Welcome to the very first Engineering Diary! Every Friday I will be posting different topics related to engineering or lessons I have learned about life due to my career choices. I will share my experiences, give advice, share best practices, and share news that are engineering related so that we can both get something educational out of all of this. :)
Today's topic? Passion.
For some people, knowing what they want to be when they grow up is a no brainer. For those that don't...well majority of the time it can cause a lot of stress and many many headaches. So where do you start? How do you find what you are going to do for the rest of your life? Especially when you are just a kid in highschool and have more "important" things to do like hang out with friends. Easy...take a cue from those that know what they want to be...find out what it is that you love to do and pursue it. Okay okay, so you hear that all the time and are probably rolling your eyes at me. Well, there is a reason everyone says it. The whole purpose of life is to be happy! You can only acheive that by doing things that you enjoy doing.
With that in mind, let's get into what is the level of passion you need to make it in the engineering world.
1) Love to solve problems with creative solutions: Engineering gets broken down into many branches (civil, mechanical, aerospace, nuclear, etc.) but one thing they all share in common is their purpose. Engineers take everyday problems and find solutions for them no matter how big or small they are. If you don't like solving problems, this is not for you.
One thing I absolutely love about engineering is the fact that you can get extremely creative with your solutions. I like to think of engineers as artists. As a mechanical engineer for example, our main task is to take energy in any form and convert it to work. The possibilities of what you can do are basically endless with that basic definition. I feel that my company's slogan describes how we work best, "Imagination at work". We constantly have to find solution thinking outside the box.
2) Love math and science: There is just no way around this one! :/ You know how most kids complain in math class saying, "Why do I have to learn this? I will never use it" ? Yeah, we use all of it! Algebra, Calculus, Geometry, Trigonometry, Partial and Ordinary Differential Equations...all of it. If you hate dealing with math this is not for you. As far as sciences go, physics is a big one. It all depends on which branch you choose but for the most part physics and chemistry are two important ones. If you don't grasp basic concepts in these subjects you are in for a rough ride. Engineers take what science tells us is possible and make it a reality. So make sure you are on top of your game with your math and sciences!
3) Love the branch: As mentioned before, engineering gets broken down into many branches. When you choose the branch you want to be in you need to make sure you are ready to stomach talking about that field for breakfast, lunch, and dinner! This will be your world for the next 40 years or when ever you retire.
From a young age, I knew I wanted to work for NASA (will share my story on another diary) so that narrowed it down to mechanical engineering and aerospace engineering for me. Since I didn't know exactly what I wanted to do within NASA (I find space shuttles interesting but you need to specialize in a part of it. This is where I didn't know which module to pick) I choose the more general of the two as my main branch (mechanical). I then did a minor in aerospace engineering which is more specialized. Which by the way, the more specific your branch the more doors/opportunities you close off for yourself when it comes time to find a job because you aren't very versatile.
As I continued to go through college I narrowed down what I wanted to work on in the aerospace field. Airplanes fascinated me so I knew I would want to work closely with them. But planes have millions of parts that require many design engineers. So I had to narrow down even more what I wanted to work on. I had to think, "What is my favorite thing about airplanes?". Engines!!!! I took that route in my career. Thankfully, today I get to work with the #1 jet engine company in the world. So why am I sharing this? For the rest of my career I will have to stay up to date with new airplane models, engines, and competitors. Imagine if I didn't find airplanes interesting! I would be miserable. So just how I found a field I enjoy always, you need to make sure you enjoy what you pick.
4) Stress does not break me: Sorry to say this but being an engineer is extremely stressful! Don't think that once you graduate college and don't have to turn in homework anymore that your stress level goes down. Now is where the real stuff begins. As an engineer, chances are that you will be working on things that put other people's lives at risk. You make a mistake and it can be catastrophic. The amount of responsibility that you alone have is enormous. If you cannot handle that, this is not for you.
Despite the amount of responsibility though it is all worth it in the end. At least, I feel it is. You get to work with the latest technology and build things from that. Not to mention all the rad "toys" we get to play with. Stress is part of the fun. Engineering is in no way easy. You can spend 20 years working to become an expert at something and you will still be clueless. But if it were easy, everyone would do it. If you like a challange, then engineering is for you!
If you manage to get past all four points I listed above and still say, "heck yeah I want to be an engineer", then you have the passion to make it in the engineering world! You need to really love the field you want to work in completely because when times get rough that is the only thing that will get you through it in one piece. What drives you, your passion!
Hope you enjoyed my first diary entry. I hope to share my full story for next Friday's entry. If you have any comments or want me to answer something in particular just leave me a comment and I will get back to you.
XOXO,
Lina
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