Positive Impact
January, 2019
Some young engineers expect their company to plan their careers for them. They look to their managers for complete guidance. This attitude borders on being “owed” career development as a condition of employment. Thankfully, I was not one of these engineers.
These young engineers are conscious of their lack of knowledge and the help they think they deserve. However, this only renders them completely useless to their team. The “help me” focused attitude creates a dynamic where no one gives you assignments because they end up having to babysit your work and spend hours answering your questions.
In the long run you make yourself a burden. Instead, young engineers should look outward, focusing on the results they are helping their team achieve. If preparing plans or a report the first questions you should be asking are:
- What should the product look like?
- When should the first draft be completed?
This is one way to orient towards results. As you begin focusing on results, your work will naturally improve as you learn to focus on delivering excellence. It is also incumbent on your management to have samples of work ready when giving assignments. Asking a young engineer to complete an unfamiliar task with no example or time frame is a recipe for disaster.
Action Item: Train yourself to think “What is the result I am being asked to deliver?” Focus on the result, the learning process is on the path to it.