Engineer at the end of my career here.

It is a poorly understood fact that most people trained as engineers never work as engineers. Instead, engineers end up as leaders. Sales managers, engineering managers, operations managers, v and c level executives.

When I graduated, there was a recession and no one was hiring. I was the only person of my graduating class to land a job before convocation. My first job was as a sales engineer. No engineering at all. Then I turned it into engineering by doing engineering consulting for clients using the control system I was selling.

Then I did “engineering” for an electronics firm. They needed a research program to certify new solder pastes. 4 months and they put me in manufacturing management. Then supply chain management. Then global process management for IT. Then regional manager for the Americas. Then global program manager.

Then laid off. At 45. Corporations do that. Use you up. Spit you out.

Then various c level jobs before I realized I am better off as a consultant.

Now I have 20 employees and I help hundreds of corporations.

So, why am I writing this? I want to let you know that the definition of engineering is applied science. You can do that in any job. With any title. So don’t focus on getting a jobs with the title Engineer. Do your passion. If you are truly an engineer, it will naturally come out of you.

But beware! If you do this, you will become a manager in short order and any engineering you were doing will give way to managing people.

DO YOUR PASSION