tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-834107139978248122023-11-16T04:08:46.902-08:00Rockstar EngineerI'm an engineer... and that's no excuse for acting like one. You shouldn't either.Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-37493043032174218832020-03-26T11:23:00.002-07:002022-04-11T13:54:48.812-07:00Be an Online Meeting Rockstar<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrX26ICiLUl8qbPBQgfmkmekf8UEdhms-TXjkFjKu_crdD_aeOig9kT3iHe2u60tXqugC5g_W7T8kgrgKH9AiE8lrqXxT1C2RSOhW7GkZG3yvaFZOweG6PRFNrX-Oyqdwt3blWl0TPKIo/s1600/NoWebcam.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1289" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrX26ICiLUl8qbPBQgfmkmekf8UEdhms-TXjkFjKu_crdD_aeOig9kT3iHe2u60tXqugC5g_W7T8kgrgKH9AiE8lrqXxT1C2RSOhW7GkZG3yvaFZOweG6PRFNrX-Oyqdwt3blWl0TPKIo/s320/NoWebcam.png" width="320" /></a></div>
It’s a pandemic… and I’m not talking about COVID-19.<br />
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But it is related.<br />
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We are in a cycle of more and more people meeting online. Along with that, we are in a cycle of more and more people hurting their “brand” through bad video.<br />
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But help is available… and it’s easier than you might think!<br />
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A quick side note to my friends and colleagues in the engineering community: a big part of my life outside of engineering and metrology involves live production video. Here’s a shot of me video directing a multi-camera event.. 5 cameras, music video-styled shots and pacing. It's a blast!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbeIJs6HDwG1KCqWJmw0hM4WIBmaTQgqj5RT1Q4qSUGEreretWJhjXd8PregYsZaTGhuxpJfK-tVgUPxiILxrKk58SU8RogrIoHO9cjsLxjI_tYItS0nIJx9mPanTkenmb0Um9Y8PPC4o/s1600/VideoDirecting.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbeIJs6HDwG1KCqWJmw0hM4WIBmaTQgqj5RT1Q4qSUGEreretWJhjXd8PregYsZaTGhuxpJfK-tVgUPxiILxrKk58SU8RogrIoHO9cjsLxjI_tYItS0nIJx9mPanTkenmb0Um9Y8PPC4o/s320/VideoDirecting.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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So, let’s take a few, quick lessons from the production video world to help make you look like a rockstar in your next WebEx, Skype, Teams, Zoom, GoToMeeting, TeamViewer or whatever kind of online meeting you wind up in.</div>
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First off, let’s get the camera on your eyeline. In fact slightly above your eyeline is even better for a web meeting. (More on the “slightly above” in a minute.)</div>
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Basically, don’t be this guy:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE23pNc56NDWPzXkNlVP9m0aepGnRqKOTSAmejYBn7jb1GRT0CzXvzntwpK4Y2kiYpsrfspmGGKw_rFttY8bb567oppjI-_ue0OsbKUMdJ47-d8xSc6ab4HpYXXyl6QO193lzUB_6lmrw/s1600/Slouch2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="631" data-original-width="1600" height="156" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE23pNc56NDWPzXkNlVP9m0aepGnRqKOTSAmejYBn7jb1GRT0CzXvzntwpK4Y2kiYpsrfspmGGKw_rFttY8bb567oppjI-_ue0OsbKUMdJ47-d8xSc6ab4HpYXXyl6QO193lzUB_6lmrw/s400/Slouch2.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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Even if you just cleaned your ceiling fan… WE DON’T CARE!!! </div>
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This is a bad image and it conveys a bad view of you to those in the meeting.</div>
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There are three problems with this image: </div>
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1.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>You will look short and insignificant. This gives people that perception that you are small. It can subtly carryover to the notion that your opinions and your value is small.</div>
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2.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>You are in a slouched position and your voice box will be affected. Have you ever seen an opera singer slouch while singing? No! Vocal projection comes from posture. To have a strong voice, have strong posture.</div>
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3.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>People are often self-obsessed with their chins. I personally have several. Slouching makes this worse. </div>
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So, let’s get our cameras up high so that we can sit up high.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeQIqUDjzq5yMHzTi3Lij3qm91sPD-nckYTWHNfDw_vXK9E4nQShyphenhyphenKsXHcS7I2Goi6t5vJ-2uHmFzPZF3MR8fpGeM0BEoOvUNM1DeOeWZDhTCtVBqSEUXmmectPHU9Hm30WfMFhEOsakQ/s1600/HighCamera.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeQIqUDjzq5yMHzTi3Lij3qm91sPD-nckYTWHNfDw_vXK9E4nQShyphenhyphenKsXHcS7I2Goi6t5vJ-2uHmFzPZF3MR8fpGeM0BEoOvUNM1DeOeWZDhTCtVBqSEUXmmectPHU9Hm30WfMFhEOsakQ/s320/HighCamera.png" width="267" /></a></div>
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Have you ever noticed how TV cameras are always at eye level? Yeah, that’s on purpose. It gives the appearance of confidence and importance. Check out our friend Lester here on NBC…</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI5beV7gY3CtLPPRy1NoC7Aj1rZIOq67dDydEjbUx2gwswKl7hdUa74sAch6jxcqNWqMWcat3JgMEqdDi0y8H998FUYXQN8-mIGVgxm_6EIcZh1mcSJ8nbvzi7ieDB9mFqxNmHFv739GM/s1600/Lester.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjI5beV7gY3CtLPPRy1NoC7Aj1rZIOq67dDydEjbUx2gwswKl7hdUa74sAch6jxcqNWqMWcat3JgMEqdDi0y8H998FUYXQN8-mIGVgxm_6EIcZh1mcSJ8nbvzi7ieDB9mFqxNmHFv739GM/s320/Lester.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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Now that we’ve got our cameras in a good position… please don’t
make the ultimate rookie move.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgso6Y5p8zQFgaJFzJYndgUk8IC7gZjJ2FUuvLOgsgtbygtxrs3kR5aIp-KpeR7WkdItOIvEVzqKHjEolscUTfLt4sCeJnmUOWa7TVBCQlpMLYokGakIL2_rwhRgN2F_6RuAWI5r7cpomE/s1600/Headroom.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="108" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgso6Y5p8zQFgaJFzJYndgUk8IC7gZjJ2FUuvLOgsgtbygtxrs3kR5aIp-KpeR7WkdItOIvEVzqKHjEolscUTfLt4sCeJnmUOWa7TVBCQlpMLYokGakIL2_rwhRgN2F_6RuAWI5r7cpomE/s400/Headroom.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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In video production, there is
a thing called “headroom”. It separates the
rookies from the pros. Headroom (or lack
thereof) is what makes Lester (above) look important. Unfortunately, many cameras put a visual “target”
in the middle (see the yellow square above) and it can drive you to make some
really bad images.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT7mnkZ5T5FzVto3se-kKxZ_ZAKsQNHQuGZAX9Tcx2DJbHHx0jl3lCluBlzDIBAhbEf4nB_rkmsnaMFsdMkplGwpGs6GGhFiUNHvC-EDbPTYCGAzQSj6Wbfr7Lf4YeJAWM86VFsIjYW3Y/s1600/Letter.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT7mnkZ5T5FzVto3se-kKxZ_ZAKsQNHQuGZAX9Tcx2DJbHHx0jl3lCluBlzDIBAhbEf4nB_rkmsnaMFsdMkplGwpGs6GGhFiUNHvC-EDbPTYCGAzQSj6Wbfr7Lf4YeJAWM86VFsIjYW3Y/s320/Letter.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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A bonus tip:<o:p></o:p></div>
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Put your online viewing window near
your camera. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYqKDIczZXqNHpoMaaqWeDifzuZgggUntfa4LTDMXznRMFb_yzhknluDo_19dmhDLcfhn_LaMh1BvGGBHrr6lpq9ZzAGJSeLfWQfdSu7OcuHkk2CdP9lG58vl5d8FwAuHxAAIIVBzPhy0/s1600/OnlineWindow.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYqKDIczZXqNHpoMaaqWeDifzuZgggUntfa4LTDMXznRMFb_yzhknluDo_19dmhDLcfhn_LaMh1BvGGBHrr6lpq9ZzAGJSeLfWQfdSu7OcuHkk2CdP9lG58vl5d8FwAuHxAAIIVBzPhy0/s320/OnlineWindow.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Putting the window here will draw your eyes toward the camera (even though you aren’t looking at the camera). I have a two monitor setup for my desktop system and this is how I roll. This has the added bonus of making me look up.</div>
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Remember the “slightly above” comment I made way back at the beginning of this blog post? That’s the key thing to taking a good selfie… holding the camera high and looking up. It makes chins and cheekbones look good. It opens your eyes wider.</div>
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A high viewing window (by the camera) puts us into the position of a good selfie.</div>
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If the stakes are really high, think about some other things as well...</div>
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<b>Lighting: </b> Does my skin color look natural? Are there bright/dark spots? Is there something too bright behind me? </div>
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<b>Background:</b> Great movie directors put interesting things in the background of a scene. These things bring context. Have you ever noticed how many politicians and professors have books in their backgrounds? What message is your background sending?<br />
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<b>Sound: </b>Get a headset. It's only a few bucks and it will not only make you sound better, but it will help remove some background noise. In the last few days, I've heard dogs barking, babies crying, and people talking. Don't get me wrong - I like dogs and babies and I even like people. But these can be distractions in an online meeting setting.<br />
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<b>And before I go… </b></div>
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If you haven’t already done so… put on some pants! It will get you in the right frame of mind and be one less thing to worry about.</div>
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I once wore shorts and a nice golf shirt in an important video conference. Those in the meeting saw the nice shirt. Midway through the meeting I needed to get a file out of the cabinets that you see in the above pictures. Instead of presenting the file information and along with it my legs - I told the people that “it would take a while to find that particular item” and "I'll get back to them later". </div>
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Rock on!<br />
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Image credits: <a href="https://peperperspective.com/2017/11/28/posture-and-mood-implications-and-applications-to-health-and-therapy/">https://peperperspective.com/2017/11/28/posture-and-mood-implications-and-applications-to-health-and-therapy/</a></div>
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Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-59214137646713414652020-03-19T13:26:00.003-07:002022-04-11T13:55:10.450-07:00Working from home? How to do it like a Rock Star!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0ImTToCysgUpmAWH6P0C9tO_bV7o6_efN6SL1FzvaxiJOvCMWAHEBRMXFESAYTbi_qMmuZR9F_M7QWmVDgwNvxOX_cQ6wxxM8MKMTWghkurTUGr3pAShcKlXJWiBjPjvFQEhkqtQp_dI/s1600/Office.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0ImTToCysgUpmAWH6P0C9tO_bV7o6_efN6SL1FzvaxiJOvCMWAHEBRMXFESAYTbi_qMmuZR9F_M7QWmVDgwNvxOX_cQ6wxxM8MKMTWghkurTUGr3pAShcKlXJWiBjPjvFQEhkqtQp_dI/s320/Office.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
This week as COVID-19 precautions are looming - many of you are learning to work at home.<br />
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To you I say: Welcome! This really can be great. In fact, it can be highly productive.<br />
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As someone who’s been doing this for nearly 21 years (when not travelling) I often hear this from people: “I’m not sure I could ever work from home. How do you do it?”<br />
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Here are my top 5 tips for working from home like a pro!<br />
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<b>1.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Focus isn’t as much about determination as it is about passion.</b><br />
Yes, sometimes I have to just suck it up and do hard stuff. For me that the administrative stuff. I’d much rather develop math and software. I love creating. I love thinking of how my products and projects are going to help people. If your job was your hobby - would have have a problem doing it all day?<br />
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Go watch Simon Sinek’s TED talk called “<a href="https://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action" target="_blank">How great leaders inspire action</a>”. After you’ve watched it, figure out your personal “why”.<br />
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<b>2.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Get the tough stuff out of the way first. </b><br />
In the words of Pink Floyd: “If you don’t eat your meat, how can you have any pudding?”<br />
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For me, this means dealing with overnight international support first. Ugh! This way I go into the day with a clean plate and things only get better. It also means that the fun work is just around the corner – like dessert.<br />
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<b>3.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Find your background. </b>For me, I’m somewhat of an extrovert. I need humanity around me. (You’ll probably notice this based on all of the coffeeshop and restaurant pics I post with my laptop open.) Thus, in my office, I need a radio or TV (in the other room) around me. I can’t tell you a thing that I’ve heard, but I know that it’s there. Try some different things that might work for you. It might actually be silence. Note: for me, the TV has to be out of sight as I’ve found myself to be easily distracted visually.<br />
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<b>4.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Ergonomics, ergonomics, ergonomics. </b> (Does that count as 3 things, or just one?)<br />
One of the biggest mistakes people make is trying to work “comfortably” on the couch, the floor, the bathtub, etc. DON’T FALL FOR THIS! Comfort when working is different than comfort when lounging. Get a good chair and sit in an ergonomic position. <br />
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Google “Office Ergonomics” and flip over to the images tab. One of my favorite office investments is a Herman Miller Aeron chair (which are on a massive sale right now). It’s an amazing chair (used throughout Silicon Valley) that has served me for more than 15 years with no signs of quitting.<br />
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<b>5.<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Reward yourself but stay in the frame of mind. </b><br />
There will be times when you need to come up for air. My advice here is take a break, but “don’t commit”. For example, take a walk to the mailbox, but don’t start watching a Netflix movie. Perhaps check social media (if you can keep it under control,) but keep your email open on the other window. The principle is to stay somewhat connected rather than commit your brain to something else. See this <a href="http://www.bearockstarengineer.com/2012/06/finding-your-muse.html" target="_blank">blog post</a> for some ideas.<br />
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Many times I’ve found solutions to problems by getting away (perhaps the trip to the mailbox – or even the bathroom for that matter). I’ve released my brain just enough to solve a problem I was wrestling with.<br />
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<b>6.<span style="white-space: pre;"> (</span>Bonus Tip!) Make a phone call.</b><br />
(Or perhaps schedule one if your friends are busy people too.) I often use lunch as my social outlet. But the phone/Skype/Facetime/etc. is almost as good. I have a couple of guys that are in my field and they provide me with that (dare I say it?) karma that recharges me. These guys are great… and after reading this, they may now question my motives. Really guys – I do appreciate you!<br />
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Rock on!<br />
<br />Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-46859781706623696202018-09-19T13:29:00.002-07:002022-04-11T13:55:27.427-07:00Be a Hero<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijs9M1hHHJiQxML5c6-Vv1yfWXFnAWHM-VDNsREk5qYoJjTxdNV_sj8Lgj6pximX9LfcPcTPMY33UJCtGL7fPh-Pr5FSgJPTI7hAxVxTDuu53fBFc09ZbnkAsVHYTTiYHoJPys1jSbAU8/s1600/Superman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="816" data-original-width="590" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijs9M1hHHJiQxML5c6-Vv1yfWXFnAWHM-VDNsREk5qYoJjTxdNV_sj8Lgj6pximX9LfcPcTPMY33UJCtGL7fPh-Pr5FSgJPTI7hAxVxTDuu53fBFc09ZbnkAsVHYTTiYHoJPys1jSbAU8/s320/Superman.jpg" width="231" /></a></div>
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A few years ago, the band <i>The Script </i>released the song
“Superheroes”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was a great song with stories of people rising up against adversity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Go have a listen <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIm1GgfRz6M" target="_blank">here</a>. It’s ok.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’ll wait.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Rising up against adversity is inspiring. Even heroic. </div>
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But
there is a more traditional aspect of “hero” that’s worth exploring – the
traditional heroes of old-time comics and cheesy TV. I’m talking about the heroes like Superman,
Batman, and Wonder Woman. These were the
heroes that were always on your side.
Sometimes you didn’t even know that they were around, but they would
magically appear just in the nick of time.
These heroes kept entire (fictional) cities feeling safe, feeling secure and feeling cared for. </div>
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The superhero was always on our side.<o:p></o:p></div>
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As a superhero engineer (or Rockstar Engineer for that
matter)… whose side are you on?<o:p></o:p></div>
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While you think about that let’s re-consider the measure of
success as an engineer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is
something talked about in many of the previous Rockstar Engineer posts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me the strongest measure of an engineer’s
success is “influence”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whether it is
influencing a design, influencing a team or even influencing the course of
history – engineering is about influence.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Many engineers feel that the measure of their influence
should be a mathematical consideration.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My boss should see that I did “x” and there for my reward should be
“Y”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a simple matter of: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Y = f(x).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Period.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I’m not so sure about that.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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Recently I was listening to a talk by Danny Meyer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s the guy behind many of the highest customer-rated
restaurants in New York.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When he evaluated
the success of his restaurants he found that about 49% could be attributed to
the mathematical or “service” stuff.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did
we make good food?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did we serve it
promptly?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He goes on to say that he
attributes 51% of the success to something he calls “hospitality” – or in other
words “Did the customer feel cared for? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did
the customer feel like we were on their side?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>(For extra credit, check out his book “<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Setting-Table-Transforming-Hospitality-Business/dp/0060742763" target="_blank">Setting the Table</a>”).<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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This is an amazing observation – more than half of the
reason that people like a restaurant isn’t the food or service– it’s the way people
feel they were treated. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He unpacks this
further to say that missing on the 49% will cause people to leave.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those make up the baseline.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those are the things that are expected of you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You must deliver on those.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, the 51% is the stuff that makes
people want to come back. That's stuff that makes people give you high ratings.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Let’s personalize this to engineering.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You might have all the answers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You might be able to solve the problems put
in front of you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You might have just
come up with the greatest product design ever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Great!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that’s the 49%. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s what’s expected of you when you take the title "engineer".<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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How about the other 51%?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Do the people around you feel like you are the hero that is on their
side? What about your supervisor at performance review time? Would they say that you are on their side?</div>
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Chances are pretty good that they are looking at the 51%.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Rock on.<o:p></o:p></div>
<br />Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-50462734155150906112016-06-01T18:02:00.005-07:002022-04-11T13:55:36.030-07:00Get a Little Weird… Once in a While<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_e_HnWZFLZam6E2FLkUul70AM5cY0YZqLIUEwTNDzuOPnpB96-hCAOKI6bTeXSg7k1DXm0l1ZXkrDUiHjRl6R2jZOmyiJJoSvSrZuPDDjUE3uVT-UsBaJc20krWLCdfJEFTHtNYy3B7s/s1600/Al.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="244" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_e_HnWZFLZam6E2FLkUul70AM5cY0YZqLIUEwTNDzuOPnpB96-hCAOKI6bTeXSg7k1DXm0l1ZXkrDUiHjRl6R2jZOmyiJJoSvSrZuPDDjUE3uVT-UsBaJc20krWLCdfJEFTHtNYy3B7s/s320/Al.jpg" width="320" /></a><br />
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<br /><div style="text-indent: 0px;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">You don't need to be defined by your job” </span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"> - (Weird) Al Yankovic</span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">I work with a lot of engineers. Heck, I’ll admit it… I actually am an engineer. One thing that I notice wherever I go, is that engineers can take themselves way too seriously. Let me say that again… WAAAAAYYYYY too seriously.</span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">I get it. You guys are out there making important, difficult, highly technical decisions. But, come on... lighten up a bit! It’s not brain surgery. Well ok, I work with some companies that actually make brain surgery equipment. So maybe it is brain surgery for some of you. </span></span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">Nonetheless, let’s allow ourselves to have some fun along the way.</span></span><br />
<div style="text-indent: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-indent: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;">Sometimes when I’m meeting with new customers I challenge
myself to see if I can get them to laugh or at the bare minimum; at least crack a smile. This challenge silently takes place in the back
of my brain where, hopefully, no one in the outside world will hear or know
about it. </span></div>
<div style="text-indent: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-indent: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;">Now some of you overly analytical engineers are probably
saying: “why would I direct perfectly good brain energy toward doing something weird when I can
direct it toward doing something productive like solving problems and making better __(insert gizmos of choice)______?” </span></div>
<div style="text-indent: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><br />Here’s why: having a
light moment doesn’t use up more brain power… it actually taps into the part of
your brain you probably aren’t using! Did some of you realize that there is also a right side to the human brain? This can unleash some really great creative stuff that can be
re-channeled back to your real (a.k.a. engineering) work.</span></div>
<div style="text-indent: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><br />So how do we get started in terms of getting a little weird…</span></div>
<div style="text-indent: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><br />1.<span style="font-stretch: normal; text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Try my challenge of “getting someone to smile”
while staying generally on topic regarding an engineering task or project.</span><o:p> </o:p><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">2. Put something ridiculous in your office and keep
it there until someone asks about it.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">If
nobody asks, you may have a social problem and should go back and read all of
my previous blogs!</span><o:p> </o:p><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">3. If 1 and 2 are too challenging (perhaps because they
involve interactions with other humans), try something weird on your own.</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Do a weird experiment like this:</span><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"> </span></span></div>
</h3>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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</div>
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<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODBQ_BNjMA0" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="164" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5CQtz-LnwCPo4Kt6ZmP_yT0753nKL5I4AfCk7MignSeFwTfElUhkMpBJGtH9cugdHr1NmQ3rhSK6hVPzbQ-Y8FKkNew3OkfzVT5qQXBPIUjuWpeYNBmXCUyzpXiavGdfjvVJf5XTr_vo/s320/SillyString.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODBQ_BNjMA0" style="text-indent: -0.25in;">www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODBQ_BNjMA0</a></span></div>
<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span>
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<!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This kind of "pseudo-experiment" can be super-cool to watch... definitely something to invite others to come see. It can energize your
thinking and perhaps even lead to your next great idea. I'll bet, after watching that video, some of you are already thinking about column buckling and internal pressures.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Do yourself a favor and do something weird today!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Rock on,<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: inherit;">-<span style="font-stretch: normal;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Mark</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-40916040090301793872014-02-18T02:39:00.001-08:002022-04-11T13:55:46.909-07:00Take a Bow<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVh6BU2LpiUxwZiDAWPZattWohXvgxrH3vx6qzsFlBvfjKDYiueZxppguEaTIEXLuHKk6Sr0PumIa8mwR_8p6Hg7hTWVR7exOsHcy_tDj0JqYWzl1fJHqheGadQbdMaFFA7lwnVC73T7w/s1600/BrunoMars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVh6BU2LpiUxwZiDAWPZattWohXvgxrH3vx6qzsFlBvfjKDYiueZxppguEaTIEXLuHKk6Sr0PumIa8mwR_8p6Hg7hTWVR7exOsHcy_tDj0JqYWzl1fJHqheGadQbdMaFFA7lwnVC73T7w/s1600/BrunoMars.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></div>
Just about every engineer describes at least one part of his job as being “thankless”. As a person who works in the measurement world I used to lament: “nobody wants to measure things, they just want to make stuff”. <br />
<br />
Boo, hoo. Poor me. <br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
Designers cry how nobody appreciates their sheer genius and their amazing insight. Production people moan about the struggles of deadlines and budget… and not to mention the ever present quality control pressures.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
It’s a wonder that anyone would want to be an engineer…<br />
…but you are one – and that says something about you.</div>
<br />
So let’s take a look at the concept of feeling “rewarded”. To shed some light on this I’d like to tell you about two recent conversations and an old, old story.<br />
<br />
Conversation #1.<br />
The topic of “the next generation of engineers” came up among some friends. One of the guys was talking about a seminar that he attended on the topic of “managing millennials”. It was interesting to hear of this topic. Plus it was a catchy title – so I really tuned into what he had to say. I’m not sure that I agree with all of the generalizations and stereotypes, but there was a general thought many people of the younger generation are growing up with a concept of “you get a reward for simply participating”. This is indeed becoming a popular trend – the significance of winning and losing are being diminished and effort (or worse yet simply “being there”) is being rewarded.<br />
<br />
Conversation #2.<br />
I have a great graphic designer that I get to work with on occasion. One day we were talking about the differences and similarities between creating software and creating art. I told him that developing software can be incredibly engaging – it can be something like solving Sudoku puzzles for a living. He chimed in, “I do a Sudoku puzzle every day on my lunch break!”<br />
<br />
An old, old story…<br />
You may have hear the expression “prodigal son”, or “the prodigal son has returned”. The term is from a Biblical fable or “parable” (kind of like one of Aesop’s fables) which was used to illustrate a point. The quick version of the story: 1. Son demands inheritance from dad. 2. Son blows inheritance on wine, women and song and hits rock bottom. 3. Son comes back asking for forgiveness. 4. Dad welcomes him back and throws a party. 5. Brother get’s ticked off asking: “where’s my party?” <br />
<br />
I used to take the brother’s side. After all, where was his party? However, the dad’s response to him was pretty insightful. He said something to the effect of “your party is being here with me every day”. The angry brother didn’t fully grasp that it was much more rewarding to be in a good place every day – rather than deal with the rough stuff that the prodigal brother went through. Bottom line: the angry brother didn’t realize how good he had it. He has the privilege of being in a good place. He gets to be there all the time.<br />
<br />
So let’s put the pieces together… <br />
<br />
The engineering workplace can be rather thankless. If you are used to being noticed, thanked and praised you may be in for a harsh surprise. You may be sitting in a cubicle right now thinking about unrewarding your job really is. Some of you might have grown up in a not-so-competitive culture and you aren’t used to the lack of “best effort” medals or stickers. That’s ok. It’s time for you to pull up your big engineer pants and create your own rewards. Think about these things…<br />
<br />
1. You get to solve puzzles for a living. That’s a pretty cool job when you stop and think about it.<br />
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjly2dpitOaaUAGdu60RzGkU-qK_bKS_ZUSMWqyuaZZq070Jzp6rQJPqnjCcCkYHxoyCziYv3IapXk9ULLQgO4Nu1Gh9gJwe4sW78e2tG-8r97GJHxJJ-mVEwa2UXE0aGOQwWrPA0g9Lwc/s1600/sudoku.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjly2dpitOaaUAGdu60RzGkU-qK_bKS_ZUSMWqyuaZZq070Jzp6rQJPqnjCcCkYHxoyCziYv3IapXk9ULLQgO4Nu1Gh9gJwe4sW78e2tG-8r97GJHxJJ-mVEwa2UXE0aGOQwWrPA0g9Lwc/s1600/sudoku.jpg" height="253" width="320" /></a></div>
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2. There are many jobs that could be much worse. Elephants anyone? <br />
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<br />
<br />
3. You can make your own rewards. When you hit milestones or have personal victories – take a break. Take a walk. Have a coffee. Grab a candy bar. Do something to get away for a few minutes. Call it a mini-vacation for 15 minutes.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNaANYwev1Pr_0f18jMbFoiqdgUnCAJx7pK1lBrfVojyL9Hspj-VgN20Mkm6k30YlADcY8tIz1lpmDR5myzpr0AB4_1PI7Ht_Nr5QcwA3_YyhWZGsPMumJKMatXBYX64lUXBqdZnJUTb0/s1600/NotWorking.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNaANYwev1Pr_0f18jMbFoiqdgUnCAJx7pK1lBrfVojyL9Hspj-VgN20Mkm6k30YlADcY8tIz1lpmDR5myzpr0AB4_1PI7Ht_Nr5QcwA3_YyhWZGsPMumJKMatXBYX64lUXBqdZnJUTb0/s1600/NotWorking.jpg" height="144" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br />
4. Do your part to create a “culture of reward” around you. When you see someone do something cool – acknowledge it. One thing you will find is that when you start helping others feel good about their work, you will start feeling better and more rewarded yourself. Who knows it may even rub off.<br />
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Remember this: you get to be an engineer.</div>
<br />Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-43387690426904318822013-01-17T07:52:00.001-08:002022-04-11T13:55:55.765-07:00Planning the Show<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuT5qddnB4sduJJiIYnT_FyDZAt0d82YnzE4-1RTLqG-iF7Was6u_mxJ6yX-0MHms6M4xfQ-5YWfrwu2HGXsMoxwayhv335nH06kfrZ0C-XconC9BHGsU2bThRAsWKzgobRsX7p0RYV-k/s1600/StageBoxes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuT5qddnB4sduJJiIYnT_FyDZAt0d82YnzE4-1RTLqG-iF7Was6u_mxJ6yX-0MHms6M4xfQ-5YWfrwu2HGXsMoxwayhv335nH06kfrZ0C-XconC9BHGsU2bThRAsWKzgobRsX7p0RYV-k/s320/StageBoxes.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "calibri";"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">My condolences...<br /><br />First off I’d like to convey my deepest sympathy to the 50 or
so people that will be receiving the stack of printouts I recently saw coming
off the copier at the UPS store.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Here’s the story… the other day, I was sending a package and
happened to see a stack of paper growing on the output tray of the copier.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know it’s probably not socially acceptable
to look at someone else’s copies (it’s sort of like peeking in a public restroom),
but nobody was around the copier so I discreetly took a glance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To my horror, I saw a huge stack of
"6-slides-per-page" PowerPoint handouts being collated for some
unsuspecting audience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s worse –
within each of these tiny slide thumbnails I saw lines and lines of…<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>wait for it…<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>TEXT!!!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I could not bear to imagine the sinking feeling that the audience
was going to have as they sat down for a long day of
training/presentation/sales pitch/whatever. They would open their shiny,
new 3-ring binders with a sense of anticipation... only to find these tiny, word-filled rectangles filling each page.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Under some circumstances, this could be considered cruel and unusual
punishment.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">A few months ago I came across this video: </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIABo0d9MVE" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Every Presentation Ever: Communication FAIL</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> (caution it’s quite painful to watch – but like they say: “No pain. No gain.”) " This got me thinking about my presentations. Unfortunately, I find myself doing many of these same, awful things.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Here’s a question: How many of those stereotypical things do you do when in front of an audience? (don't answer out loud, your boss may be listening).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">How about this one: If you weren’t the presenter, would you
pay attention to one of your own presentations?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The problem is: most presenters are focused on their
presentation (after all, they probably worked really hard on it.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unfortunately, this is backwards, you should
be focusing on your audience not your material.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There should be a constant “dance” between the presenter and the
audience, whereby the presenter provides the material in a manner that the
audience can best handle it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
give-and-take dynamic changes as a presentation moves along.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some material is easy to digest and the
presentation can move along quickly with few questions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Other points in a talk may take a bit more
time and discussion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This give-and-take dynamic became very obvious to me as I
was in the audience for a recent taping of “<a href="http://www.latenightwithjimmyfallon.com/" target="_blank">Late Night with Jimmy Fallon</a>”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His opening monologues are a great example of
this audience awareness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When a joke really resonates with
the audience, he pauses and enjoys the moment with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He may even elaborate on it and perhaps “milk it” a
bit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, when a joke flops, he
moves so quickly to another joke/topic, that the audience doesn’t have a chance
to notice the previous stinker.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">With Jimmy, he’s tuned in to the feedback from his
audience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Granted he can more easily measure
a response by applause or laughter – we don’t often get applause or laugher in
an engineering presentation... at least we hope not.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">However there are some obvious responses we can be looking at:</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span>Are people making eye contact with you?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span>Are they taking notes?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">-<span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">
</span></span></span>Are they preoccupied with their cell
phone/laptop/papers/etc.?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Here’s a really subtle one:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>did you know that people are less likely to cough, sneeze or blow their
nose when they are fully tuned into something?</span><br />
<br />
If you still are struggling to determine if people are tuned in with your talk, try this... at some point in your talk, step away from your slides and draw something on a whiteboard or flipchart. Watch closely for eye contact changes or body language changes in the audience. People will tend to re-engage when you change communication forms. This is the kind of reaction that you should be looking for throughout your talk.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The above "painful" video was produced by the company “Growing Leaders” in promotion of the book “Habitudes for Communicators”. It's a great, easily readible book. I recommend it to anyone that spends time in front of any audience. Check it out at: </span><a href="http://www.habitudesforcommunicators.com/"><span style="font-family: inherit;">www.habitudesforcommunicators.com</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> and start planning your next presentation as an "audience-centric" one!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></o:p><br />
<o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;">Rock On.</span></o:p></div>
Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-52181129216364412542012-09-17T14:10:00.002-07:002022-04-11T13:56:03.260-07:00Getting out of the Studio<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiidiI3dK6dll7OyK4bbOxo3D9v7YcFKAsxzBV04d-ru0e-Z0T3OHzU8hFRHLAwO5n6gb9MekpsbFzY8Jen_LOICWNzF7phVvIbPilllxiC7pyPySWSsmwFiOkbO-3OVMMnlXaYr3sqUaI/s1600/recording-studio.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiidiI3dK6dll7OyK4bbOxo3D9v7YcFKAsxzBV04d-ru0e-Z0T3OHzU8hFRHLAwO5n6gb9MekpsbFzY8Jen_LOICWNzF7phVvIbPilllxiC7pyPySWSsmwFiOkbO-3OVMMnlXaYr3sqUaI/s320/recording-studio.jpg" width="320" /></a>Many universities do a great job in teaching the technical fundamentals related to engineering. But at some point you need to get out in the real world and play for a real audience. </div>
<br />
Unfortunately, the real world doesn't always look like the place they told you about in school.<br />
<br />
Here are 12 of the things I wish they would have taught me in engineering school. I'm sure there are more, and I would welcome any additions that you may have. So without any further delay lets dive in...<br />
<strong><br />1. People skills will typically beat math or science skills in the real world.</strong><br />
Let’s face it – "people" are the ones that are responsible for your positions, promotions and salary. Not equations. Not laws of physics. You are typically going to be judged on how much you “appear to do” and how others perceive the value of what you do - not necessarily your ability to Fourier transforms and partial differential equations. This isn’t about being the brown-noser. It’s about building relationships and developing your “brand” or identity.<br />
<br />
<strong>2. Learn to be a teacher, but don’t condescend.</strong><br />
A little secret here: the people around you have probably forgotten most of the stuff that’s fresh in your mind right now. But they really don’t want to admit it. When presenting or interacting with others start basic and stay tuned in to see if they are tracking with you. Don’t ask the audience-humiliating kinds of questions like “if you don’t know ____ let me know.” Instead ask “would you like me to explain ____?” <a href="http://www.bearockstarengineer.com/2012/04/teacher-teacher-can-you-teach-me.html" target="_blank">If you can help someone learn</a>, they will value you more. If you speak over their heads, they will avoid you or worse yet - <a href="http://www.bearockstarengineer.com/2011/08/lets-get-ready-to-rock.html" target="_blank">consider you to be a jerk</a>.<br />
<br />
<strong>3. That old guy just might be able to kick your butt… intellectually speaking.</strong><br />
Experience is a great educator. You might be on your way out of a great school with a nice shiny degree and it may even have are some impressive, Latin words on it. You probably do have some great theoretical knowledge. Even though you may already carry a higher job title than he does, the person that has actually lived in it for 30+ years may still be able to teach you a thing or two (or maybe 100 things for that matter). Take every opportunity you can to learn from him or her. <br />
<br />
<strong>4. Look for chances to learn essential, non-technical things.</strong><br />
Sure you can calculate the static load on a beam or determine the number of moles of oxygen needed in a particular reaction. Learn what actions get rewarded in your organization. Learn where to go or whom to go to in order to get things. Learn the language that your supervisors speak. <a href="http://www.bearockstarengineer.com/2011/09/rockin-house.html" target="_blank">Learn something about the people you work with</a> so there is always something to talk about. This kind of knowledge pays off greatly. <br />
<br />
<strong>5. Be brief.</strong><br />
How’s that for a short title? When speaking get to the point. When you lead a meeting, <a href="http://www.bearockstarengineer.com/2011/09/rockin-house.html" target="_blank">make sure it finishes early</a>. Let people know you are available if they are interested in more. It’s far better to have someone ask you for more conversation than it is to have someone dread seeing you coming for fear that you won’t shut up. There used to be a guy that would linger in my office so long that I would sometimes fake a pager buzz (back in the “engineers wear pagers” days) just to get him to leave. Don’t be that guy.<br />
<br />
<strong>6. Be an entertaining or at least an engaging </strong><a href="http://www.bearockstarengineer.com/2011/09/rockin-house.html" target="_blank"><strong>communicator</strong></a><strong>.</strong><br />
Your job as an engineer will require that you speak to others. There are no compromises in this area. If you have an accent – be intentional about pointing it out to your audience and giving them every opportunity to ask for clarification. One great icebreaker that I’ve used in different parts of the US and all over the world is to poke fun at my own accent. If you see that you are losing an audience, bring them back at all costs. If you’re uncomfortable in front of a group; join Toastmasters or find some other forums or community groups where you can hone this craft. Your career trajectory will thank you.<br />
<br />
<strong>7. Learn some basics about business thinking – not just accounting.</strong><br />
Most big companies or at least most successful companies are led by business people. Sure, engineers like to make fun of business people (that bunch of silly “bean counters”), but realize this: business is the “wrapper” in which engineering is packaged and made profitable. If your engineering isn’t sold, you usually don’t have a job. Dig into a business topic like marketing if you really want to know something about where you fit in. <br />
<br />
<strong>8. Some people will not like you.</strong><br />
This is a tough one for many young people to come to grips with. But, let’s face it – the world has lots of messed up people and there’s a good chance that you will encounter one or more of them in your job. You may try and try to make things feel better, but they just may not want it. In those cases, it’s best to just “keep it professional” and keep the interactions as minimal and as “work-centric” as possible. Sometimes these things improve with time (so give it a chance without burning any bridges), but don’t expect a birthday card or a hug. <br />
<br />
<strong>9. Things take time (more time than you can imagine) in the real world.</strong><br />
In school, you had very, very, very short projects. Sure, a 4-week long project seemed like an eternity in college; but many real-world projects take months or even years. There will be times when you feel like nothing is getting done and the project will never get finished. Use these times to get ahead of the game or to learn more about what’s coming in the next steps of the project. Don’t just sit there! Have a plan for your downtime..<br />
<br />
<strong>10. It’s a marathon not a sprint.</strong><br />
Yeah, I now that's an overused cliché, but it is some of the best career advice you will ever get. Longevity is one of the best tools for advancement. Longevity will bring you deeper experiences, a chance to develop wisdom (not just knowledge) and more chances for promotion.<br />
<strong> </strong><br />
<strong>11. Find opportunities to develop yourself outside your company.</strong><br />
I know that budgets are tight in many companies, but to make yourself a better engineer you’ve got to be connected to the world outside your company. Join professional societies or standardization groups. Publish papers. Attend conferences or expos. Subscribe to journals in your field. Your knowledge of the “outside world” and your relationships with people in the “outside world” make you a better employee at your current job and a more marketable candidate should you seek a future job.<br />
<br />
<strong>12. Smile.</strong><br />
People will pass their initial judgment on you <a href="http://www.bearockstarengineer.com/2011/10/your-opening-act-handshake.html" target="_blank">based on what they see</a>. It doesn’t take much effort to make a positive first impression. I do a lot of video conferencing and seeing that picture of myself on a computer screen has really caused me to take note of these visual things. Look in the mirror with your “at work” face on. Would you perceive your appearance as someone welcoming or someone that people would rather not be around? <br />
<br />
<br />
Rock on.Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-27706655191101407472012-06-19T15:01:00.001-07:002022-04-11T13:56:17.463-07:00Finding Your Muse<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq3i5KayS2We-x714qkW40v_An1T6sdDfQ3Q66C7IwNJsackH4Auk-jJzESkbsdogBg59xoe34mIfgPzruung9cWhHDk96WUFpgoAFB66MIXPHpIJnMBcXW-LYDgWrIwA_idu6EnU7rpo/s1600/Songwriting.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq3i5KayS2We-x714qkW40v_An1T6sdDfQ3Q66C7IwNJsackH4Auk-jJzESkbsdogBg59xoe34mIfgPzruung9cWhHDk96WUFpgoAFB66MIXPHpIJnMBcXW-LYDgWrIwA_idu6EnU7rpo/s320/Songwriting.jpg" width="238" /></a></div>
Muse: <br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
From Greek mythology - a goddesses of inspiration.</div>
<br />
Almost every writer has, at some point, suffered from “writer’s block”. But what engineers? We often get “stuck” ...and how come we don’t get a clever name for it? In fact, our stuck-ed-ness is often pretty significant (dare I say more significant than writer’s block?) <br />
<br />
When an engineer gets stuck, many external forces can be at play: things like the constraints of tight schedules, constraints of other connected systems and even the constraints of the laws of physics.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
So how do you break through the block? Let me offer you a couple of quick ideas for finding your muse...<br />
<br />
<br />
1. <strong>Take a break</strong>. Yeah, I know... you’ve got a schedule. <br />
If you’ve ever gotten a car stuck, you probably know that spinning your wheels only gets you more stuck. The same applies to your creative processes. The time you spend backing up and re-approaching the problem can often result in a faster arrival at the solution. <br />
<br />
Hint: How to take a break with purpose.<br />
What you do on a break is really up to you. For some people it's exercise. For others it may be a trip to the coffee machine/shop. For many people (even famous ones) it's a "<a href="http://michaelhyatt.com/why-you-should-take-a-nap-every-day.html" target="_blank">power nap</a>". Regardless of what you do, I'd encourage you with this one principle: if you are going to tune out; tune out with purpose. Try setting an alarm on your phone or on your watch for a 15 minute break. This plays a neat trick on your mind. Typically, when people take a break, all they think about is “how much work that have to get back to” and they worry about not getting back to it in time to finish. Thus they never really give their mind a break. Knowing that an alarm will bring you back allows you to fully leave.<br />
<br />
<br />
2. <strong>Do a DBR</strong>. Something “different but related”<br />
I always wanted to come up with my own acronym so why not now? Different-but-related activities can keep you thinking in the right direction, but from a slightly different angle. A DBR should be something that you look forward to doing – but at the same time stimulates your thinking.<br />
<br />
Finding your DBRs:<br />
First you need to identify those things that are related to what you do and then find interesting outlets for those things. An important note: your DBRs should almost feel like a hobby or a “guilty pleasure” - they should be enjoyable activities with some kind of connection to your work. Reading a technical journal is not necessarily a DBR (unless you’re a hopeless geek). On the other hand, playing golf or basketball is probably a stretch in the context of DBR.<br />
<br />
Let me use myself as an example: <br />
<div>
I write a lot of software for measurement systems. In addition I’m regularly in front of an audience consulting and teaching. My DBRs aren’t going to be the same as yours, but for the sake of example, my DBRs are:</div>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.gizmodo.com/">www.Gizmodo.com</a> As I’m involved in the development of new technologies, I find that learning about other, cool, new technologies can be very inspiring. 99% of the time these technologies aren’t related to what I’m working on but seeing cool, finished products is inspiring. PG-13 warning: The writing style is edgy and sometimes contains profanity.</li>
<li><a href="http://www.ted.com/Talks">www.Ted.com/Talks</a> I think every rockstar engineer should spend some time listening to TED talks. These are 15 minute talks on almost every imaginable topic. Rockstar engineers don’t just learn about the subject matter, but they also can pick up on some great presentation skills. I’m often more captivated by the latter (i.e. the presentation styles) than the content.</li>
<li><a href="http://www.codeproject.com/">www.CodeProject.com</a> I write software primarily in the C# programming language. CodeProject provides a constant diet of other clever things that other people are doing in C#. Their projects aren’t even close to mine, but just seeing their work often gives me a re-charge.</li>
<li>Various leadership/effectiveness/communication blogs. Email me if you’d like to know some of them.</li>
</ul>
<br />
3. <strong>Talk it out</strong><br />
Now this one may not apply to everybody. I’m a very verbal thinker so the process of talking to someone is a huge help for me. This may not apply to everybody. But for those of you that aren’t verbal thinkers, I’d encourage you to give it a try.<br />
<br />
Guidelines for conversation as inspiration:<br />
<ul>
<li>Remember that conversation is a gift:<br />If another person is willing to give you his or her time – treat it with respect. They are giving you a part of their lives. Be thankful, act thankful and tell them that you are thankful.</li>
<li>Respect the other person’s time and mental state:<br />There is a chance that they are in the middle of doing something amazing. Even if nothing is scheduled on their calendar they may still be “tied up”. Respect that.</li>
<li>Respect the other person’s expertise and interests:<br />I don’t talk mathematics with some of my friends. I don’t talk business strategy with other friends. </li>
<li>Respect their difference of opinion:<br />If you are asking a person for help, DO NOT SHOOT DOWN THEIR IDEAS. There is no place for defensiveness or negativity when you are the one asking for help.</li>
</ul>
<br />
Every one of us will have times where we are stuck and a muse would come in handy. (Although I’m not sure I’d recognize an “engineer muse” if one walked by.) So until that happens; take a break, do a DBR or just go find someone to hash it out with. <br />
<br />
Postscript: In case you haven’t guessed, I was stuck this afternoon while writing software and it got me thinking about the whole being stuck thing. Writing is also a DBR for me. Instead of writing computer programs in computer language, writing human words in human language is a good break. So thanks for helping me out today! <br />
<br />
Rock on!Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-58463708446329891682012-04-18T18:29:00.002-07:002022-04-11T13:56:34.662-07:00Teacher, teacher...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgreILgiDS50L2dkNVL-xFEsGr2UW4lTARJhmpp565FmhYkVeSf7ocubvU7ygHWCCyZIP8-cs8HM_x_TAjQbVart37asV2IpuRhq_p6cPsXUIMdRwGYDZknVXpDAttWoMoXFR3d7URy8eQ/s1600/Teacher.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgreILgiDS50L2dkNVL-xFEsGr2UW4lTARJhmpp565FmhYkVeSf7ocubvU7ygHWCCyZIP8-cs8HM_x_TAjQbVart37asV2IpuRhq_p6cPsXUIMdRwGYDZknVXpDAttWoMoXFR3d7URy8eQ/s1600/Teacher.png" /></a>Teacher, teacher </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
can you teach me?</div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<em>- 38 Special (1985)</em></div>
<br />
Let’s take a trip down memory lane shall we? Think back to when you first got interested in engineering. Was it when you first took something apart just to see what was inside? Perhaps when you first got interested in the way bubbles formed in milk carton when you blew in the straw? Maybe when you first realized that the teeter totter exhibited a mechanical advantage depending on where you and your friend/enemy sat?<br />
<br />
Now think about what got you going academically in the direction of engineering. For me it was a particular high school science teacher followed by a couple of rockstar professors in college. Those people made things interesting and brought a new view or a new explanation of the physical world that had me in awe. Some the best were the ones that made science into a “story”. As the story unfolded, both my knowledge and my interest would grow.<br />
<br />
Wake Up!<br />
<br />
You’re an engineer! Snap out of it! We don’t have time for this stuff… dreaming about milk bubbles and teeter totters. Come on. We’ve got real work to do… or we?<br />
<br />
Unfortunately, the principles of learning and wonderment are lost in the day-to-day tasks of most engineers. However, true rockstar engineers are able to hold on to this – and more importantly, they are able to communicate it. Being a teacher is a hallmark of being a rockstar engineer.<br />
Now I’m not saying that you need to become a professor or worse yet force people to listen to you ramble on and on about something that only you are interested in. I’m saying that being a teacher makes you a valuable team member and can pay huge benefits to your effectiveness.<br />
<br />
The highly regarded financial advisor, Dave Ramsey, says that when you hire a consultant – always hire someone that’s a teacher at heart. Here’s a hint for you… if you are an engineer, you are in many ways a consultant. A consultant gets paid for sharing and applying knowledge. An engineer gets paid to apply his or her knowledge.<br />
<br />
So here are some quick tips to make you a better teacher.<br />
<br />
When in front of the room:<br />
<br />
1. Most importantly, get in tune with your audience. Learn to pick up on their body language. Some people don’t want to be taught. So, when in front of them, quickly present the answers and move on. Other people want to be taught but are afraid to ask for fear of looking stupid. It’s up to you to take the lead with these people and offer more information. They are the ones that I love to work with and they will give you a chance to shine as a teacher. <br />
<br />
2. When presenting, seek out the chance to share the “why”, not just the “what”. People are more willing to buy into something that you present if they understand a bit of what went into it. By understanding the “why” behind a particular engineering solution, they are already closer to accepting the “what”. When sharing the why – don’t use big “show off” words. The smartest guys in the world don’t need to act smart with big words.<br />
<br />
3. Finally… don’t, don’t, don’t, don’t ask questions in front of a room that cause people to put themselves down. Asking the question “is anybody not understanding this?” in front of an audience is the equivalent of asking “who would like to be singled out and called stupid in front of the room?” Instead, try “should I cover this in a bit more detail?” or “would it help if I explained this a bit more?” These questions put the ownership on the presenter not the student. We don’t want to be condescending to an audience, but worse yet we never want to make them feel stupid.<br />
<br />
When one-on-one or in a small group:<br />
<br />
1. Learn to listen. (This is hard – especially when you get excited about what you are talking about.) Here’s a trick I use when I sense I’m having trouble listening: repeat the question back. <br />
<br />
2. Learn to draw. (this applies to a large group as well) I know we are engineers not artists, but the ability to make simple sketches to illustrate a point can increase your teacher rating enormously. In my world of measurement there are several sketches that seem to be useful in many different settings. I’ve actually spent time practicing the drawing of certain sketches in order to make me better at presenting concepts “on the fly”. Now these things don’t have to be beautiful – they need to convey a point. The cool thing is that as the picture develops so does a story; revealing a bit more with each stroke of the pencil or pen – and stories are a great way to teach.<br />
<br />
3. Don’t be afraid to have fun. Make fun of yourself, make fun of the topic. Smile – it knocks down barriers to learning. Remember: teaching is about investing in a person other than yourself; so create an environment or conversation that helps them feel comfortable. In fact, it makes it more fun for both of you.<br />
<br />
Dave Ramsey recommends looking for a teacher-minded-person when hiring someone to help you. A teacher is a person that helps others learn and thus adds value to them. If you want to amp up your effectiveness as an engineer, be a teacher for those around you. It will raise them up and in the process it will further elevate you to rockstar engineer status.<br />
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Rock on!Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-66995377984191818622012-02-19T18:40:00.001-08:002022-04-11T13:56:41.725-07:00Growing the fan base<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1REpFMNPQkzF4lYygM0RyRiqhUSwJjZeslupm3aaviA6AeLp9rplyZUOATsWhwGnFLwuGGHYCEu3rWXh6t1JHYuJNI7emAvlucKcxEQO0Pln9VorjY5Oklbi2e4rWxQgIPlynZj5vmTA/s1600/Crowd.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1REpFMNPQkzF4lYygM0RyRiqhUSwJjZeslupm3aaviA6AeLp9rplyZUOATsWhwGnFLwuGGHYCEu3rWXh6t1JHYuJNI7emAvlucKcxEQO0Pln9VorjY5Oklbi2e4rWxQgIPlynZj5vmTA/s320/Crowd.png" width="320" /></a><em>Cranky Cal: “I already solved that problem, but nobody listened to me.”</em></div>
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As I work with engineers that have been at it for a few years, I often hear that kind of statement. Sometimes it’s of the uglier form:<br />
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<em>Angry Al: “I solved that problem X years ago, but those _____ ______ _____’s wouldn’t listen to me then, so I’m not going to help them now. That bunch of ______ _______ ______’s can just figure it out for themselves this time!”</em><br />
<em></em><br />
Here’s the deal, simply having the answer is no longer good enough in many work environments. We need to be able to <u>sell</u> our solutions; which ultimately means that we need to sell <em>ourselves</em>. Let’s take this out of the realm of engineering for a minute and talk about software. “Apps” are everywhere so let’s ease into this topic by talking about them – instead of ourselves.<br />
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Ever since the first cave engineers started writing FORTRAN, software was evaluated based on its ability to <em>function</em>. This makes sense; we use software to perform some function that we don’t want to take on humanly. For example, we can use software to compute the first 1,000 prime numbers – a task that we really don’t want to have to perform ourselves. The software package that can pull this off calculation and provide the results is deemed to be <em>functional</em>. <br />
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However, in today’s world, a new evaluation criterion is emerging - not just for software but for all products. It’s called “user experience” and it’s becoming a <u>very</u> important factor. Check out this <a href="http://www.fastcompany.com/1815756/the-importance-of-ux-in-customer-engagement" target="_blank">Fast Company article</a>. The catch: the greatness of a software package isn’t just based on its ability to function – it’s also based on “how the user feels”. <br />
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We now face evaluation questions such as: Is the software easy to understand? Is it “friendly”? Do I feel good using it or do I get frustrated? Do I feel like I can master it by just looking at it, or do I need to ask for help? Or, heaven forbid, do I need to look at a manual or book?<br />
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As an engineer, you are being evaluated just like that software package. People don’t really care if you have all of the answers if you are a pain in the butt to deal with. This great quote has been credited to several authors, politicians and speakers ranging from Theodore Roosevelt to Zig Ziglar to John Maxwell:<br />
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People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.</div>
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So think about this: what kind of experience are you creating for those people that you are supposed to be working with and/or helping? <br />
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Ultimate effectiveness, comes from not only being able to create great things and solve tough problems… it comes from actually having those great things and great solutions put into practice by others. With that in mind, we need to focus a bit more on how we are <em>selling ourselves</em>. Yeah that’s right… we engineers need a lesson in sales.<br />
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Recently I came across a really great TED talk by <a href="http://www.startwithwhy.com/">Simon Sinek</a>. If you have a few minutes, take a look at it. These same principles of leading a great business can also apply to growing a great reputation as an engineer. Here’s the link: <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action.html">How Great Leaders Inspire Action</a>.<br />
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Now Simon is not an engineer, nor was the talk even about being an engineer, but we can still learn a ton. (Great engineers can learn from anything and anyone, right?) Check out a few things about the presentation itself and think about his “user experience” or in this case the “audience experience”:<br />
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1. There was no PowerPoint. Simon actually created the content with; get this… an old school marker and a flipchart. Pretty retro, eh? But it kept your attention, didn’t it? Rockstar Engineers are able to present to an audience in a way that keeps their attention. Often the act of actually “creating something live” rather than packaging it as slides is the best tool for keeping an audience glued to you.<br />
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2. The room, the stage and the acoustics were lousy. He even dealt with a mic change partway through the talk. But it didn’t matter. Simon was passionate about his material. He seemed glad to be able to share it with the audience and the environment took a back seat. Rockstar Engineers aren’t afraid to show and share. In fact, they consider a chance to present as a chance to shine.<br />
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3. The message was a simple solution. There wasn’t a presentation of 12 other things that didn’t work. The language was understandable - he didn't over use a bunch of big multi-syllable "show off" words. Rockstar Engineers know their audience and know the importance of speaking in an understandable way... using the language of the audience.<br />
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Now let’s switch gears and talk about content of the talk…<br />
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The basic message of Simon’s talk is that people will more passionately buy the “why” – far more than they will buy the “what”. He summarizes it in a great statement:<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
People don’t buy <u>what</u> you do; people buy <u>why</u> you do it</div>
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I’m going to take some liberties here (hopefully honoring Simon) with this interpretation on a personal level:<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
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Your effectiveness is being based on “who you are”, not just “what you do”.</div>
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If you were to draw just two of Simon’s concentric circles and put “Why” in the middle and put “What” on the outside, how would you fill in the details? <br />
The “why”: <br />
Why did you become an engineer? <br />
Why are you still an engineer? <br />
The “what”:<br />
What do you actually do as an engineer? <br />
What is your “product”? <br />
<em>Note: I’m not talking about that widget that you are currently designing and may someday somehow actually end up going down the road in a car. The real “what” question is based on this: </em> <br />
What is it that people come to me for?<br />
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As you consider these questions, you should be formulating a kind of “user experience” in your mind. Here’s how I answer these questions regarding my career:<br />
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First here’s a general summary: I’m a surface metrologist – I develop surface measurement technologies in terms of hardware, mathematics and software. (Pretty geeky, eh?) I initially became an engineer because I enjoyed math and science. (I was young and didn’t know any better – it sounded like the right thing to do.) I got into the measurement field and it allowed me to develop as a teacher and a helper. I get to be the one that goes in and helps people better understand the world that they are working in. I get to see the “light bulb go on” in people’s minds. I even get to create tools that keep on helping people even after I’m gone.<br />
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Now let’s put it in the “Why/What” context: My “why” is: I love helping people and I love seeing them respond to my help. My “what” is: measurement-related consulting and technology. My “what” is the outward implementation of my “why.” <br />
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Without my “why” it would be hard for me to get up in the morning and go to work. Without my "why" I could ultimately turn into a cranky Cal or an angry Al.<br />
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Here’s the big question – do those around you really get your “why”? Worse yet, have you ever even considered what your “why” even is? Knowing and selling your “why” can be an essential part of providing an awesome “user experience” and growing your effectiveness through a great fan base.<br />
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Rock on!Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-52755956161175969832012-01-23T14:22:00.001-08:002022-04-11T13:56:55.563-07:00Rockin’ to the Encore<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsZ1MET1ZnKbRooX7IePUEJ59n6DIu9S9D9p3l54XOe81nhDkhspALGau2c1I8MvlCbO0fwy08p-8eDHjvC9G7eg0VJjqDN7GepkGTxFi55RtfLv0tz9nvzP4G3l4AOO0moqp0d_HTVTY/s1600/Audience.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsZ1MET1ZnKbRooX7IePUEJ59n6DIu9S9D9p3l54XOe81nhDkhspALGau2c1I8MvlCbO0fwy08p-8eDHjvC9G7eg0VJjqDN7GepkGTxFi55RtfLv0tz9nvzP4G3l4AOO0moqp0d_HTVTY/s320/Audience.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">Mary was a “mover” in her engineering department. Though she had only been with the company for 2 years, she was currently in her third position and was working on her fourth product responsibility. Mary thought that the best way to move up the ladder was to get a little bit of experience in everything – that way she could someday be the one that everybody turned to when things got exciting. As part of moving to her second position, she was promoted to Senior Engineer. She’s now hoping that her next promotion is right around the corner as she is looking at job postings in other groups.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />Stephanie was more of a “stay put” kind of person in her engineering department. Granted her first assignment wasn’t too exciting (as is the case in most entry level jobs), but she hung with it and in her second year, she found some interesting cost savings on a product that hadn’t changed for decades. Although she was supposed to just “baby sit” this mature product – she presented her idea to her boss and it was actually implemented. This cost savings earned the attention of her upper management and she too was promoted to Senior Engineer.<br />
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Flash forward several months to two everyday scenarios:<br />
Scenario 1: A new team is being formed to work on designing the brand new WidgetMaster 9000. (Doesn’t it bother you when I don’t get more specific?) As the engineering managers look around; who do they choose to be on their team? Mary-The-Mover? Stay-Put-Stephanie?<br />
Scenario 2: A million-dollar-a-day warranty problem hits in another department and additional engineers need to be deployed to help solve the problem. Who do they choose to be on their team? Mary-the-mover? Stay-put-Stephanie?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Now some situations may be different, but the majority of the time, I’d put my money on Stay-Put-Stephanie. She’s demonstrated the ability to “go deep” and depth is very a rare commodity in many of today’s engineering environments. While Mary became a generalist; Stephanie became a specialist. When you go to your doctor and he can’t figure things out where does he send you? To the specialist.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Many companies have a two-path approach: managerial or technical – personally I think there should be some middle ground between them. However as you think about your engineering career trajectory – where do you want to land? That should ultimately guide your movement – or lack of movement within an organization or between organizations. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I talk to lots of companies that struggle with retaining bright, young engineers. That can be attributed to the companies themselves and their ability (or inability) to encourage, challenge, motivate and reward. However, it can also be attributed to the “short sightedness” of many engineers. The concept of “depth” is not necessarily valued as much as it should be. So let me give you a few reasons to hang in there and “go deep”:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1. Increased knowledge. Spending time in an area means more time to learn about that particular technology. Use that time! Learn about what goes into making your product. Learn about the areas that your product touches. Learn about the history of your product. Learn what others (or competitors) are doing with their versions of your product. Learn what the biggest problems are with your product. Spend some time thinking about “what would the world be like without your product”. Try designing your product if nothing ever existed. Think about your product’s function and find 5 other things that have the same function but are totally unrelated (for example from nature or other industries).</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">2. Increased reputation. Staying in a department and “going deep” gives you more opportunity to deepen your “brand” as an engineer. Not only do you have the chance to get smarter (see #1), you also have more opportunities to show off your abilities. Reputation can be thought of as “that thing which you are known for” and reputation can be reinforced with repeated successes. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">3. Layoff Prevention. Let’s face it. Economies change and sometime people lose their jobs. By becoming the resident expert in a specific area, you are perceived as more valuable. In many cases it is preferred to keep the specialist as opposed to the generalist. Generalists can be hired when needed; specialists take time and effort to develop. Furthermore, the loss of the specialist’s knowledge can be much harder for the company to deal with.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">4. Peter-Principle Prevention. I have a good friend who is a high-ranking executive in a Fortune 500 company. He and I were talking about the topic of “when should someone make a career move?” and he offered some great advice. (No wonder he’s where he is today!) In his mind, you should move only when you feel that you’ve learned all you can and have mastered your current position. In business school there is talk of the “Peter Principle”. This is the principle that states: “people are promoted to their level of incompetency”. In other words, people will always be promoted until they wind up in a job that they can no longer handle. Then they are stuck there (often miserably) for the remainder of their career. By staying put and going deep before a promotion, you guarantee that you hit the next promotion level with an added degree of knowledge – thereby holding Mr. Peter and his Principle at bay.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Keep on rockin.</span><br />
<br />Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-60600665300916830702012-01-02T08:05:00.001-08:002022-04-11T13:57:05.271-07:00Jamming with a Legend<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUt4I1MZtk9Zu4rSBgNR2dg8tQvEGpt59W3YPb-zW8CvLSPFY0ZpLFkUpF70EhjUrUyU9MLmPR_b0kY7JdnBg9iS57hEGoVZJO5aldYxe-DPBhpiWhE6_0ghTFU4XptNUXzr5JGRNwiTQ/s1600/Clapton.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUt4I1MZtk9Zu4rSBgNR2dg8tQvEGpt59W3YPb-zW8CvLSPFY0ZpLFkUpF70EhjUrUyU9MLmPR_b0kY7JdnBg9iS57hEGoVZJO5aldYxe-DPBhpiWhE6_0ghTFU4XptNUXzr5JGRNwiTQ/s1600/Clapton.png" /></a></div>
If you want to get good at something… hang out with someone that is already good at it.<br />
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Recently, a friend of mine that plays guitar was talking about wanting to hang out with some great guitar players – just to see how they do what they do. A few days later another friend was talking about improving at tennis by playing against better players. This got me thinking about the importance of learning from or just plain hanging out with the “gurus” or “legends” that may be sitting in the very next cubicle.<br />
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Several years ago, (too many years to count) as I was just a few weeks out of college, I had a chance to work with “Tom”. He was one of those “gurus” that helped shape my career trajectory in ways that were unimaginable at the time. <br />
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At that time, Tom had been with the company almost as long as I had been alive and had worked his way into a technical advisor kind of role – dealing only with special (that is “crisis”) kinds of projects. He was one of those slow, methodical and meticulous kinds of guys that would spend hours studying a problem and testing theories. You’ve probably seen or at least heard stories about this kind of guy… the guy where a “cluttered” office means that he happened to have one extra piece of paper on his desk next to his notepad and computer keyboard and monitor. (I, on the other hand, tend to migrate towards a natural habitat of not being able to even see my desktop surface.)<br />
As a young engineer, I was able to work with Tom on special projects and I was able to take in some valuable lessons. Here are just a few:<br />
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1. Every pixel counts.<br />
We were working on a huge multi-million dollar problem and were dealing with the analysis and presentation of 1000’s of data sets. Tom emphasized the importance of presenting data in a clean, concise and understandable way. If you don’t pay attention to the way you present your results, what will cause your audience to trust your results? He was the first person that encouraged me to work toward “elegance” in solutions and their presentation. Later I discovered the work of <a href="http://www.edwardtufte.com/" target="_blank">Edward Tufte</a> (of whom I'm now a big fan) and this totally reinforced those previously learned lessons. <br />
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2. Build your brand<br />
When you are in front of an audience – either “live” in a room or “remotely” via documents or email that you’ve created; you have a chance to build a reputation. As you think about your audience (and, yes – that means you should be thinking about your audience) what do you want your work to say about who you are and what you bring to the table?<br />
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3. Take your time<br />
I’m assuming I’m among friends here, so I can admit this… I’m a very “type A” kind of person. Generally I work at two speeds: <em>fast</em> and <em>faster</em>. When I shut down, I generally shut completely down and go totally “offline” only to re-engage at some later time right back at full speed. In the classic <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tortoise_and_the_Hare" target="_blank">Tortoise and Hare</a> fable I’m definitely the hare. This kind of duty cycle is tough on machinery and is pretty tough on people as well. My time with various engineering gurus throughout my career has revealed on common trait in them: they are not afraid to roll up their sleeves and dig deep into a problem... and stay "in deep" for a long time if needed. They are not generally inclined to go with the first, impulsive answer; they take their time to find the “right” answer.<br />
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Now for some of you, those three lessons may not be earth shattering. Nonetheless, those lessons were exactly what I needed at that specific time in my career. However, beyond those specifics, I think there is an even bigger general lesson to be learned:<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong>You need to spend time with mentor or a guru.</strong></div>
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No matter where you are in your career, there is always someone that can make you better. World class athletes need coaches in order to perfect their physical abilities. World class engineers also need coaches or “mentors” in order to perfect their effectiveness. Sometimes you can get lucky like I did and be able to spend some serious time with a mentor. Other times you may need to seek out a small window of opportunity with a “guru”. Here are some ideas for making it happen:<br />
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<strong>1. Identify a person that you can learn something from.</strong> <br />
This is probably the most important step. Some gurus can help you with something as general as “dealing with management” while other gurus might be able to help you with “partial differential equations”. These may not necessarily person, nor will you necessarily need input from the same guru at the same time.<br />
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<strong>2. Let them know where you are coming from.</strong><br />
Telling a person that you want to learn from them can be a huge compliment for them. It lets them know that they are valued and it may help open the door for their sharing this ability with you. This is a great way of “building a bridge” to them in cases where you may not know each other very well to start with.<br />
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<strong>3. Establish a small (make that a “very small”) commitment and…</strong><br />
<strong>4. be the one to keep that commitment.</strong><br />
I love the story about how <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/christinecomaford/2011/11/10/i-stalked-steve-jobs-and-how-to-get-a-meeting-with-any-vip/" target="_blank">Christine Comaford met with Steve Jobs</a> for just a few minutes in order to ask him a few key questions. She sent (even FedEx'd) letter after letter indicating the desire to spend just 5 minutes with Jobs. In the end Jobs finally conceded and they met. After the predetermined 5 minutes, she stood up and thanked Jobs for his time. Jobs told her to sit back down and they continued to talk for another 45 minutes. This is a great lesson in showing respect for a guru and can even help establish a solid relationship whereby further interactions can take place. My advice – try a lunch with a guru. When the time ends, thank the person and pick up the check.<br />
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<strong>5. Find someone that you can mentor and build up.</strong><br />
The best way to really learn something is to teach it. This is true in the mentoring dynamics. As you grow as a rockstar engineer, find someone that you can build into and help them grow as well. This helps you better understand the sage/student relationship and ultimately can make you a better student. Furthermore, mentoring a young engineer is the absolute best way I know to stay “mentally young”.<br />
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Too many people become engineers because they are brilliant, independent-minded, can tackle tough problems and can create amazing products and solutions. Unfortunately, this independence (the same attribute that can launch a great engineering career) can also completely squelch such a career when an engineer doesn’t choose to spend some time “rocking with the legends”.<br />
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Rock on.<br />
<br />Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-10307098329248744312011-11-25T07:03:00.001-08:002022-04-11T13:57:12.672-07:00Party Like a Rockstar<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8YMnoO77qJhh6mNaOkyNRYJ2oESQHXCKFxgigS53Y2INi-mBGr1jRRqpsyuOPmKOPDnM2K7i1dpZTeGHdkdUXXZAbh3q4oZqjbq3qyVxCYAvGq8XKWkEJnEz85S353ldQfQ1IMpvBF38/s1600/PunkinAirCannon.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8YMnoO77qJhh6mNaOkyNRYJ2oESQHXCKFxgigS53Y2INi-mBGr1jRRqpsyuOPmKOPDnM2K7i1dpZTeGHdkdUXXZAbh3q4oZqjbq3qyVxCYAvGq8XKWkEJnEz85S353ldQfQ1IMpvBF38/s320/PunkinAirCannon.png" width="224" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This week the 2011 </span><a href="http://www.punkinchunkin.com/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Punkin Chunkin World Championships</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> are being televised. No, those aren’t spelling errors – that’s the actual name of a rather strange competition. In this competition, a bunch of completely crazy, bizarrely creative, and yet amazingly smart guys and girls get together to see how far they can launch a pumpkin. Sorry, did I say pumpkin? For this event, they’re called “punkins.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">As I watched this, one thing struck me… these guys are having an absolute blast! Even when a pumpkin shatters during the launch (they call it "making pie”), they still keep smiles on their faces and just get to work making things ready for the next round. As most reality shows go, there is a lot of great behind-the-scenes footage showing the teams actually designing and building their machines. They are laser-focused on one goal: make a pumpkin fly as far as it possibly can. However, you also get to see that there is a ton of laughing, smiling, joking and more high-fives than you can count. Team interviews are filled with comments like “this is what I live for,” “I put 110% into this,” “once I chunked a punkin, I knew I wanted to chunk punkins for rest of my life.” </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Teams have crazy names like: “Bad to the Bone,” “United Flingdom,” “Pumpkin Slayer,” “Sir Chunks a-Lot.” Chunkin legend “</span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BukCLiP_n64" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Fat Jimmy</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">” even has his own dance. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">This brings a rockstar engineer question to mind:</span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">When was the last time you had this kind of fun while working on an engineering team? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Or, let me put this in terms of numbers (since you are engineers after all)… </span></div>
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</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">How many high fives are given in your team meetings?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I'll just cut to the chase here: I think fun brings energy and energy fuels every aspect of the engineering process. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Now some of the Harvard MBAs out there will say (most likely while looking down their up-turned noses) “this is an example of a social dynamic best described as </span><a href="http://hbr.org/product/desperately-seeking-synergy/an/98504-PDF-ENG" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;">synergy</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">.” My response to that is: “Yeah, yeah, yeah. Blah, blah, blah.” I almost hate to use that s-word as it is way overused in business and I don’t want this blog to be classified as “just another guy talking about the same old buzzword.” Did you realize that in the linked web page they used the S-word four times in the opening paragraph alone? So let’s not even use the S-word. Let’s just talk about bringing energy and focus to a team meeting or a team environment. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Here are some tips:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">1. Have a crystal clear goal sentence. <br />
Yes, I said sentence… singular. Organizations are crippled when they have too many objectives. The same is true for your team.<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Examples: <br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Make a pumpkin fly as far as it can. <br />
Fit a square carbon dioxide filter into a round hole (see</span><a href="http://spectrum.ieee.org/aerospace/space-flight/apollo-13-we-have-a-solution-part-3" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Apollo 13</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">) </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">2. Realize that there is value in each person in the room. <br />
Several years ago I was in a group of “specialists.” Each of us had our own not-too-related-specialty and yet the cross-discipline collaboration was amazing. There were no significant egos at play and the sharing of ideas was tremendous. I was working in dimensional measurement, yet I learned a mathematical trick from a fluid dynamics specialist that I still incorporate in many of my projects today. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">When I visit companies, I often find that the “lowest” person on the corporate ladder is the one who is the closest to the solution of the problem. This person actually has his or her hands on the machine or measuring instrument and therefore often has knowledge that others don’t take the time to tap into.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">3. Ask dumb questions. <br />
As a consultant, I’m typically, the “outside guy” in a meeting. This gives me the opportunity to ask the dumb questions. In fact this gives me a huge advantage in a meeting and my “dumb questions” often get people talking in a way that they wouldn’t have otherwise. A few years ago I was teaching a class in a very high tech Silicon Valley research center. Just about every person I met in the room had a Ph.D. (or more) in some far-out aspect of physics, quantum mechanics or physical chemistry. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Everybody, but one guy, that is. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">As I was teaching, this one, non-doctor guy would stop me and ask an occasional question. When he did, an amazing dynamic happened in the room... just about all of these "doctors" seemed to exhale a sigh of relief as if saying “yeah, I wanted to ask that, but I was afraid to.” After the session I found out that this one “non-doctor” was their vice president. He was the rockstar in the room because he wasn’t afraid to ask questions.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">4. Throw some dumb solutions out there. <br />
The most creative of teams have something like an “umbrella of grace” kind of policy. I originally heard of this concept from Bill Hybels at what is now called </span><a href="http://www.willowcreek.com/events/leadership/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Global Leadership Summit</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> and it is a very powerful tool. This “umbrella of grace” policy means that there are no dumb ideas and grace is extended to anyone who puts forth an idea. In some departments the “no dumb ideas” thing is often just a cliché. However, great teams really embrace this concept. Sure there may be some joking along the way, but the bottom line is that all ideas are respected as even the weirdest one may lead to something great. In fact, you can take advantage of this concept by using this approach the next time you put forth an an idea in a group setting: “OK I need an umbrella of grace here... what if we try _____?” </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">This approach provides for two, powerful dynamics. First, it makes it clear that you are being vulnerable and this idea may not be totally thought out. Second, it gives the audience a less threatening presentation of your idea in the form of a question. This question encourages discussion rather than a “sales pitch” which encourages criticism. Presenting ideas in their earliest, most unrefined form (rather than waiting for all of the data to come in), allows others in the room to jump in and adopt them as their own. For a person to put energy into a solution, they need to feel some ownership. Having more people on board with your ideas, makes for more energy and for a better solution. And let’s face it: full rock bands can typically make a lot more sound than a solo artist.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">5. Now for the big one: Laugh. <br />
Yes, laugh. When you are dealing with the deepest aspects of science like physics and chemistry, laugh. When your pumpkin "pies" instead of flying 4000 feet, laugh. When you are dealing with the biggest warranty problem that your company has ever faced, laugh. Laugh your head off. Laugh until someone wets their pants. OK, maybe just up to the point where someone is about to wet their pants.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I want to make a very important note here: you don’t have to be “off-color” to be funny. In fact rude or profane humor can do far more damage than you might ever know. Your audience may give <em>courtesy laughter</em>, but underneath they are probably distancing themselves from you.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Laughter brings energy. The TV show </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M*A*S*H_(TV_series)"><span style="font-family: inherit;">M.A.S.H.</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> was a comedy set in a mobile military hospital in South Korea during the Korean war. For these doctors and nurses, even in the scariest, bloodiest, most gruesome moments – humor is what kept them going. Some scientists have suggested that </span><a href="http://women.webmd.com/guide/give-your-body-boost-with-laughter" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;">laughter actually gets more oxygen to your brain</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Hold it! Don’t start Googling for the </span><a href="http://www.joke-of-the-day.com/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;">joke of the day</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> or start digging through your favorite old </span><a href="http://www.dilbert.com/" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Dilbert</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> comics. Humor that is real and energizing doesn’t necessarily come from the Internet; it comes from getting comfortable with those around you. Humor that is real and energizing comes spontaneously and is best when it comes from a person that is willing to let his guard down. Here are some quick ideas for making it happen: Self deprecation (picking on yourself rather than others) is always safe – in fact I encourage it. Real rockstar engineers don’t need to tell people how good they are – they can take shots at themselves and in doing so they build bridges with others. Another powerful tool is one that a friend of mine refers to as “teasing up”. In other words, when teasing others tease them about how super-great they are rather than cutting them down with sarcastic humor. Sarcastic and insulting humor is the easiest and one of the lowest forms of humor. Rockstar engineers don't need to stoop to that level. "Teasing up" is also relatively easy, but do be careful about crossing the line into sarcasm. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Saying, “Hey Bill, you’re the closest we’ve got to an Einstein here. What do you think about _____?” is a way of teasing up. On the other hand saying, “Nice one, Einstein” could be a very sarcastic way of cutting someone down. One last note: Be sure there is at least a tiny nugget of truth when teasing up and you will become a great energy catalyst in your meetings.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Bringing it all together…</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I have friends who are musicians in various bands and they sometimes talk about when it just “works.” “We had great time last night at practice. We wanted to stick around all night and just jam.” Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case. Hopefully, some of these tips will help to make those “engineering jam sessions” happen more often. But when you are stuck in a room and things aren’t clicking, try to shake things up. If you still don’t get there, take a break or call it off (if possible). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">One of the most common outcomes of a meeting without energy is the dreaded M-word… mediocrity. And mediocrity is not the stuff of rockstar legends.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">So get the team together, have a few laughs, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EbVKWCpNFhY" target="_blank">crank up the amps to “11,”</a> go launch a pumpkin and get your team rockin.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Maybe they will even name a dance after you!</span>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-81349318630863647592011-11-03T12:53:00.001-07:002022-04-11T13:57:18.879-07:00Getting the band back together...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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But let me rewind a bit...<br />
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A few weeks ago I was reading Wired Magazine and came across an article about the Mars500 project. (“<a href="http://www.wired.com/magazine/2011/10/ff_marsmission/">Are We There Yet</a>” November 2011) <br />
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This was a fascinating article and I was surprised that I (being the geek that I am) had not heard about this before!<br />
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Basically the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MARS-500">Mars500 project</a> is an experiment where 6 guys were locked away in a simulated spaceship for a pretend trip to Mars. The total travel time... 520 days! That’s right, 520 days cooped up in an “<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MARS-500#Facility">experimental isolation facility</a>”. </div>
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Their “journey” began in June of 2010. Tomorrow (at 11:00 am Central European Time) they open the hatches and the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MARS-500#Crew">6 guys</a> (3 engineers, a surgeon, a physiologist and a astronaut research instructor) return to the real world. The Wired article speculated that they will return “changed in ways that they will forever protect as secret, and also in ways that they may never quite fathom themselves.” </div>
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This got me thinking... these 6 guys were removed from society for more than a year. They had only electronic communications with the "real world" and even they had to deal with a "simulated delay” – the delay being based on the lag associated with where they were in their "simulated journey”. </div>
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Let’s pull this into the rockstar engineer context... </div>
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These guys have already gone more than a year with no “live” interaction with people. One of the biggest lessons I learned when hitting my first “real job” out of engineering school was this: <u>people</u> are the most important part of the effectiveness equation. The quicker you learn this, the more effective you will be. </div>
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In college you can “hole up” in some remote location and pull an all nighter to tackle some task. You can be somewhat self-sufficient. In the real world you are, more often than not, dependent on others in order to be able to deliver. Even if you can create something you are going to be dependent on others to either supply, package, test and/or buy it. </div>
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As a typical engineer you may be better with math and science than you are with people. But to make the best use of your math and science you need to learn to play well with others. The best way to make that happen is to begin to understand the “value” of those around you. </div>
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I still remember walking into my first role as a laboratory advisor and the first time I met the technicians. All of them had been with the company longer than I had even been alive. I wasn’t too intimidated, however, since I had just completed my Master’s degree in the exact area of measurement that they were working with. </div>
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As I met the guys, I started asking them questions about sampling strategies, Nyquist wavelengths and transmission characteristic curves – all the analytical stuff that I learned about in graduate school. It’s probably no surprise that they couldn’t answer any of my questions. It's probably no surprise also that they thought I was a complete jerk. However, I went on to find about 1.0E6 things that I could learn from them . (That’s a million by the way.) </div>
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I went on to rebuild a relationship with those guys and thoroughly enjoyed working with them each day. Each morning I looked forward to keying the combination to the door and they seemed to look forward to my arrival. It turned out one of them was a phenomenal baker and his particular interest was in creating the greatest chocolate chip cookie ever. I was more than happy to be his cookie tester... but that's a story for another time</div>
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Nonetheless, here a few learnings from that experience:</div>
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1. I learned <strong>how things get done</strong>. </div>
I learned that they “knew the system” and I didn't. These guys knew the right people and the most efficient way to make things happen. They introduced me to some of their "friends" and it was amazing how effecient things could be.<br />
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2. I learned that my <strong>book knowledge meant very little</strong> in terms of what really matters. </div>
I knew measurement systems signal processing. However, that meant very little when the main questions are related to “can we ship these parts?” or “why isn’t this part working the way it should?” Fortunately for me, these guys could look at the situation and know exactly what is going on. They would usually start their response with “several years ago we had this same problem...” and they went on to specifically identify the problem and propose best solution.<br />
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3. I learned that <strong>a “position” or a “title” mean very little</strong> in terms of a person’s “value” .</div>
My current job takes me from dirty manufacturing floors working with those that are the lowest on the salary scales all the way to executive offices of multi-million dollar businesses working with presidents and CEOs. I can honestly say that something can be learned from both places as well as from all those who are somewhere in between.<br />
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The Mars 500 guys have been "away" for a long, long time. Hopefully, a great deal can be learned from this experiment as I'm afraid that the team has paid a great price. These 6 guys were cut off from human interaction for more than a year. Some engineers take this approach in their work lives and do all that they can to get away from people. I admit, there are times when we need to get away to focus. But I’m also the first to say, <strong>real effectiveness comes through working with people.</strong></div>
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Welcome back guys!<br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></div>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-78023454838769323792011-10-18T07:11:00.001-07:002022-04-11T13:57:25.380-07:00Your Opening Act – The Handshake<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit2Ne-3Wjxrkhd-GIEfTrcQ5ojLgz-tFAGpuTkeT8OX9fH3MvDE_OJ09RsKY5jTRVDy4KSO5YlIq_PATJkE5UMRlbXJdFsoQ7Swspct0XoZbx13b7p54L58uW2EfogxT1t53IVHYN4WkE/s1600/Handshake.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit2Ne-3Wjxrkhd-GIEfTrcQ5ojLgz-tFAGpuTkeT8OX9fH3MvDE_OJ09RsKY5jTRVDy4KSO5YlIq_PATJkE5UMRlbXJdFsoQ7Swspct0XoZbx13b7p54L58uW2EfogxT1t53IVHYN4WkE/s1600/Handshake.png" /></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"><em>"You never get a second chance to make a first impression” </em></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">(often attributed to Will Rogers... but nobody can be sure where it came from) </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
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Last week my two football worlds collided. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
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Having grown up in Michigan I was genetically engineered to have a soft place in my heart for the Detroit Lions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, when moving to Indiana several years ago, I became a fan of the Indianapolis Colts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This year, things got pretty messed up when the Colts started losing and the Lions started winning – but that’s another story.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Back to the collision... </span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">When I started getting interested in the Colts, their quarterback was Jim Harbaugh – who now coaches the San Francisco 49ers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This past Sunday he coached the 49ers to a victory over the... (drumroll please) Detroit Lions – who were undefeated going into the game. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">After the game Harbaugh was pretty pumped up with the win and things got out of hand in the most unlikely of places: </span><a href="http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/7116243/detroit-lions-jim-schwartz-san-francisco-49ers-jim-harbaugh-speak-nfl-altercation"><span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;">the coach’s handshake</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">This got me thinking about the concept of a “handshake”: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">a seemingly trivial action that typically lasts no more than a second or two</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, in that second or two an enormous amount of information is conveyed about who you are as a person.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">So let’s talk about some ways to rock the handshake.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;">1. All</span></span></span> hands are worthy of a shake</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">My first “corporate job” was during a time and in a department where you did the “corporate look” - you know the kind: white shirt, tie, sport coat and all that phony “dress up” stuff. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once I was with my boss, Bill, in a manufacturing plant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were in our white shirts and ties, walking past one of the machines and Bill stopped to talk to one of the workers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The guy looked like he just crawled out from under the machine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was filthy from grease, grime and who knows what else.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nonetheless, Bill stuck out his hand and introduced himself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The guy apologized for being dirty and resisted the handshake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bill persisted with “I never have a problem shaking a working man’s hand”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They shook hands and I followed suit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Guess what: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>hands can be washed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I’m thankful for Bill’s influence – he taught me (by example) to build bridges with people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That approach has led me to many successes as an engineer and a consultant.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2. </span></span>Be the “starter”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Be the one who extends the hand – no matter the audience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This shows leadership and confidence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Start anticipating a handshake before even walking in the room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Get your hands out of your pockets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wipe them off if you’ve got sweaty palms... and stick it out there!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It only takes a second, but in that second, you’ve conveyed a big message.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3. </span></span>Be the “ender”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">A handshake that goes too long is just plain creepy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>About 1-2 seconds is long enough in most settings. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Check out this one at about the 1:15 point: </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ml8Q_qZxWLE"><span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;">www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ml8Q_qZxWLE</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In Germany it is customary to shake hand with everyone when entering a room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These guys have it down to a science – a firm grab, one shake, and then move on to the next person.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A typical “American” hand shake is between 1-2 “pumps”.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">OK, we’re engineers, we need the physics:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>The “lock”</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This is probably the most important part of the handshake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you don’t get all the way “in”, you will be in the position of having your fingers grabbed, much like a princess having her hand held to be kissed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is definitely not the position for a rockstar to be in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here’s a tip: you can avoid being the “princess” if you can get into the “thumb lock” position.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Sometimes you have to go in fast if the other person is a “grabber”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But if you obey rule #2 above, you’ll be ahead of the game.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Prior to the squeeze, get your thumb-to-forefinger webs into contact.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This tip can provide a huge help for women or people who are shaking a hand that’s much bigger than your own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Remember, this is a “hand” shake, not a “finger” shake.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>The “pressure”</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">A friend of mine is a professor and he actually teaches international students how to shake hands per the “American style” and most if it has to do with “pressure”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I still vividly remember a job interview where a high ranking executive actually made my knuckles crack.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This guy wasn’t big, but he had a serious grip.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A firm grip is good builds bridges.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A knuckle cracker builds walls between people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A wussy handshake (like a dead fish) is worse than no handshake at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">So how much is right?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is a great question.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The best I can say is “firm”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a starting point, pick up a gallon of milk.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That requires a “firm” grip. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A handshake is a sort of “dance” – you have to work with you partner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Firm will feel different in different contexts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The good news is that you body has an amazing control system it can sense and react – but you have to be in tune.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>The “eyes” have it</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The last element of the handshake actually has nothing to do with the hands at all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s your eyes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m basically a shy person when it comes to eye contact and I have to consciously work on my eyes when speaking with others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One trick I’ve learned to try to notice the color of the person’s eyes while shaking their hand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This gives my eyes a task to perform and helps me to focus on something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">People know when you are paying attention to them and one of the best ways that they know this is from your eyes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another trick that helps connect is to somehow say their name during the handshake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“It’s nice to meet you, <u>Chad</u>.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“It’s good to see you again, <u>Kathy</u>?” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Good morning, <u>Joe</u>.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">So get out there and practice...</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Rockstars put in their time rehearsing and improving.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The best way to perfect your craft is to practice your craft.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So don’t be afraid, shake some hands.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may even be able to shake up some new confidence or even a new image for yourself!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if you ever find yourself on an NFL football field after beating the Detroit Lions, perhaps you’ll do better than Jim did.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Rock on.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">For further reading check out:</span><br />
<a href="http://www.sideroad.com/Business_Etiquette/handshake-etiquette.html"><span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;">http://www.sideroad.com/Business_Etiquette/handshake-etiquette.html</span></a><br />
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<a href="http://www.thedailymind.com/how-to/the-perfect-handshake-how-to-shake-hands-like-jfk-and-make-an-impression/"><span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;">http://www.thedailymind.com/how-to/the-perfect-handshake-how-to-shake-hands-like-jfk-and-make-an-impression/</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
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<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7HJ3RDYPVc">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y7HJ3RDYPVc</a> (advice from an "expert")</div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-89731056486358912172011-10-06T05:38:00.001-07:002022-04-11T13:57:32.909-07:00A Tribute to a Rockstar Engineer Legend – Steve Jobs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTVnbcATYfWpUUuzXux7LzZmRn4CwH1goY6g8bmsoH1_-fkso_yRbVH2pNrleS6W64Fns1RrPk7TvkYH01A9AupOUz45a12AjnamPkFy2VylgeDCxaXWLvnX7obX0Q049Ts5xiCUsG9sk/s1600/iPhoneLighter.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTVnbcATYfWpUUuzXux7LzZmRn4CwH1goY6g8bmsoH1_-fkso_yRbVH2pNrleS6W64Fns1RrPk7TvkYH01A9AupOUz45a12AjnamPkFy2VylgeDCxaXWLvnX7obX0Q049Ts5xiCUsG9sk/s1600/iPhoneLighter.png" /></span></a></div><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><em>“Simple can be harder than complex: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it's worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></em>Steve Jobs - </span><a href="http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/may1998/nf80512d.htm" target="_hplink"><span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;">BusinessWeek interview, May 1998</span><span style="color: blue;"><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Yesterday, Steve Jobs lost his battle with cancer and the engineering world has lost a living icon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">As I look at the products, presentations and personality of Steve (pretending that we are on a first name basis), I see one theme shining through: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">SIMPLICITY</span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">That single word holds a great deal of insight for rockstar engineers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let’s look at just few areas... and I’ll try to keep it simple.</span></div><strong><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span>Keep designs simple: Avoid “Feature/Scope Creep”</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong> </strong>It is said that when the original iPod was being designed Steve kept returning the prototypes to the designers saying that it had “too many buttons”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This may have frustrated the engineers, but it ultimately led to one of the most innovative interfaces of its time: the iconic iPod “wheel” control pad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(See: </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/iCon-Steve-Jobs-Greatest-Business/dp/0471720836"><span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;">iCon - Steve Jobs: The Greatest Second Act in the History of Business </span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">) When designing, we need to realize that a “really cool addition” to us, may be perceived as “unnecessary clutter” or “added confusion” to our audience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> I really like our toaster - it turns bread into toast. That's all it does and that's all it needs to do. Simple.</span></span><br />
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</span><strong><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span>Keep presentations simple: Avoid “Slides as Documents”</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong> </strong>A Steve Jobs presentation has been referred to as a “rockshow”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This may be due in part to the hype of the passionate Apple fans, but I think it is also due to the way that it is presented.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Check out the slides at the iPhone launch:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uW-E496FXg"><span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;">www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uW-E496FXg</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you are in an audience, who’s slides would you rather look at?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yours or Steve’s?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know we don’t have a team of graphic designers working our presentations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we can learn an important lesson: slides are good for pictures and graphs – not sentences.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Too many people design their presentation slides as if the slides are going to be used as documentation for future use.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Slides aren’t documentation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Slides are digital wallpaper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><strong><span style="font-family: inherit;">3.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></strong></span></span><strong><span style="font-family: inherit;">Keep presentations simple: Avoid “Utilizing Enormously Oversized Verbiage Selections”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
(aka: Avoid “Using Big Words”)</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong> </strong>A Steve Jobs presentation has been referred to as a “rockshow”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This may be due in part to the hype of the passionate Apple fans, but I think it is also due to the way that it is presented.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(How many of you just looked up at #2 wondering if I made a copy-paste error?)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know, it sounds like I’m repeating myself... I am.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A Jobs presentation is a case study in verbal communication.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Steve uses words that anybody can understand and he’s not afraid to show excitement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> How many times have you used the word "cool" or "awesome" in a presentation? </span>Big words don’t make you look smarter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They make you harder to understand and the build a barrier between you and your audience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Keep your language simple.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Check this out: </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Presentation-Secrets-Steve-Jobs-Insanely/dp/0071636080"><span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;">The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs: How to Be Insanely Great in Front of Any Audience</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
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<strong><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span>Keep your look simple: Avoid falling into the “Nerd Trap”</span></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong> </strong>Let’s face it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most engineers are not the most fashion-minded people in the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some actually seem to be proud of the fact that they are not “slaves to fashion”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, your “look” is part of your “brand”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A person that looks bad and smells bad is a person that willfully builds in barriers in terms of effectiveness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Does this mean that we all need to run to Fifth Avenue or Rodeo Drive and spend millions on a wardrobe?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(OK, you are engineers: I’ll give you some help... </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fifth_Avenue"><span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;">Fifth Avenue</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> is in New York, </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodeo_drive"><span style="color: blue; font-family: inherit;">Rodeo Drive</span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> is in Beverly Hills)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Back to the question, the answer is “No”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Steve Jobs totally redefined the concept of a CEO’s “look” – and he did it by keeping things <u>simple</u>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Black shirt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Blue jeans.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Classic. Timeless. </span>Simple.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Here's a simple conclusion:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Steve Jobs will be remembered for product legacies: the iMac, the iPod, the iPhone, the iPad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think he should be best remembered for keeping things "iSimple".</span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Rock on.</span></div>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-37298988487215249512011-09-12T19:04:00.003-07:002022-04-11T13:58:05.019-07:00Rockin' the House<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3jlwRa1FwLA/S3Tup4NQtpI/AAAAAAAAAM8/99ytIq_Q6Uw/s512/see%252520spot%252520rock%252520pillar%2525203.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="238" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3jlwRa1FwLA/S3Tup4NQtpI/AAAAAAAAAM8/99ytIq_Q6Uw/s320/see%252520spot%252520rock%252520pillar%2525203.jpg" width="320" /></span></a><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><strong>Presenting the “Big Project” to the “Big Guys”...</strong></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Charlie was a bit nervous heading into his project review.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s spent the last 9 months working on the X17 warranty problem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(How’s that for a generic-sounding project?)</i></span></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"> The X17 was pretty much falling apart as soon as the customer took it out of the box.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">What? Still no clue what an X17 is?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s ok, it’s totally made up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is no such thing. I’m just using it as an example to tell a fictitious story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A story that repeats itself all too frequently…</i></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Charlie sat nervously at the head of the table in the conference room as the chief engineers and other department giants finally arrived along with a few other engineers from the project.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">(The first “big guy” arrived 2 minutes early, but the other two were 5 and 10 minutes late respectively)</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He only had an hour and these guys were already cutting into his time!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Charlie didn’t make eye contact as he felt these guys were out of his league.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fortunately for him, there was WiFi available in the room and so he buried himself in his email – though he really couldn’t concentrate on anything on the screen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But at least he didn’t have to try to interact with <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">those</i> guys.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"> Finally, everybody was there and Charlie stood and pulled up the first of the 41 slides that he’d been working on for the last three weeks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The slide read “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">X17 Warranty Issues and Strengthening Improvements to Case Moldings</i>”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Charlie began by saying “OK.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So today I’m going to talk about X17 Warranty Issues and Strengthening Improvements to Case Moldings”.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"> It went downhill from there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">He said "I have a lot of material to cover so I'll take questions at the end." Charlie’s first 8 slides (and 11 minutes of talking) presented the costs associated with the warranty returns as well as a geographic breakdown of where the issues occurred.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He laid out a pareto indicating which suppliers are associated with more failures than others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Charlie’s next 29 slides (and 33 minutes of presentation) dealt with details of 7 design options that were considered and discarded.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of them were considered only on paper and never built.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some of them looked like they may have only been considered on the back of a napkin at McDonalds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Others couldn’t be built and a few others were built, but failed the testing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Charlie shared spreadsheets full of data indicating the serial numbers of failed tests, the cost data for each failed design as well as statistical analyses of the measured results.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He went into great detail as he discussed the mathematical significance of one factorial study that he performed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He even used all the right terms like “elastic modulus”, “correlated input factors” and “non-Gaussian statistical behavior”.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Unfortunately, after all of this, Charlie finally presented his solution to the problem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was actually a very clever design that wasn’t just stronger, but also saved material and manufacturing costs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Too bad for Charlie, though.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By then is audience was in some far, far away place as they too had discovered that the room had WiFi and they were totally tuned out. Others had to leave early in order to get to their next meeting - having never actually seen his really good slides of the proposed solution.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">OK, back to the real world… </b><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here’s an exercise for you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pick out everything that was wrong about this story.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Think of it as one of those childhood picture puzzles: find 10 things wrong with this picture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here’s a hint – the chief engineers checking their email is not one of them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the end of this article I’ll list the ones that I found. (OK. It was easy for me to find all 10 since I wrote it.)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <u><strong>Presenting like a Rock Star - Principle #1: First-First Impressions<o:p></o:p></strong></u></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> First impressions mean everything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In a meeting you actually get two chances to make a first impression.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rock stars nail them both. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first chance to make an impression is when people come into a room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the Chief Engineer enters don’t run and hide behind your laptop screen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As the expression goes: “he puts his pants on one leg at a time” – or maybe more appropriately “he fills his pocket protector one pen at a time”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In any case, he’s a human being, just like you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Treat him as such.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Here’s a little-known social dynamic:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s walked into your conference room for your meeting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Think of it as your living room and you are in the position of “host” – you should be the one to welcome him!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Here are some things to consider when the big guy walks in the room.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><strong>1.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></strong></span></span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong>You may know him (since he’s “famous” in the department), but there is a very good chance that he may not know you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
</strong>Face it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may be a little guy in a big organization.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He’s a busy guy and many not remember you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He knows that some “Charlie” is presenting some “project” in room 437D. Be a rockstar and take the initiative.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If there is any doubt that he may not know you, step up and introduce yourself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here’s a simple way to get there: Make sure that your opening slide has the project title and your name on it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(It should be showing on the screen as people arrive.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then greet him with “Hello (insert chief engineer’s name here), thanks for coming to my presentation today”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s cool about this approach is that you don’t have to go through the awkwardness of recollection.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By all means NEVER, NEVER, NEVER go to a superior with a line like “Hi Jim, remember me?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do not EVER put him in a position whereby his credibility or confidence can be damaged.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><strong>2.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></strong></span></span></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><strong>You’re catching him while he’s “fresh”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A rockstar will find a way to get him talking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’ll have your time to talk later.<br />
</strong>If you can show interest in your audience, there is a better chance that they will show interest in you when you need it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t just think of meeting prep as preparing slides and data.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You need to also think of the “opportunity” that the meeting presents and you need to prepare for the “social” aspect as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You are going to be in a room with people that can change your career path.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Plus they are coming into a new room for a new meeting. This is the prime time to connect. </span>What are they interested in?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Find out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What are they working on?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Find out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here are some clues for conversation starters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can’t choose?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The best ones are ones that you are mutually connected to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Have you seen them around town?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A restaurant? An event?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Hey I saw you at the _____ last week.<o:p></o:p></span></i></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Do they wear anything indicative of a college or a sports team?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Did you catch the ____ game last week?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How did the ____ do last weekend?<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> What was the last thing that they communicated to the department?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>How is the ____ program going?<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> What is the big initiative that the company or department is working on?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>How is the ____ launch going?<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Has he been on a trip?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>How was your trip to _____? What's it like there?<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> A good friend of mine has been very successful in several management positions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He has always made it a priority to get to know some basic things about each of him employees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He remembers their name, wife’s name (if applicable) and at least one other thing about the person (where they live, etc.).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This an amazing tool for him when it comes to conversation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s even more amazing is that, at times, he’s been able to achieve this with more than 200 people reporting to him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may not be able to go this far, but having a few notes about your audience will go miles in terms of your ability to rock the room in the coming presentation.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <em>First-First Impression Hint: </em></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><em> </em>When you are working on your presentation and making your notes, also spend some time working on your audience and making some notes about them.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <em>First-First Impression Resources: </em></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>Good in a Room: How to Sell Yourself and Your Ideas and Win Over Any Audience</u> by Stephanie Palmer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s far from an engineering book, but she really does a great job addressing the importance of the social aspects of meetings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I highly recommend it.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <u><strong>Presenting like a Rock Star - Principle #2: Making a Second-First Impression<o:p></o:p></strong></u></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> I enjoy the topic of “teaching” and am interested in “what makes a good teacher”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Several years ago I heard a great teacher talk about how he gets copies of lessons taught by other teachers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These teachers send them to him – hoping that he will send constructive feedback.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One thing that this teacher said was “I can tell a good teacher in the first 4 minutes”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I think that the “4 minute” window is a bit too generous today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is way too easy to get on WiFi or check your smartphone in today’s conference rooms.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> The opening of your presentation is a second chance to make a first impression.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Here’s a simple principle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To make the best opening – start with what matters… and that’s not necessarily what matters to you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Start with what matters to the audience!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> In the above example, does Charlie really think that the big guys can’t read?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then why did he read his opening slide to them?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Stupid move on his part.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> How about this new and improved opening:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <em>“It’s no secret that the X17 has been causing us serious problems and I’ve been working hard on this for the past several months.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m pretty excited today as I think I have a solution that not only is strong enough but uses less material and is also less costly to manufacture. Let’s check it out…”</em></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><em> </em>This opening totally changes the tone and flow of the meeting!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact these three sentences cover everything that needs to be said or will be said in the hour to come.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, the audience can get up and leave early (as they often do) and they will still have gotten “the main point”.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Here’s what a great opening does:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“It’s no secret that the X17 has been causing us serious problems“<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> It establishes “where we are”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is no point in going into history if everybody knows it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, reviewing history is a painful waste of time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may have 8 slides on the warranty history, but please don’t force them on the audience unless they ask for it.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“I’ve been working hard on this for the past several months.”<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Let them know where you are coming from and your role.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Audience members need to know who you are and why you are presenting this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Be able to answer their question of “why am I taking my time to listen to this guy?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You definitely don’t want to go too far here and you don’t want to forget mentioning your team members at some point.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, this is your chance to establish “who you are relative to the project”.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“I’m pretty excited today…”<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Listen very closely to these next 6 words… IT IS OK TO BE EXCITED.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Got it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now repeat after me: “IT IS OK TO BE EXCITED.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now don’t forget it. Here’s the deal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’re an engineer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Chances are good that your audience in this setting is made up of engineer-types.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are people that are genetically designed such that they get excited about cool solutions to technical problems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So why not show some excitement?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It will go miles toward building a positive dynamic in the room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here’s an absolute must-read book:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><u>The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs</u> by Carmine Gallo.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Get it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Read it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Live it.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“…as I think I have a solution that not only is strong enough but uses less material and is also less costly to manufacture”<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> You know where you want to take the meeting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tease it!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Have you ever watched a show where they set up something incredibly interesting only to cut to a commercial?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you haven’t experienced this, you need more than this blog to help you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This concept is called “teasing”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You give away just a little information to whet the appetite of your audience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is way to keep an audience from checking their email and/or smartphones.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One caution: overuse of teasers will absolutely destroy your audience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Use this craftily and you will be a rockstar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Overuse this approach and your jerk-icty (see the last posting) ratings will increase significantly.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">5.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span></i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“Let’s check it out…<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Here’s a huge, important point: dive into the solution!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Your audience doesn’t care that much about all of the work that you’ve done.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They care about solving the problem.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thomas Edison said, “If I find 10,000 ways something won't work, I haven't failed. I am not discouraged, because every wrong attempt discarded is another step forward.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, here’s a clue for you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’re not Thomas Edison and even if you were, this isn’t the time to talk about all of the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">things that didn’t work</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is the time to sell your solution – which will ultimately “sell” you and raise your rockstar quotient.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’ve still got your 29 slides (I never said to delete them) in case someone asks questions about various options that may be worth considering. I know that you want to show that you worked hard. Unfortunately for you, your management doesn't care that much about how hard your worked. They care about results.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> That’s a killer opening… but what about slides?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Here’s a recommendation: slides are great for pictures and picture-like content (e.g. graphs).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are lousy for text.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you put text on a slide people must use their eyes to process a written words while using their ears to process your spoken words.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not a good combination.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> So try this opening slide scheme:</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">(Slide) Photo of a broken part<br />
</b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“It’s no secret that the X17 has been causing us serious problems and I’ve been working hard on this for the past several months.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m pretty excited today as I think I have a solution…”<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">(Slide) Photo of the new part<br />
</b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“…that not only is strong enough but uses less material and is also less costly to manufacture. Let’s check it out…”<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> After the opening… get on with selling the solution.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maintain the energy and don’t waste time on things that don’t matter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wait!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Did you catch that word in the first sentence?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To some people “selling” is a bad thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But that is exactly what we as engineers need to do in this setting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We have a <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">product</i> (our solution.) We have <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">buyers</i> (those that are evaluating the solution.) And we need to “sell” it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Present your ideas as such!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> You’re probably thinking: “But Mark!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve got an hour and I’ve got all these slides.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I want to show them how <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">good</i> and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">thorough</i> of an engineer that I am.”</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Here’s what I have to say about that:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To be a rockstar engineer you need to realize chief engineers want to get one thing from this setting – and it’s a big multi-syllable word: <u>trustworthiness</u>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>OK let’s just simplify it to: TRUST.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Your job in this meeting is to help them grow to trust you and trust your solution.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <u>Now to really mess with your head…</u></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u> </u>Instead of preparing 60 minutes of presentation as Charlie did above.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How about using the killer opening, then spending 15 minutes presenting the solution – allowing for interruptions and questions as you go?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By the way, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE do not ever say: “I’ll take questions at the end.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is a complete show stopper for people who are sequential learners like I am.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I have a question, I need an answer before I can move on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I can’t get an answer to a question I will tune out fast.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> After your 15 minutes (which will hopefully stretch to 30 since your audience is warmed up and conversational) you will not have about 20 minutes in which you can now show leadership in the room and circle back with a phrase like: “I do have field data regarding warranty costs and locations if anybody would like to see it”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or “I do have the test data for the other possible solutions” if you are interested.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <u>Now here’s one that will totally kill you…</u></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u> </u>End early.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeah, that’s right I said it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“End early”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yeah, I know that this may be your only chance to “show off” in front of these guys and I know that you don’t want to waste a minute of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But do it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>End early.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you sense that you are losing your room, end early.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you see the clock approaching the end time, end early.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t wait for the audience – you should maintain your position of control and you should be the one that ends the meeting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t let the meeting dissolve away with people drifting out as meetings often do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You can be a rockstar and maintain your role as host – and you can be the one to end the meeting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Try this: “I appreciate your time and discussion today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So with that we will wrap things up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If any of you would like to stick around.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’d be happy to talk more.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s the stuff of rockstar-engineer legends.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <em>Second-First Impression Hint:</em> </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> When you are presenting to those that are over you – you should realize that they are interested in one thing: TRUST.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t waste their time on things that they already know or things that don’t solve the problem.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <em>Second-First Impression </em><em>Resources:</em></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><em> </em><u>The Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs</u> by Carmine Gallo.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some really good inspiration regarding “not holding back your excitement” and some great tips on slides and “flow”.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <u>The Cognitive Style of PowerPoint</u> by Edward Tufte.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s just a few pages, but incredibly powerful stuff.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is worth reading just for the discussion of space shuttle disaster and the way that the information surrounding this event was presented.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <strong><u>Finally, here's the list of everything that Charlie did wrong </u></strong><strong><u>(Maybe you can come up with some of your own too!).</u></strong></span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">1. He buried himself in his laptop before the meeting. His laptop should be displaying the title slide of his presentation (with his name on it.)</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">2. Didn't "work the crowd" prior to the meeting. This is a huge opportunity that was lost.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">3. He read his slide to the audience. Don't do this. Your audience can read. Don't treat them like they can't.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">4. He told the audience that he would take questions at the end. This is basically saying "shut up until I'm done. I don't want to hear from you."</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">5. He spent too much time on the problem. Trust me. Management knows the problems. In fact they probably know more about the problems than you do. Don't waste their time telling them things that they already know. Worse yet, don't waste their time telling them things that they may know more about than you do.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">6. He spent way too much time talking about alternatives. Alternatives can go in an appendix of a report. Alternatives can be presented if someone in the audience asks for them. You can say "I have looked at several alternatives and am willing to discuss them, but I want to be respectful of your time."</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">7. He spent way too little time on his solution. This should have been the focus and it should have been up front.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">8. He used big, fancy words that his audience didn't need. When I wrote my Ph.D. dissertation I was constantly being told to use bigger words. When I arrived in industry, I was told that I tended to "talk over people's heads". Since I've always been interested in effective communication, this really hit me hard. Think about it this way: two or three small words are far more effective than one big important word. Two or three small sentences are far more effective than one big, long sentence. Your audience is working hard to digest and understand your solution. Don't make it harder on them by forcing them to translate words that they don't normally use. This does <u>not </u>impress them.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">9. Charlie lost the room. Great presenters treat presentations as a two-way conversation. They pay attention to body language and the "interest" of the room and they do everything that they can to re-engage people that may be slipping away.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">10. Some of his audience missed the most important material. By "saving the best for last", Charlie effectively "hid" his best material from some of the audience.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">So let's get plugged in, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">...turn on the hazer,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">...flip open the dry ice, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">...crank up the spotlights...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">...and totally rock your next project presentation!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span></div>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83410713997824812.post-57095061377311097722011-08-29T18:42:00.001-07:002022-04-11T13:57:46.759-07:00Let's get ready to rock...<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Person 1.<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><em>Wow, Frank sure is a jerk.</em></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Person 2<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><em>Well, he is an engineer after all.</em></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Person 1 <em>Oh, that explains it.</em></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Throughout my life as an engineer I’ve heard that kind of exchange numerous times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, having heard that kind of “he’s an engineer” exchange three different times in the past week I’ve decided it’s time to spill my guts on the topic.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Some people wear the title “Engineer” with great pride; and rightfully so – they’ve worked hard to earn that title.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some have gone through many years of study in colleges and universities, other have done hard time in the school of hard knocks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All are part of an elite group that society looks to as the ones who “make things happen”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you hold the title “engineer” I applaud you for your achievements and am excitedly waiting and watching to see your contributions to society.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Unfortunately, “Engineer” has a dark side.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To some, holding the title “engineer” seems to somehow give them the right to be a complete... well, let's keep this to a PG-13 rating and say "jerk".<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">So take this “am I a jerk of an engineer” quiz:</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Rate the following statements based on the scale:</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">0 = totally disagree<br />
1 = rarely<br />
2 = sometimes<br />
3 = I’m 50-50 on this<br />
4 = most of the time<br />
5 = totally agree</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span>I think that the world is full of idiots.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span>The world would be a better place if everybody thought as I do.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span>It doesn’t matter how I look or smell</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span>I don’t have to get input from those below me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">5.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span>I’m not going to dumb it down for you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you can’t understand, it’s your problem.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">6.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span>Management is all stupid.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">7.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span>I don’t care what the customer says.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">8.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span>They’re late.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even if they are important, I’m going to start without them.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">9.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span>I’m really good at, and enjoy, finding flaws in other people’s work</span></div>
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<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 0.5in; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -0.25in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">10.<span style="font-size-adjust: none; font-size: 7pt; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span></span></span>This test is a waste of time and none of these questions matter.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">OK, I’m not going to do the “add up your scores” thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You are engineers and you should be able to take an average (especially since there are 10 questions).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So for scoring let’s just say if your average is anything over a 1.25, you need to stop and consider “are you really as effective as you can be?”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you are above the 2.0 level, you really need to assess where you are in terms of being a full-out, pain-in-the-butt-to-be-around jerk-o-saurus.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Let me say that again, if you rank high in jerk-icity, chances are you are not going to be effective as an engineer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And here’s a hint – engineering is about “effectiveness”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I’m in the field of metrology – the science of measurement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thus to me, the concept of measurement is very important.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As a good engineer you rely on measurement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Measurement provides data and data is stuff of decision making.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may have seen the sign:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</span><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In God we Trust.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All others must present data.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">So how do we measure an engineer?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What are the attributes that matter most?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In 17xx, Lord Kelvin said that which we measure, we can control.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So what attributes would you measure in an engineer and hope to control or improve upon?</span><br />
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Here are some thoughts:</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 1in; text-indent: -0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Intelligence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>This is a great attribute for an engineer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s pretty much a prerequisite for being an engineer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But, intelligence alone doesn’t get stuff done.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact an over abundance of intelligence may come along with a bit of arrogance.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 1in; text-indent: -0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Creativity.</i> This is a terrific thing and can help you get “out of the box” when solving problems and designing the next biggest thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But artists are creative (don’t get me wrong here – I love the arts), but most artists don’t make good engineers.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 1in; text-indent: -0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">An analytical mind.</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is a tool that must be in every engineer’s tool box – the ability to look at things from different angles and perceive different realities and outcomes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unfortunately, too much of this can lead to the dreaded “analysis paralysis” and once again nothing gets done.</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt 1in; text-indent: -0.5in;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Thoroughness.</i> This is another admirable trait.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>By being thorough a good engineer ensuring that his or her products and projects will be complete, reliable, functional and that no detail will be missed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again we find the “too much of a good thing” syndrome when we look at the attribute of thoroughness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Engineering is often about managing risk to find an optimal solution not an ideal solution.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ideal solutions don’t generally exist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thus an over emphasis on thoroughness could ultimately cripple a project.</span></div>
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</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I would argue the each of the above traits are important, however they are all subservient to the greater measure of an engineer:</span></div>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Effectiveness</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Every attribute described above can ultimately suffer from the “too much of a good thing” syndrome.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">effectiveness</i> cannot suffer in this way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The more effective we are, the better we ultimately are.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">While being a jerk, you can attain some level of effectiveness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>However, if you want to see exponential effectiveness results and truly be a rockstar engineer, you need to start thinking outside the box in terms of several areas.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These areas are not related to chemical reactions, physical properties or mathematics.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are related to human dynamics – something that isn’t generally taught in engineering schools.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Being a jerk means taking the easy way out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ignoring people takes less effort than engaging with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But just like Newton said – actions equal reactions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you invest in people there will, most likely be a reaction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you invest in breaking down relational barriers, your effectiveness can be improved through better relationships.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you invest in your image, your outside perceptions can improve.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I want to challenge you to consider some non-engineering principles in the upcoming posts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are principles that can boost your “street cred” and ultimately help you skyrocket into engineering rockstardom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These aren’t rocket science, but they do make scientific sense.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: 11pt; line-height: 115%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">So let’s get ready to rock…</span>Markhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00038523788486261488noreply@blogger.com