The Importance of Knowing Your “Why”
I’ve worked with thousands of engineers throughout the world, and a common theme has emerged throughout that work: engineers want to see progress in their careers. We want to climb the corporate ladder faster. We want to get more done. We want to be happier and more successful. We want to improve. I think this […]
Why Professional Development never Ends for Engineers
I recently presented a half-day leadership seminar to a group of engineers in Mississippi. The seminar covered the basics of the most important business skills engineers should have namely: communications, productivity, leadership, and professional development. Thankfully, the seminar was well received. The feedback I got after the talk was very positive. As is often […]
What Bricklayers can Teach us About our Engineering Careers
I was recently reminded of a parable I had heard many years ago. In the story, there are three bricklayers working on a wall for a church. Someone asks the first bricklayer what he’s doing. He says, “I’m building a wall.” The second bricklayer is asked the same question and replies, “I’m building a church.” […]
One Small Trick for Making Big Decisions
Have you ever been in situations where you felt like making big decisions was impossible? Or have you ever gone all-in on a big decision just to find out you made a huge mistake? I’ve done both, and I’m sure I’m in good company. Paralysis by analysis is a terrible state to be in – […]
The Secret to Becoming an Innovative Design Engineer
I was recently listening to an interview with Ben Brenton, the Chief Innovation Officer of Snap-on Tools on the Everyday Innovator Podcast. During the interview, he said something quite profound about the way he spent his time. He said that he spends approximately four days a week on things related to customer interaction. That means […]
What a One-year Old can Teach Engineers about being Productive
When she was about one year old, my daughter, Charlotte, started mimicking what my wife and I did in a big way. If we did it, she wanted to do it. If I stirred my coffee, she wanted to stir her milk. If my wife went to play the piano, Charlotte wanted to play the […]
Systems Engineering and Thinking for Engineers: Three Ways to See the Bigger Picture
This may not come as a big surprise, but it takes a very different approach to engineering when you’re designing a space shuttle than when you’re designing a guitar amplifier (No offense, Marshall fans). The challenges and issues are simply different in nature when you tackle a mega-project. There’s more to integrate, there are more […]
The Fundamental Equation of Leadership for Engineers
This is a guest blog post by Pat Sweet, P. Eng. Leadership for Engineers. For most of us, seems to be one of those “you know it when you see it” kind of things. It’s hard to describe, but easy to notice. In effect we’ve all worked for great leaders, and we’ve all worked for […]
The Emotionally Brilliant Engineer
This is a guest post by Patrick Sweet, P.Eng., MBA, PMP, CSEP Over at my Engineering and Leadership blog, I tend to talk quite a bit about how business skills can be applied to the daily work of an engineer so thatengineers can be more productive, more purpose-driven, and more satisfied in their roles. Today, […]
