According to Daniel Pink, author of A Whole New Mind, the future success of Western economies is dependent on changing how we think. We couldn’t agree more, and extend that idea to include changing the way we teach and learn in hopes of helping every young engineer and engineering student as they enter the professional world.
Society still craves talented, critical thinkers with the technical training and knowledge needed to cure diseases, design complex infrastructure systems or pack 10,000 songs onto our iPods. STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) related education is rightly a critical part of modern curriculum; we need young people to excel in these areas in order to remain globally competitive.
But the challenges and needs of the 21st century require more than an exclusive diet of facts and figures. Piggybacking on Mr. Pink, we believe that the days of data crunchers ruling the world have ended. Innovation is now fueled not simply by left-brain analytics, but also by right-brain creativity.
Our nation’s economic health increasingly depends on high-concept thinkers who are adept at abstract reasoning and problem solving. These people are inventive and capable of seeing the big picture, putting technical information into context.
The people of Giffels Webster – civil engineers, landscape architects, planners and surveyors – are focused on improving overall quality of life. To achieve such a goal requires a much larger perspective than can be derived from mere formulas and calculations. In short, it doesn’t matter that you know Manning’s Equation backward and forward if you lack the vision to know when and why to apply it.
The engineers of tomorrow can no longer live in a theoretical world, but must instead be connected to the real one. Mr. Pink (among others) says the age of the “knowledge worker” is ending, and the new era requires workers to unite the two hemispheres of their brain to develop holistic aptitudes. This includes the ability to detect patterns, communicate concepts, develop solutions and create a vision.
We have been fortunate over the last two years to have hired many young engineering graduates who understand this shift. The sad truth, however, is that we’ve met many more students and recent graduates who don’t.
The industry needs young engineers who can articulate their passion for problem solving and their desire to improve life. Personality and the ability to communicate with technical and non-technical people alike are extremely important. The challenges of the new economy are more complex and require engineers to work across disciplines and think creatively.
We urge all engineering students to not run away from the nonlinear part of your brain. In fact, revel in it. Spend time working on your writing and public speaking skills, use your electives on liberal arts courses…learn to dance and draw, and learn about culture.
Study the big-picture thinkers who changed the world, people like Steve Jobs, Walt Disney and Henry Ford. Pay attention to those professors or mentors who seem to embrace the humanity of life, even if they don’t know who Robert Manning was. By opening your mind to the idea that both right and left sides of your brain have value, you will not only be more marketable when searching for a job, but you may actually find great satisfaction in what we hope will be a long career.