young eng's 7

[macmet]

Hello everyone, I have a question that I have been meaning to ask for a while. I pick up points relating to it all the time in other threads but I'd like to start a seperate thread.

What mistakes do you see most often with young engineers? Is there a certain mindset most have that they have to get over to be successful, or perhaps a certain skill to work on?

I just started work and I've already noticed two problems I have to work on. First, I get flustered sometimes with having so many different things on the go. I'll start working on something then i'll check my email and get something related to another project and then all of a sudden i've started somthing new and left the first matter incomplete. Second, I have a hard time seperately personal and professional work. If I have a problem with something personal I find that often times it takes me a while to forget it and start work.

Are these common problems with younger eng's, or are these a matter more specific to me? I feel I do my job well, and feel as thought I'm making progress on these aspects but i still catch myself doing them often.

 

[ScottyUK]

It is very easy to go along with the "that's the way it's always been" line, especially when you are young. It takes a lot of confidence and sometimes a degree of pig-headed audacity, to say "yes, it's always been like that and it's always been wrong, and I'm going to change it" when you're the new boy (or girl) stood in front of all the old hands.

I've ruffled the feathers of most of the engineers and managers I work with at one time or another in efforts to change years of well-intentioned ignorance. Things might occasionally have gone more smoothly if I had a bit more diplomacy in my character; I haven't always got the recognition I deserved for some of my achievements because I'd bulldozered the opinions of too many people in reaching the target. Second bit of advice: learn a little diplomacy early on in your career.



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One day my ship will come in.
But with my luck, I'll be at the airport!

 

[HgTX]

"Make a decision. A wrong decision is better than no decision at all."

Only if there's a mechanism in place to catch your error before it kills someone.

Hg

Eng-Tips guidelines: faq731-376

 

[EngJW]

We wouldn't want to make a decision that would hurt someone or bankrupt the company, but there are a lot of wrong decisions you can make that will result in no more than a box of scrap parts and damage to your pride. In such cases, if you don't know what direction to take and you make the wrong choice, at least you make a step up on the learning curve and know what not to try next time. Sometimes projects never get finished, or started, because someone is afraid of a mistake.

 

[omby]

"Sometimes projects never get finished, or started, because someone is afraid of a mistake."

Yes, he who never makes a mistake, never makes anything.

As for wrong decisions, if you are able to give honest reasons why you chose to make a decision then people will respect you for your honesty.
Sometimes you have to hold your hands up and say "Yes, I f***ed up..." but to keep control of the situation its always good to quickly follow up with "... now heres what I'm going to do to rectify the problem..."

 

[HgTX]

Despite my previous post, I do believe that getting the decision made and moving things forward is important. There are ways to make decisions that, while maybe not "the right" ones, are still safe.

For example, if the answer is needed NOW, the answer can be "no, you can't do that". It might turn out not be true, but it won't jeopardize anyone's safety. This can be refined to "If you really need an answer now, then the answer is no, and you need to find a different way. If you want a better answer, you'll have to wait."

I've seen both sides of this. I've had to hold things up because my Expert Advisor is afraid to make a call on anything, and I've seen things go wrong because someone put speed ahead of thought in the name of Get The Decision made.

In this area, experience teaches several things:
1. How to judge when the decision really does need to be made NOW (because the person asking will *always* say it's dreadfully urgent).
2. Tricks such as the above for getting things moving in a way that may not be satisfactory for everyone but at least get things moving without major risk.
3. The ability to come up with the "right" answer on the spot in more and more situations as time goes on.

Hg

Eng-Tips guidelines: faq731-376

 

[Maui]

One of the characteristics that is consistent among "bad" engineers, whether they are newly graduated or experienced, is that they fail to learn from their own mistakes so they keep repeating them.

A characteristic that is common among "good" engineers is that they do learn from their own mistakes, so they don't repeat them.

Gifted engineers learn from the mistakes of others. They realize that they won't live long enough to make them all themselves.


Maui

Constants aren't; variables won't.

 

[EngJW]

Good point, Maui. Bad engineers become bad managers. Good engineers become bad managers because they have to conform to the status quo. Gifted engineers start their own companies.

 

[zcp]

First, mistakes often made by young engineers:

1) Thinking every problem has an immediate "cookbook" solution that doesn't require them to pick up a book and figure it out
2) Thinking there is a solution to every problem......sometimes you just have to go with your best / most reasonable solution. This goes along with the "just make a decision" ideas said by others
3) Overpromising.....when you are new, you have no idea how long it is going to take. So don't just nod your head to the "it should take you no more than two hours" that your boss or coworker said. That will put you behind because you will take on more than you can handle.
4) Not realizing that "the best you can do" IS good enough. Face it, the boss and engineers around you are overworked. They are going to pile on every little thing they can to get it from thier plate to yours. But you can only do as much as you can do. At this point you have to be honest with those around you (especially the boss) and learn how to say "no" / "enough"

Now, two pieces of advise that were given to me when I was a newbie...
1) At the end of every day, make a list of the five things you must get done tomorrow....then GET THEM DONE. This will require motivation and being able to say no as noted above. But I promise you, no single piece of advise will get you further in your career as an engineer.
2) Perception is reality......no matter how hard you work, no matter how many hours you put in, if you are seen as someone who comes in late / dresses sloppy / doesn't keep promises / fill-in-the-blank.......then THAT is how you will be perceived....especially at raise or promotion time.

Good luck and always keep in mind WHY you are working.

ZCP

http://www.phoenix-engineer.com

 

[EngJW]

"Engineering is the art of educated guessing"

 

[RDK]

Young engineers also often believe that they can have all the information to solve any problem.

In school you are ‘given’ the facts and then have to apply a process to these givens to arrive at a solution.

In the real world what is a given on the exam, is often the hardest thing to figure out or determine. You may not be able to get more than a range of numbers for a given and have to apply some sensitivity analysis to see just how important the assumptions are on the final outcome.




Rick Kitson MBA P.Eng

Construction Project Management
From conception to completion

http://www.kitsonengineering.com

 

[sns777]

Recently, I have thought a lot about what makes a person (not just engineers) successful. Two common characteristics come to mind when I look at successful people.

1. They are not afraid to be unconventional, "buck the system" or fail.

2. They do what they want/like to do and they don't do what they don't want/like to do. In other words, if it is not their "passion" or they don't have fun doing it, they won't do it.

That said, I have trouble being like this. I am afraid of failing and I believe you have to do things you don't like to do. That is probably why I am not a big successful person!

Gail

 

[wes616]

Gabbot,

Everyone is afraid of failing... the first (or second time). When you have failed at least three times, you get over it... realize that you win some and loose some...

Sometimes you have to do things you don't like to do (that is part of life). But you can make ANYTHING fun (just look a prison) :-D

Wes C.
------------------------------
There are no engineers in the hottest parts of hell, because the existence of a 'hottest part' implies a temperature difference, and any marginally competent engineer would immediately use this to run a heat engine and make some other part of hell comfortably cool. This is obviously impossible.

 

[liberoSimulation]

"The ones make mistakes are those who are working and the ones don't make mistakes are those who are not working"
Remember the following as well:
- If you need to get the trust from the management, you should be working logically and to be effective and efficient in the assignments you have been given.
- You should establish good communications with your team and boss as to get others help in your work.
- Organize yourself well by doing: To-do list daily and prioritize your activities and assignments with defined target dates; and making a proper filling of your documents.
- Be pro-active most of your time as to anticipate problems and any issues before happing, by this, you will be looked as an active engineer.
- Seek the experience of other people who know your field well.
- Get training, self-study courses, read books to gain knowledge and better skills

It is very generic subject to cover in lines, and I hope that I could add something of help to you.

Good luck

Cheers