What does it take to be a great engineer? Inspiration is necessary, but it's
not enough. Practical tools and principles are needed. Consider the case of
Henry Ford, the American automaker who was inspired to build a car that the
average citizen could afford. Plenty of automotive engineers were inspired to
build cars at the start of the twentieth century, but it was the Ford Model T
that put America
on wheels.
So how did he do it? How did the son of simple Michigan farmer build one of the most
influential cars of the twentieth century? Henry Ford had practical tools and
principles. The "car for the great multitude" was born of the father of the
modern assembly line. And this method of mass production – a most practical
tool – was complemented by principles. Specifically, Ford vowed to build a car
"constructed of the best materials, by the best men to be hired, after the
simplest designs that modern engineering can devise".
The Power of Peak Performance
Are you inspired by your own engineering career? And is your inspiration
complemented by practical tools and principles? I'm not an engineer, of course,
but I've gotten to know many of you personally during my time with CR4. So, I'd
like to share the following list with you. It's from a book I've been working
on called "8 Ways to Great: Peak Performance on the Job and in Your Life".
In this list, I'll continue to use Henry Ford as an example. Although some
of the automaker's pronouncements and publications have marred his many achievements,
the focus here is on his career as an engineer and entrepreneur.
1. Let your true passion be your core
motivation.
Could Henry Ford have been a successful farmer? Probably. But
his true passion was for creating a better way for people to travel. Ford's
father expected him to take over the family farm, but Henry didn't want to be a
farmer. What he loved was tinkering, and that love led to a career first as a
machinist, then as an engineer, and finally as an entrepreneur.
2. Develop self-awareness and use
what you know about both your strengths and weaknesses.
Henry Ford didn't design the Model T all by himself. Despite his
considerable talents, the automaker turned to engineer C. Harold Wills for the
design of the vehicle's planetary transmission. Peter E. Martin, who worked closely with Ford on early models, was tasked with determining how to
produce vast quantities of a new type of steel.
3. Set goals and game plans - and learn
to love this process because it is all about the process.
"Obstacles," Henry Ford once said, "are those frightful things you see when
you take your eyes off your goal." And he would have known. Henry Ford failed
in business and went broke five times before finally succeeding. In his first
car, he even forgot to put in a reverse gear. And the Edsel, a car made
infamous for doors that wouldn't close and a hood that wouldn't open, was
anything but the "car of the decade" that Ford predicted.
4. Identify your competitive
advantage - what sets you apart and what will turn the odds in your favor.
When Henry Ford set out to build the Model T, he learned about a new type of
steel with three times the tensile strength of alloys used by other American
automakers. Rather than paying someone else to produce this vanadium alloy,
Ford financed his own steel mill. For the next five years, the only cars in the
entire world that used vanadium steel were French luxury vehicles and the Ford
Model T.
5. Develop inner confidence that
keeps you from judging yourself based on other's standards and expectations.
When Henry Ford announced a minimum salary of five dollars a day for his
workers, other entrepreneurs called him reckless. The Wall Street Journal even
equated Ford's wage increase with immorality, terming it a misapplication of
"Biblical principle". But from 1914 to 1916, the Ford Motor Company's profits
doubled.
6. Keep your cool - and don't let
emotions dictate your decisions.
Henry Ford once said, "Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're
right". By remaining positive in the face of engineering obstacles and
financial crises, he kept his company afloat through two world wars and
prolonged economic depression.
7. Take risks yet act intelligently
with imperfect information.
The first few Model Ts had a water pump, but its use was abandoned early in
production. In switching to a cheaper circulation system, Ford risked having
the Model T face overheating problems. Ultimately, however, this circulation
system based on the thermo-syphon principle was more reliable.
8. Be accountable.
Henry Ford's critics described him as a tyrant. But at the end of the
day, he remained firmly in control of his company – and his own
destiny. His insistence on holding the Ford Motor Company to a higher
standard enabled it to eliminate waste while adopting new manufacturing methods
and enlarging its market share. On a personal level, Henry Ford remained
accountable, too. As he wrote about one of his heroes, Benjamin Franklin, "The
old American values of thrift and industry have no successors or substitutes."
As always, I look forward to hearing what you think.
Dr. Doug
Editor's Note: You can visit Dr. Doug online at www.DrDoug.com or contact him
by email at DrDoug@DrDoug.com.
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