Engineering and the Art of Life
From The Smile Shop
Engineering and the Art of Life, by Stephen Desper
Comment to Bob Hanes & Mitchell -
Thank you for taking the time to send your kind words.
Upon further reflection, I'll tell you what works for me. Maybe it will give you a few more pointers.
I learned early on not to say no. If you think you might be able to do some task when asked, say YES. Opportunity only comes knocking as long as it is not turned away.
Several examples from my past. When a student in High School my coach, knowing me not to be much of an athlete, asked me if I could make the football field sound system better for Friday night school games. Now I had never actually installed a PA system before, but I knew about them, how they worked, and a few basics - so I said YES. I got to work in the school library doing research, went to the downtown library for more in-depth knowledge. I went on weekends and after school. I wrote (via a manual typewriter) to manufactures and got spec sheets and helpful tips or "how to do it yourself" material from certain manufactures. I assembled a parts list. I got some of my fellow nerds to help me with labor. I submitted a proposal to the coach and won approval to buy what I needed. We worked after school and installed everything - it worked great and pleased all concerned. Why? Because I said YES, dug in and applied myself. Remained Positive. Ask for help when I did not understand something. And, of course, had a wise teacher/coach.
When my parents built a house in Florida we wanted a Hi-Fi system in the house. I wanted to build a (then) new stereo system - not many of those were known at the time. They said YES and I said YES. They gave me a budget and I built all the components from kits - Heathkits and Dynaco Kits. Thus saving money to spend on better speakers. That was over 40 years ago, and that all-tube system is still working and sounding as good as anything today. Plays records, reel-to-reel tapes and I later added a CD player. Today the equipment is considered "vintage" and some components are fetching thousands of dollars. Again I wrote to manufactures and read lots of articles on Hi-Fi. I had to work hard to do it right but the investment in time paid off with many years of good music reproduction for our family.
When I entered the Army into a motion picture making unit of the Signal Corps, I chance came along for me to operate a movie sound recorder. I had never seen one in person; only in books. The Captain asked me if I could operate the unit and I said YES. During a smoke break I reviewed the manual. I, more or less, bulls--ted my way along, but I did make it work. For the next three years of duty I traveled around Europe making movies for Uncle Sam. I took advantage of the opportunity when it was presented.
While working as a lowly tape machine operator at MGM the opportunity came along one summer to help with a sound system for some group called The Beach Boys. I knew little about them or their music. I liked classical. I was about a far away from Surf Music as you could get. But I said YES. I bought some of their records and did a crash listening session one weekend. I found I liked the music. I went on tour. One day the opportunity came for me to mix a concert. I said YES. I had never done that before but I took advantage of the opportunity. Soon I was asked if I could design a half-million dollar touring system. I had never done anything like that since that simple system in High School. But I said YES. Again I researched and studied all I could find out about this area, found an equipment builder (Quad-Eight) who also, of all the ones I interviewed for the job was the only one that kept saying YES. They got the contract. One day Carl asked me if I thought I could handle a recording session. I said YES even though I had never run a mixing board before. When opportunity knocks like this, you best not say no or you will never get anywhere. With Carl's help I did OK. OK enough to be called again and again. I remember not knowing what the hell everyone meant by this term "ping-ponging." I was desperate to find out but afraid to ask such a basic question. Finally a few days later, I overheard some discussion and figured it out. Wow that was close, but I got the answer just in time. Things work out to those who believe.
More recently I needed a lot of capital to start a company to manufacture my invention. Big money. Someone said, lets borrow it from the public - let's go public on NASDAQ. I thought, me? A corporate executive? But I said OK and we did start the company and made money for us and for some investors. Like anything in the stock market some investors lose to the ones that make profit so there are always winners and losers, but many people in on the ground floor made millions of dollars - and the invention went on to be sell 40 million chips.
So first of all don't doubt yourself or your ability. A famous architect was once asked what was the most difficult part of designing a building. His response - getting the contract. So when the contract is presented, take it! If there is any change you believe you can pull it off - say YES. Expect hard work. Then do the hard work. This idea that you can excel to great heights in some profession without hard work is a Hollywood movie script. It only happens in your dreams. Life is hard.
Never stop learning. Don't become complacent. Technology, knowledge, and developments move along at an incredible pace. Keep up with your knowledge. Build on what you know with what you can know. As they say, the more you learn the more you find out you need to learn more. Therefore it is important to...
Follow your bliss. Get into a field of work that you enjoy. Otherwise you will spend all your life waiting to retire away from a job you hate. That's a stupid way to life your life, so whatever you like to do - do it. I did, and I know that if I ever had to "go to work" I'd rather die. My work has been like play all the time. Not because it's the entertainment business. The same principle holds true for any endeavor. Every profession, cooking, cleaning, medical, teaching, candlestick making - all have their experts, people on top of the situation.
Don't be afraid to ask for help and guidance. You will be surprise how willing people are to help. If you don't understand something, ask your fellow student, teacher, manager, fellow worker, or friends for help. Humble yourself. Be proud of work but not boisterous. Always respect the other fellow's point of view - even if you don't understand or agree. On the other side of the coin, always help when asked. It is most rewarding. Remember we are all in this thing we call "life" together. Most of us are just keeping our heads above the water.
Therefore, be kind to people. You never know how many problems the next guy may be dealing with. A few kind words will go a long way to ease the other person's load. Smile at people and smile back at those who smile. Don't be too quick to admonish or criticize. Be gentle if you need to correct.
If you are wronged, forgive and forget. Holding grudges gets you nowhere.
And above all, express gratitude. Be thankful for what you have and express that gratitude to God in prayer, to your teachers, to your parents, to your friends, and to yourself. Keep a constant mental vigil that you do not become victim to excessive complaining or envy of the other person's possessions or position. Be grateful for what you have. As the truism says, I once complained because I had no shoes, until I met a man who had no legs. Try to see as many God-like qualities in all those you meet and in the things you create as you can.
It has worked for me. Hope this helps, ~Stephen W. Desper
