• A Delicate Balance

    A Delicate Balance

    Feb 5, 2019

    First impressions of a design can be wrong as I found out when fixing the LED backlight of a low-cost television set.

  • Are You Paid for Time or Results?

    Are You Paid for Time or Results?

    Dec 17, 2018

    A recent article sparked a lot of discussion about the virtues or evils of automating some of your work.

  • Don't Get Caught in the Web

    Don't Get Caught in the Web

    Oct 25, 2018

    There is a lot of great information and entertainment available on the web. Unfortunately, far too much of it is wrong.

  • Show Your Work

    Show Your Work

    Sep 27, 2018

    Other folks can duplicate or check your work when you document that effort by showing every step.

  • Patience

    Patience

    Sep 7, 2018

    Sometimes slowing down can help speed up overall project success. A little patience will definitely improve your project and product quality.

  • Talking about the Problem

    Talking about the Problem

    Aug 12, 2018

    Bob’s frustration with some so-called leaders boils over.

  • Fortune Cookies

    Fortune Cookies

    Jul 24, 2018

    Can a slip of paper inside of a cookie truly predict your future?

  • Getting Lost in the Tasks

    Getting Lost in the Tasks

    Jul 4, 2018

    Human nature makes it far too easy to get lost in the little tasks and forget a larger goal.

  • The Most Important Person

    The Most Important Person

    May 20, 2018

    When you are setting Priorities, sometimes you ask yourself, "Who is the Most Important Person?"

  • Repeating an Error

    Repeating an Error

    Apr 10, 2018

    Despite our best efforts, we sometimes make the same error more than once.

  • Problems Occur at the Interfaces

    Problems Occur at the Interfaces

    Mar 15, 2018

    In human and technical systems, difficult problems often occur at the interfaces.

  • Abstraction

    Abstraction

    Feb 16, 2018

    Abstraction is the process of pulling a general lesson from specific details of any problem and solution. Abstraction is a critical skill for career success.

  • Stuff

    Stuff

    Jan 22, 2018

    A short discussion of the difficulty of figuring out what we should keep and what we should discard.

  • Do What You Wrote instead of Writing What You Did

    Do What You Wrote instead of Writing What You Did

    Nov 15, 2017

    I recently learned a fantastic new method to produce error-free documentation of lab experiments.

  • Teamwork

    Teamwork

    Sep 24, 2017

    There is a special joy in being part of a winning team.

  • Projects Fail at the Beginning

    Projects Fail at the Beginning

    Aug 14, 2017

    A surprising bit of knowledge I learned from an experienced Project Manager.

  • Tools

    Tools

    Jul 8, 2017

    Using the right tool turned a difficult task into a quick and easy project.

  • Grading

    Grading

    Jun 6, 2017

    We need to be careful about how we grade work. Sometimes the results are against our best interests.

  • Laughter

    Laughter

    Apr 29, 2017

    If you don’t occasionally share a laugh with your coworkers, then you are missing something important.

  • Getting Hired and Staying Hired

    Getting Hired and Staying Hired

    Mar 19, 2017

    Engineers want to get hired and stay hired. Here is one view of how you should approach the process.