In our days engineering is the art of working as less as possible for
good results. Which of course is not possible without background
knowledges and tons of fortune.
A succesfull engineer is an engineer which is doing exactly what is
want, and the term "success" has absolutely no connection with
"money". A happy engineer it's a succesfull engineer. A succesfull
career could be a career reasonable paid when you're not sleeping,
eating an making love in the office with your osciloscope, but at home
with your family.

greetings,
Vasile



On 6/23/06, G=F6khan SEVER <gstr2005@gmail.com> wrote:
>  "What Makes an Engineer Successful", by Walter W. Frey
>
> IEEE Potentials, Volume 16, Issue 5, December 1997 - January 1998
>
> After working as an engineer for over 35 years, I now conclude that a
> successful career depends on understanding what engineering is, academic
> performance, and personality. And these considerations are not all import=
ant
> for the right reasons.
>
> Engineering is the art of applying scientific principles to solve a probl=
em.
> It is not a separate area of science such as physics. Engineering projects
> are bound by three variables: the number of problems to solve, the funds
> available to solve these problems, and the delivery date of the finished
> items. The catch is you can only fix two of the variables, while the third
> is determined by the others.
>
> Although a modicum of academic performance is necessary to graduate, a hi=
gh
> GPA does not predicate a successful career. The real indicators for
> engineering performance reside in a person's personality traits, ability =
to
> think innovatively, and skill in interacting with others. Personnel
> departments (often for legal reasons) stay away from trying to rate these
> subjective areas and stick to easily quantified areas, i.e., "GPA, class
> standing, etc." Thus, many potentially good engineers are turned away due=
 to
> poor grades.
>
> The following subjective areas also are necessary for a successful
> engineering career:
>
> Curiosity - The desire to find out how things work, or why they don't. The
> engineer notes the good and the bad approaches to the problem.
>
> Perseverance - This trait is needed to stay with a problem even though the
> solution is not adequate or eludes or seems to fight the engineer. Howeve=
r,
> this must be not be carried to an extreme, i.e., it becomes a futile
> obsession. Also, oftentimes a problem will have to be temporarily shelved=
 to
> work on projects which will produce more immediate results.
>
> Self-confidence - The engineer knows his or her capabilities and problem
> areas; for example, he or she has a tendency to settle on the first solut=
ion
> that presents itself.
>
> Common sense - The ability to make decisions on partial or contradictory
> information. It is also used to balance perseverance against what is best
> for the overall program.
>
> Sense of humor - This trait is necessary to keep from getting depressed w=
hen
> the solution has been elusive and all sorts of irrelevant problems are
> obscuring the answer. Humor is also very useful in handling personality
> problems with subordinates and/or superiors.
>
> Ingenuity - This means the engineer is not limited to the "by the book" w=
ay
> of doing things. This person is open to unique or unproved solutions to
> difficult problems; he or she is willing to take a chance if the potential
> gains are great.
>
> Communication - Engineering is an occupation that depends on the exchange
> and interpretation of ideas. An engineer must be aware of how others have
> tried to solve a problem. This knowledge often presents itself when
> engineers get together arid talk shop. Very often, the solution requires
> merging the best parts of competing solutions into a unified approach.
> However, this is not the same as when, stuff is included just to keep
> everyone happy. This "team approach" typically results in mediocre produc=
ts.
>
>
> Luck - Luck is always useful since "no amount of planning will replace du=
mb
> luck." However, good planning and contingency planning often help or are
> confused with luck.
>
> Altogether, these eight attributes will more greatly affect one's
> performance as an engineer than his or her GPA.
>
> About the author - Walter W. Frey is an IEEE Life Senior.
> --
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