Many engineers do not realise how much they have been limited, both skill-wise and success-wise, by their professional experience. They have just accepted it for what it is, along with its effects upon themselves, and not thought to correct for any limiting issues – they are thus trapped and don’t even know it.
Let’s talk about how you can tell if you are trapped and how to break free.
First off, I should note that my experience, especially in the early stages, was pretty good. So I should state that this is not a case of me living something out myself and then saying, “and you can too!” However, I still learned that my experience was not perfect, and I did need “escape” in a way.
So what are some signs you are trapped?

• You feel you do good work, but people still seem to have issues with what you do.
• You have a fixed notion of how administration should be run – maybe you think there should be none – regardless of the size of the company or the nature of the engineering work being done.
• You feel you need to always defend your work or remind people of what you have done.
• You are afraid to share any idea until you have it fully evolved.
• You work on your own tasks without engaging others working on peripheral or related roles.
• You follow a few guiding principles doggedly and don’t trust anyone suggesting deviation from them.
• When you are presented with an idea that is different, and seems odd, your emotional response overrides your engineering mind, and you dismiss or criticise instead of analysing.
• You expect there to be a prescribed process to solve each problem encountered.
• You like the idea of the engineering department being separate from all others so you can do as you wish.

It might be hard to see the common theme in the above idiosyncrasies, but the root cause is working in an organisation that did not encourage good engineering practice that is aligned with the company size and business model. In such situations, the following can happen:

• An influential mentor will instil in other engineers what has worked for them but is not universal. This one is one of the most common.
• The administration system is not designed or updated for the organisational needs. So it never supports the engineering team by helping to track or guide progress and documenting successes. And it is therefore always a burden for all engineers.
• There is no established culture of suitable exploration. And engineers are either criticised for thinking of something different or expected to implement set processes and solutions.
• There is no system, formal or informal, that encourages the engineering team members to engage each other or people from other teams.

An engineer working in this kind of environment will not develop the engineering attributes that allow them to grow into a professional engineer. Instead, they will simply survive the environment – and become reactive engineers just trying to get by from day to day. This becomes habit, and the engineer is then trapped in this mindset.
How to escape this trap.
The good news is that you do exactly the same thing as any other engineer who wants to improve. You need to focus on applying the attributes of the expert engineer regularly. I cover these attributes in detail in my book, but the key points are:

• You work on framing and reframing problems that are given to you.
• You think systemically when solving challenges.
• You apply first principles to assess ideas and inform your decisions.

As you continue to develop these attributes, you will break off the shackles of your prior work experience. You will then be free – and no longer trapped.
Once you are free, you will then be able to consider other aspects of your engineering ability. Things like your cultural, national and economic background. Then you are working toward being a global engineer.
And if the company you work for does not support this, then it’s time to leave. And you know what kind of company you do want to work for – so you won’t leave one trap just for another.

I started writing this piece while mentoring at a Med-Tech hackathon. And that's what gave me the idea of this post. The guaranteed way to become a better engineer. Read on and learn more.

It obviously is good to explicitly understand the attributes of the expert engineer. Once you can name these things and describe them, you can focus on improving them in yourself.

But, there is a way you can improve your engineering skills without even knowing what they are.

The protege effect.

The protege effect is likely something you have experienced in the past or heard people talk about. It is where the act of teaching something helps you better understand it.

At this hackathon, participants need to come up with a medical focused idea that is related to data (potentially using AI). The idea should be valued enough that someone would pay for it if it were implemented as a product.

Within this context, I have been talking more about focusing on the task that the idea will make easier, or even eliminate. This implicitly uses my engineering attributes like framing and systemic thinking - I've noticed that any first principles issues are overcome by the participants with relative ease. I am explicitly talking about outcome driven innovation a lot - simply because participants like these (they are mostly undergrads) are more solution focused.  And I need to bring them back to thinking about the task that they are making easier - so people see value in it.

I have been reminded, by recalling what I have learned in the past as I explain it to others, the importance of understanding how well a task is currently served and how important it. By understanding this balance, you can better frame the problem (and solution to pursue).

Now, if I am to confront a related scenario in my day job, I will be better able to recall this perspective so I can use it to inform the approach chosen. It might be for me explicitly and solely, or, it might be for a team, or, even for a colleague who is just talking to me about something they are working on.

Long story short - being a mentor at this hackathon has maintained and improved my engineering expertise (this time with regards to outcome driven innovation).

If you get a chance to mentor in something like a hackathon, then I suggest you take advantage of this - and fully commit (I am here for the whole weekend). I am a natural teacher so I enjoy these regardless. If you are not a natural teacher, then attend for the engineering skill enhancement. And also, the networking benefits (I have just boosted my network with some very interesting people), workshops (I have learned about about efficient data use and ethics), and presentations (I have learned about a great new health app that cover a condition that regularly afflicts me). Winning all over.

You do also have other options though.

I have tutored high school students (helping me recall fundamental mathematics) and I have taught in academia (so I have been able to improve my understanding numerous aspects of engineering).

Therefore, consider doing some part time work as a tutor or offering your skills to universities to help with their teaching.

The reason why these both help, along with the benefits that come from explaining a concept is this fact: the fear of not knowing an answer when you are expected to be the expert is far greater than the fear of failing any exam. This fear motivates you to learn much more deeply and broadly - you will be amazed at how your expertise improves.

Happy mentoring!

In engineering at least..

​It's quite the common story. A recent graduate engineer, now ready to start their professional engineering career, thinks that now that they have graduated they need to find a workplace with an experienced senior engineer. Why do they think this and is it true?

Why?
The graduate can almost see him, for the mentor is often assumed to be a man, in their mind. Gray hair and a lined forehead from years of contemplating and conquering engineering challenges; clothing a touch less formal than his peers, because he is more interested in the outcome than vanity; an experienced and trained engineering brain; a gruff disposition, because years of experience dealing with real-world problems has taught him a healthy contempt for textbook learning and the ideas from others of less practical experience, but they still have both avuncular friendliness and drive to take a young engineer under their wing; he is a source of wisdom on how to be an engineer, sharing all those mysterious engineering essentials never taught in any engineering degree; and, thanks to his ability, the sometimes grudging respect of his colleagues. The things they could learn from him. The confidence such knowhow would offer. The benefits to their career progression.

The Truth
But the truth is, if you do try to find a mentor, you will likely find one who has developed habits as opposed to insights. One who has likely forgotten what you know - being a recent graduate - because they have not had to use it for years. And one who is unlikely to have made any attempt to learn from other experts or literature - most engineers just don't do that. It is likely that they can give advice applicable to their industry, but even that might be more aligned with common practice as opposed to skills that will help you evolve into a true engineer - one who is ingenious.
In short, you will probably find someone who is not actually that much more qualified as an engineer than you are. 
Just one who has experience in their respective (and specific) field. Enough experience to be able to recall solutions - as opposed to synthesising something new - and to feel confident in that solution - such that you might be impressed with them at first encounter. 
So you might feel you have a mentor, but in reality, you will not progress as much as you could.
Only skill wise though. 
I have seen some engineers elevate to high professional levels (managers of departments even) simply because they were the only one available at the time. In fact, if your "mentor" retires or gains employment elsewhere, then you might find that you simply slide into their role. Especially if you have a good relationship so they speak highly of you and the employer likes the ideas of stability (and staying with people they know). This is more aligned with networking, which you should always engage in, and politicking, which can be viewed as a professional skill and something that is outside the focus of this blog. 
This blog is focused on engineering skill. And the truth is that you are unlikely to find a mentor who can genuinely help you with this post-graduation.
I am not saying you do not need to learn more after you graduate. Engineering practice is more than the practice of engineering. You will need to learn more about engineering and continue to do so throughout your career. 

A better alternative
So let’s talk about better ways of doing this. Ways that are better than having a mentor.
The first option is to read about research into engineering expertise. In my book on Global Engineering I mention a paper by Nigel Cross. The one summarising the findings from research into the ways world class engineers think. Papers like that are an excellent source of information on how to improve as an engineer. These papers are ideal because of the analysis by the researchers - it is more informed, disciplined and insightful than what you will likely gain from a mentor.
The next option is studying the history of engineering. Especially the exceptional engineers throughout history. Because of what they achieved, you know they are especially well skilled. Not to say others are not - it’s just that you can be sure those who made history are. This study can be via books or documentaries. Check out the library on the website for a collection of ideal references. 
There is also; the mastermind. This was put forward by Napoleon Hill in his book focused on what made for successful people: Think and Grow Rich. The basic principle is that a group of people is better than one. This gets back to the networking I was supportive of above. If you have a number of experienced engineers you can call upon as you confront challenges throughout your career, then you have something far superior to a single mentor. Note, these can also be online - and your network can be global.

Summary
Mentors are not what many expect, and, given the available knowledge on engineering practice and the networks available to access, you can take responsibility for your own development.

Postscript - The Other Side
While having a mentor is not as advantageous as many think, there is an advantage to being a mentor. It is called the protégé effect. When you teach something, you better understand it. You then apply it better. And you become a better engineer. You can benefit from this by being a mentor or by teaching. So be a part of other people’s masterminds when you can, share the knowledge you have when you can, and take any teaching opportunities you can.

Post-postscript - The Other Realms
Everything above is about professional engineering. There are other roles that are less well documented. Especially roles like management, CTO, CEO, VPs etc. The more esoteric roles will likely require mentorship for the sake of networking and insights unique to the company and culture on how leaders are selected.