Advice for Young Engineers

What would help you succeed in your career and life?

• Seeing the big picture on projects.

• Executing your tasks on time & budget.

• Developing people skills.

Or you can destroy your career.

It is great you have a technical degree. But what will advance your career are people skills. Be 10-15 minutes early. Meet people and find out about them. Work with customers and co-workers on their (or your) bad days to still get things done. Try to understand what the customer and your management really needs.

Be disciplined at work. Show up, work urgently, make promises conservatively, deliver early, be human, take feedback and adjust.

Learning how to communicate, marketing, project management and problem solving skills are great investments. My best contributions have often been asking good questions, not having all the answers.

Understand finance and accounting. Decisions are made based on value.

Protect your career by continuously learning. Get a Master's degree at night. Especially if your company pays for it. If they don’t, get the Masters at the lowest cost possible. Who needs more student loans?

Live within your budget. There will be times you can’t find a project and will have to live off savings. 40 years of working for the same company does not always work out. Planned to stay in my hometown, but actually working in state #7. Savings also lets you buy houses and make investments to retire or start your own business.

Have a life outside of work. Volunteer, make friends, raise good kids, help others, and give back. This is why you work hard, and what you will value in life.

Don’t Say You Can Do Anything

Advise for job hunters. Don’t say you can do anything. That is not true and will delay your finding your next job.  

Most people looking for jobs find accidental jobs. Hey that store is looking for grocery clerks. You could do that.

Not every job will fit you. I have a fear of heights. There is no way I would be a great roofer for instance. Being productive requires comfort at your work.

Instead look at your experiences. What are you good at? Even better, what are you great at? Think about your successes, and all the actions you took to contribute to your team.

Then break down the different skills you have from those experiences. Your old industry may be in the dumps, but almost every business needs those same skills your old job did.

Then start searching for new careers that need your talents. Many new jobs did not exist 5 or 10 years ago. Widen the scope of your search, but stay focused for a few positions.

Your career will go further if you use your best talents.