Top 10 Traits That Make A Successful Engineer

1. Strong Analytical Skills: 

Analytical thinking is observing and researching a problem or topic to develop more complex ideas about it. Your analytical thinking should result in additional knowledge, solutions, or ideas related to the problem or topic.A successful engineer should have outstanding analytical skills to collect the right information and then assemble, visualize, and investigate the information in detail with the help of strategic thinking skills. Analytical skills also call for basic mathematical skills for comprehending and evaluating numerical data for making the right decisions. Analytical skills not only enable engineers to consider a problem from different perspectives but also enable them to solve complicated problems in the most effective way. As an engineer, you should be naturally inquisitive and must incline to examine things persistently to find out improved technical methods. Analytical skills are in demand in many industries and are commonly listed requirements in job descriptions. Analytical thinking can help you investigate complex issues, make decisions, and develop solutions—and you likely already possess many analytical skills that employer’s value.

• Enthusiasm and Motivation: 

A successful engineer is always enthusiastic and self-motivated to solve complex problems and make things work more efficiently. It is their relentless enthusiasm that motivates them to keep abreast of new research and ideas. It also motivates them to discover innovative concepts and work on them to upgrade the conventional technical processes. Self-motivated engineers take all possible measures to keep even the slightest error at bay and pay meticulous attention to detail for accomplishing every project assigned to them without a glitch.

• Excellent Communication Skills: 

Other than technical proficiency, as a 21st-century engineer, you should be able to write, speak, and communicate your ideas effectively for communicating your technical concepts clearly and efficiently to culturally and globally diverse teams consisting of engineers and the non-technical audience. Moreover, strong communication skills enable global engineers to eliminate all barriers arising out of cultural, linguistic, and technical differences. When speaking, be clear and concise. Speak on important matters directly and do not allow the listener’s minds to wander. Make sure that you are certain they understand what you are communicating and further explain any points necessary. A key to verbal communication for engineers is listening. Not just waiting to speak. If you want to listen to someone, make mental notes of key points when someone is speaking to you. What you would like to say should come second to understanding. Great leaders practice consistent communication. Each one of us has a different approach to how you portray a vision. Find your voice. Then practice consistency. The consistency of your approach will help your family, friends, and coworkers comprehend your information more easily. Both written and verbal communication skills are of the utmost importance in business, especially in engineering. Communication skills boost you or your teams’ performance because they provide clear information and expectations to help manage and deliver excellent work.

• Problem-solving Skills:

 Problem-solving is one of the most important attributes of an engineer. Creative potential and the ability to solve problems are identified as essential characteristics for both novice undergraduate engineers and qualified engineering professionals. The complexity of technical problems is increasing with time which requires engineers to apply logical thinking for problem-solving; thus, engineers need to be creative problem solvers. An engineer should approach every task at hand with an analytical mind to develop solutions that can meet all the requirements. Hence, problem-solving skills should be an integral part of engineering education. When employers talk about problem-solving skills, they are often referring to the ability to handle difficult or unexpected situations in the workplace as well as complex business challenges. Organizations rely on people who can assess both kinds of situations and calmly identify solutions. Problem-solving skills are traits that enable you to do that. While problem-solving skills are valued by employers, they are also highly useful in other areas of life like relationship building and day-to-day decision making.

• Logical Reasoning and Creativity in Balance:

 One of the primary tasks of engineers is to identify and solve complex problems; therefore, engineers should be adept in logical reasoning skills such as hypothesizing, inductive/ deductive reasoning, comparing, forecasting, classifying, critiquing, and so on. Additionally, engineers should be creative enough to come up with ground-breaking technical ideas. A balance in logic and creativity enables engineers to materialize their innovative ideas by linking knowledge from diverse areas for solving problems.

• Leadership and Teamwork in Balance:

Since engineers have to work with diverse teams for the accomplishment of different complex projects, they need to have the ability to lead, follow, and working collaboratively with their team. Efficient teamwork and leadership skills are the foundations of all technical operations, be it a maintenance team, project team, manufacturing cell, or product development team. Thus, a successful engineer needs to be a good team player and an effective leader for directing and influencing his fellow team members for a positive outcome. Leadership qualities of a successful engineer consist of the capability of taking initiatives, assessing risks, decision-making, the ability to relate to others, and willingness to deliver on time and focusing on the projects with discipline, and passion. It is the responsibility of engineering institutes to inculcate team spirit and leadership qualities in young engineers when assigning course projects to them.

• Multi-disciplinary exposure:

 An engineer can become successful in his field only if he/she gets a multidisciplinary exposure. The challenges of the modern global marketplace make it imperative for engineers to work with an interdisciplinary team of experts on technical projects involving multidisciplinary skills for creating sustainable solutions for the masses. For example, to accomplish a project about mobile technology, an electronics engineer needs to work collectively with user interface designers, project managers, computer engineers, etc. Having a basic knowledge of these diverse divisions makes the work of engineers much easier. This is why engineering institutions are now embracing a multi-disciplinary approach to engineering education.

• Passion for Learning: 

Successful engineers never presume that they know everything and have a constant passion for learning. Despite being proficient in their field, successful engineers always consider themselves as lifelong learners. Being good listeners, they have a propensity to learn from what is being said to them and apply the information at work.We are living in a complex world with ever-increasing complicated engineering issues; consequently, technical knowledge is doubling-up at lightning speed. This requires engineers to adapt themselves to an environment of ever-changing trends and challenges. Lifelong learning is, therefore crucial for engineers as it keeps them aware of the latest developments in the field of engineering. 

• Exposure to hands-on learning and practical knowledge:

 Being a practical discipline, an engineering curriculum is incomplete without practical knowledge and hands-on training. To create successful engineers, the key objective of engineering institutions should be to impart education both inside and outside the classroom so that future engineers can build their practical knowledge. For example, internships during vacations, doing mini-projects that come under your preferred subject, doing your experiments in your college lab, and participating in workshops can go a long way in getting you first-hand practical knowledge.

1. Accessibility to Research & Development (R&D):

 R&D refers to the experimental activities conducted by faculty members of engineering institutions for developing innovative procedures or products. To be a successful engineer, you should have accessibility to R&D from the very first day of your engineering education. Engineering institutions should encourage students to actively participate in R&D as it is a great way of sharing knowledge and expertise. R&D allows budding engineers to apply their knowledge and proficiency for sparking incredible innovation in their respective fields of study. Moreover, exposure to R&D can prove very stimulating for potential engineers as it helps them receive practical knowledge from experienced engineers and veteran scientists. 

These are the top 10 traits that make you a successful engineer across sectors. There is no doubt that a considerable amount of time will be invested to inculcate these basic traits. However, to have a productive and efficient career, these traits should be built up with sincerity and dedication.