones family, and have a decent retirement, etc.

 

[rowingengineer]

Are we going to have to define leader vs ma is nager again.

http://www.nceng.com.au/

"Programming today is a race between software engineers striving to build bigger and better idiot-proof programs, and the Universe trying to produce bigger and better idiots. So far, the Universe is winning."

 

[LiteYear]

I worked with a good leader once who explained it as rewarding because you could effect big things by leading a group, rather than only contributing one person's-worth of work.

If that, or the other reasons posted, don't motivate you then don't feel you have to strive for it. Plenty of people get their kicks out of being a team member instead.

 

[Ron]

Do you want to be the windshield or the bug?

 

[MadMango]

Not all Shouty ones are good leaders. Good leaders usually see the big picture, and can direct the right resources (people) at tasks so everyone involved can be successful and on time. There's a certain finesse required to direct people efficiently while not getting on everyone's bad side. Some people do not have the skills or personality to become leaders, and there's no shame in recognizing or accepting that fact. By not showing leadership potential, you may stay in your current position with no advancement, and watch your peers move up and on to greater things.

"Art without engineering is dreaming; Engineering without art is calculating."

Have you read faq731-376 to make the best use of these Forums?

 

[ivymike]

In the office where I currently work, some of the managers (I'm told) used to be fond of asking graduates during interviews whether it's better to be "right" or "in charge." Rumor has it that they only ever hired people who picked the latter. Interesting bunch around here.

 

[EngineerErrant]

In the office where I currently work, some of the managers (I'm told) used to be fond of asking graduates during interviews whether it's better to be "right" or "in charge."

This terrifies me on many levels, & I'm glad that I'd get cut from the candidate list.

Insofar as being a leader (drawing on rowingengineer's distinction), it's extraordinarily important to be able to give those less experienced/savvy/enterprising than yourself the guidance & inspiration they need to be productive, merely in the name of social responsibility. Trusting that someone else will figure out what needs to happen & communicate it effectively is a good way to wind up in an inextricably screwed up emergency situation when said hypothetical leader doesn't spontaneously appear. It's a skill you ought to practice.

Being a manager is optional - not everyone wants to tell other people what to do for a living. But being a leader is mandatory, for when someone's living depends on your ability to tell them what to do.

"Engineers like to solve problems. If there are no problems handily available, they will create their own problems." -Scott Adams

 

[ivymike]

to put a more positive spin on the question, it doesn't matter if you're right if you can't put the answer to use. The person who is in charge doesn't have to be right but he always decides what gets implemented (I don't think he is precluded from using the right answer he gets from someone else, assuming he can tell which answer it is).

 

[IRstuff]

"Why do people want to become leaders in the first place?"

Lots of different reasons:
> Because they got promoted, but they may or may not succeed at it
> Because they think they'll get "glory;" they won't
> Because they were told they should; they may or may not succeed at it
> Because they get as much satisfaction of running a group as you do in designing products

So, everyone has different reasons to do, or not do. That's completely up to you. If "designing products" include managing a team that designs products while you, yourself, does not participate in the actual design, only the conceptual design and steering thereof, then perhaps you could be a manager.

TTFN
faq731-376

 

[EngineerErrant]

ivymike: By the same logic, a person who isn't "in charge" isn't precluded from having their idea implemented, either. The important scenarios are the XOR, exclusionary ones; "Is it better to dictate implementation and be wrong, or to have the wrong implementation dictated to you and be right?"

And, despite it being the engineering equivalent of Godwin's Law, I'd be remiss in not mentioning the Challenger disaster as a great example of both - who would you have rather been at the end of the day, the engineering manager who told them to launch or the engineer who told them not to?

"Engineers like to solve problems. If there are no problems handily available, they will create their own problems." -Scott Adams

 

[SnTMan]

pandamon, I'd say if you are interested in being the leader for any other reason(s) than to make the team as effective as possible, you are doing it for the wrong reason(s).

Regards,

Mike

 

[beej67]

Leaders get paid more and get laid off last.

Hydrology, Drainage Analysis, Flood Studies, and Complex Stormwater Litigation for Atlanta and the South East -

http://www.campbellcivil.com

 

[FSS]

Leaders don't ask, they just do.

 

[Twoballcane]

“I'm an engineer and my dream is to design products that will provide solutions to problems our world faces.”
So are you saying you are not a leader? However, than this statement is counter to your opinion. Unless you are passive and just taking orders then this is not being a leader, but if you are proactive than these are the tale tale signs of leadership. If you get the problem, give it thought, go thru a few iterations, come up with a solution, and then convince the customer (or your boss and management) that this is the way to solve the problem. These are leadership skills. People are coming to you with a problem and you are leading them thru the maze of engineering and design to get them to a safe and profitable design. Engineering in essence is leadership (not management). If you don’t want to be a leader, just become passive and you will not go too far in your career and your dream.


Tobalcane
"If you avoid failure, you also avoid success."
“Luck is where preparation meets opportunity”

 

[KENAT]

And we're back to the management V leadership debate.

pandamon - are you really saying you don't want to be a 'leader' or that you don't want to become a full time manager/project manager?

Managers do tend to get paid more - though there are ways to get paid good money and stay technical. As to job security, I'm not sure I'd say management is safer - it depends on a lot of factors.

Posting guidelines faq731-376

http://eng-tips.com/market.cfm?

(probably not aimed specifically at you)
What is Engineering anyway: faq1088-1484​

 

[MiketheEngineer]

If you don't know - maybe you shouldn't (goes either way)

 

[Twoballcane]

I hear ya Kenat...there is always some dead horse to beat up again and again and again.....

Tobalcane
"If you avoid failure, you also avoid success."
“Luck is where preparation meets opportunity”

 

[IRstuff]

Lots of older and larger companies tend to have lots of layers of managers managing managers. One of the two layers is not safe. At one company, they cut out a layer, and the manager was hypothetically managing about 200 people.

TTFN
faq731-376