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There Is No Recipe (For Passing The FE Exam)

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There is no recipe (for passing the FE Exam)

We’ve all been up to catch a few of those midnight infomercials pitching those glorious shortcuts to life we are always looking for. The recipes are so enticing…until they aren’t, let’s address that as it relates to the FE Exam.

“They told me that most everyone who takes their course passes the FE exam.

I couldn’t even get close to counting the number of times a student who had recently failed the FE Exam came to Prepineer frustrated that they bought in to the midnight infomercial hype spouting FE Exam success.

The stories come in all forms and fashions, but the general gist goes down something like this:

I had already taken the FE once and failed, so I knew I needed something different for my second go at it.

They showed me the recipe.

They had all the material.

They had it all outlined.

It didn’t look much different than the book I had before, but I wanted to trust in the recipe they were laying out.

I was desperate to get past this exam – I needed to get past this exam.

The time I was putting in to it…my job…my family…much was being impacted by that fact that I was still trying to get past it.

So I committed myself…

…4 times.

I took that same course over and over…

Took me failing the exam 5 times before I found you guys.

Failure after failure, I couldn’t figure out what I was doing wrong, I had the recipe right there in front of me.

So they thought.

The “Recipe”

I talk to a lot of new students coming in to our program with this same exact story.

Unique in it’s own way, but exactly the same in context.

The flow goes like this:

Student has a desire to become a Licensed Professional Engineer.

Student purchases review manual.

Student goes through review manual.

Student fails exam.

Student is frustrated, needs a new path forward.

Student finds a new “structured” course.

Student reads the marketing hype.

Student buys in to “recipe”.

Student fails.

…and fails.

Student is at a loss.

Many give up at this point…if they even get to this point.

The Hard Thing About Preparing For the FE Exam

I read a lot of advice that is slang around the internet for students preparing for the FE Exam.

There is definitely some solid points presented, but in each case, they fail to actually hit on the real life experiences that go in to preparing for the FE Exam.

The hard thing isn’t finding what material needs to be studied.

The hard thing is getting through the content in an efficient manner while remembering everything you just put in to your brain piece.

The hard thing isn’t getting the right calculator.

The hard thing is learning how to actually use that calculator appropriately under timed conditions.

The hard thing isn’t setting up a detailed study plan.

The hard thing is getting home after a 12 hour day at work and following through on your commitment to sit down and study.

The hard thing isn’t reading over a set of practice problems.

The hard thing is waking up 2 hours before you want to just to get some uninterrupted time before the kids wake up to read over those practice problems.

The hard thing isn’t sitting down in a coffee shop to study.

The hard thing is punting social invites with your friends every weekend because you know you’ve got that exam date coming up.

The hard thing isn’t imagining the possibilities that can come from becoming a Licensed Professional Engineer.

The hard thing is keeping your head up, moving forward, despite the uncertainty of the day to day life of a student, employee, parent.

The problem with most the advice out there is that they attempt to provide a cookie cutter recipe for the challenges that will be encountered when preparing for the FE Exam.

The problem is, there are no recipes.

Every single person preparing for this exam is their own unique dish.

In life, there is no recipe for really hard, constantly evolving situations.

Where we are in life when preparing for the FE Exam is different for every single one of us…but the one constant is this…

The responsibilities of life continue to grow.

So don’t look for or expect to find the “recipe” for passing the FE Exam.

It doesn’t exist.

There is no recipe for focusing when you feel like your eyelids have 100 pound weights on them.

There is no recipe for sitting down to study and within minutes hear a yell from your kids downstairs telling you they are hungry.

There is no recipe for balancing the dynamics of being a parent, an employee, a student.

There is no recipe.

And there is no recipe for motivating yourself when your time and energy have gone to crap.

That’s just being real with you.

Hard things are hard…there is no formula in dealing with them.

But there are ingredients.

Over the years, we’ve learned that there are consistent, powerful, bits and experiences that can help with the hard things we deal with in life…

…including preparing for the FE Exam.

We at Prepineer don’t pretend to have “the” formula for each and every student, however, we believe we have the ingredients of what it takes to get this exam done once and for all.

We don’t pretend to present a cookie cutter recipe for every single person’s individual circumstance.

That’s just not reality.

Instead, we develop a program from inside the trenches with our students.

Working side by side with them each and every day, learning from their experience, strategizing on the fly in the moment.

A little dash of this here.

A dash there.

We don’t serve the soup…we become part of the soup.

Pursuing the FE Exam will inevitably have its rough patches..no one is excluded from this.

I have personally been there done that.

Circumstances will differ, but the deeper patterns and lessons of what has lead many to be successful in their pursuit have remained true through the test of time.

The recipe will be unique, but the ingredients will be very similar.

The Ingredients

Here are 6 ingredients for finding success in any are of life (including the FE Exam):

  1. Determine what you want
  2. Set an enabling belief
  3. Commit focus and attention to your goal
  4. Take the most obvious actions to achieve your goal
  5. Monitor your progress and adjust your actions to realign with your goal
  6. Show up

And that’s it.

It’s no recipe, but its a list of ingredients that we see in all of our students who are successful on this exam.

It’s really that simple.

But it’s the hardest thing you will ever do…because the substance that combines with all these ingredients is uncertainty, and because of that…

Most people will just avoid it.

Though others will lean in to the challenge.

They will show up ready to go everyday.

They will be open to the uncertainty of life and stay committed to the process.

They will stop focusing on the struggle of the day and start focusing on the process.

They will be persistence

They will grind.

And they will make it to the end.

And that’s a recipe you can count on.

I live this out every single day as I continue to build a program to be the best that is out there.

But it hasn’t been a journey without extreme struggle.

I’ve been at the bottom of the barrel more that I would have liked.

I’ve been to the point of breaking.

It’s been dark.

But it wasn’t about that one moment…it’s always been about the legacy being built…the impact being made.

So I challenge you today if you have made it this far in this rant, are you ready to show up?

Stop looking for a recipe and start simmering in the essence of the process.

Show up.

“The minute you start seeing the bricks, and not the prefabbed building…you win.” – Gary V.

You got this.

As always, with love, Prepineer

Do I Have To Pass The FE Exam Before I Start Gaining Engineering Experience?

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Students often ask me to clarify “Progressive Engineering Experience”…and specifically, when this experience starts.

They come to me often after picking up some bad information on the interwebs.

Information that has done nothing but confuse and even discourage people from pursuing their Professional Engineering License.

Recently, I was meeting with one of our new Prepineer students, and in a nutshell…this is what they had to say:

I held off from taking the FE Exam for so long because I already felt it was going to be a rough go at passing…having been out of school for so long.

But then I heard that I had to pass the FE Exam first before I started acquiring my professional experience for the PE Exam.

I started working right out of college, I had a ton of experience under Professional Engineers.

Then I heard that the experience I had wouldn’t be counted towards my application for the PE Exam…all those years were for naught.

On top of everything else, this was so discouraging.

The question comes in many forms, from every student demographic.

From those who are still in college to others who have been out of college for 15 years…bad information doesn’t discriminate.

So the question is:

“Do I need to pass the FE Exam and have my EIT Certification first before I start acquiring the required years of experience needed to apply for and take the PE Exam?”

This is definitely something I’ve heard (more than once) myself…

…And I did hear when I was preparing for the FE Exam.

For me, I hadn’t been out of college for too long, so it didn’t rattle me all that much.

But for those who have been working for 4 years or more, the last thing you want to hear is that your experience since graduating hasn’t counted one iota towards fulfilling the requirements to sit for the PE Exam.

That’s whack.

The quick and dirty answer to this point of confusion is this:

You begin acquiring “progressive engineering experience” the day you graduate with your BS and start working beneath a Licensed Professional Engineer.

And no, that’s doesn’t mean graduate with some Bull$&!t (although many of us may feel that way), that’s graduate with your Bachelor of Science.

Period.

It doesn’t matter whether or not you have your EIT Certification.

It doesn’t even matter if you have taken the FE Exam.

If you are working in an engineering position after graduation, then you are actively acquiring “progressive engineering experience”.

Experience which you can reference 100% when you go to apply for your PE Exam.

Now, in regards to the number of years of experience needed, there are different requirements depending on the state that you live.

This experience requirement drops in as one of four general requirements that are fairly uniform across the board.

To becoming eligible to sit for the PE Exam, these four requirements must be met:

  1. You need to have graduated from an ABET Accredited University with an Engineering Degree (if you did not, that will affect the number of years of experience required for eligibility, see the note below).
  2. You need to have passed the FE exam (this can actually be waived in some situations, for example, if you have mega years of experience working in an engineering function)
  3. You have had to acquired a certain number of years of “Progressive Engineering Experience”.
  4. You’ve got to get your homies (or rather, your Professional Engineering supervisors) to vouch for you that you are a solid person and engineer.

NOTE: The number of years of engineering experience is primarily dependent on your college degree.

In many states, if you don’t have an ABET Accredited Engineering Degree, the number of years of experience is going to be dramatically different.

In the State of California, as an example, if you have a degree, but it’s not ABET Accredited, then you would need to be able to document 4 years of engineering work experience for eligibility.

If on the other hand, you did have an ABET Accredited Engineering Degree, then you would need to document only 2 years of engineering work experience.

There are other options that fall within this eligibility flow chart, but a third to note is if you didn’t have a degree at all.

We have Prepineer students that fall in to this scenario, in which case, they would need to be able to document 6 years of engineering work experience.

You can check out this California Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors, and Geologists specific flow chart here:

http://www.bpelsg.ca.gov/applicants/flowchart_for_pe.pdf

The key terminology of note on this flowchart is that where it says:

“[A]fter date of BS graduation”.

So that’s that.

If you are hearing from others that you need to first pass the FE Exam before you start acquiring experience working under a Professional Engineer, then you are getting bad advice.

Theoretically speaking (or typing), staying with California as our example, if you started working once you graduated with your ABET Accredited Engineering degree and waited 2 years to take the FE exam and you passed, then you could turn around and take the PE Exam the very next test date.

And that’s the end to that bit of confusion.

As always, with love, Prepineer.

How To Balance A Chemical Equation

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Before you can jump into the steps of how to balance a chemical equation, we need to get you dialed in on the elements that make up a chemical equation.

A CHEMICAL REACTION is a process in which a substance or substances are CHANGED into one or more NEW SUBSTANCES.

A CHEMICAL EQUATION represents the CHANGE that occurs during a CHEMICAL REACTION.

A CHEMICAL EQUATION is a written REPRESENTATION of a CHEMICAL REACTION, using the SYMBOLS of each ELEMENT to indicate the AMOUNT of SUBSTANCE of each REACTANT and PRODUCT.

An EXAMPLE of a simple CHEMICAL REACTION is the REACTION in which hydrogen gas (h2) and oxygen gas (O2) COMBINE to produce liquid water (H2O).

The GENERAL FORM of a CHEMICAL REACTION demonstrates the component of a CHEMICAL PROCESS by defining the REACTANTS that REACT and YIELD to produce PRODUCTS.

Reactants → Products

The YIELDS symbol represented as “→” separates the REACTANTS from the PRODUCTS in a CHEMICAL EQUATION.

A ONE-WAY YIELD symbol “→” suggests that the REACTION occurs in only one direction.

A TWO-WAY YIELDS symbol “↔” indicates that the REACTION can occur REVERSIBLY, in both DIRECTIONS.

The LEFT SIDE of the CHEMICAL EQUATION shows the REACTANTS, which are the ELEMENTS or COMPOUNDS that REACT in order for a CHEMICAL REACTION to OCCUR.

The RIGHT SIDE of the CHEMICAL EQUATIONS shows the PRODUCTS, which are the ELEMENTS or COMPOUNDS that are PRODUCED as a RESULT of the CHEMICAL REACTION of the REACTANTS.

In the earlier example, of hydrogen gas (h2)  and oxygen gas (O2) combining to form liquid water, HYDROGEN and OXYGEN would be the REACTANTS, and a WATER molecule (H2O) would be the PRODUCT.

2H2(g)+O2(g)→H2O(l)

In a BALANCED CHEMICAL EQUATION, the NUMBER of ATOMS of each ELEMENT is EQUAL on both sides of the BALANCED CHEMICAL EQUATION.

It is important that CHEMICAL EQUATIONS are BALANCED in order to follow the LAW OF CONSERVATION OF MASS, which states that all the MASS or ATOMS present at the BEGINNING of a REACTION must be PRESENT in the FORM of a PRODUCT.

Simply speaking, the LAW OF CONSERVATION OF MASS states that there must be an EQUAL number of ATOMS of each ELEMENT in the REACTANTS as in the PRODUCTS of the CHEMICAL EQUATION.

Before we BALANCE a CHEMICAL EQUATION, let’s look at the GENERAL FORM of the SKELETON EQUATION for any CHEMICAL EQUATION:

In a BALANCED CHEMICAL EQUATION, the NUMBER of ATOMS of each ELEMENT is EQUAL on both sides of the CHEMICAL EQUATION. It is important that CHEMICAL EQUATIONS are BALANCED in order to follow the LAW OF CONSERVATION OF MASS, which states that all the MASS or ATOMS present at the BEGINNING of a REACTION must be PRESENT in the FORM of a PRODUCT. Simply speaking, the LAW OF CONSERVATION OF MASS states that there must be an EQUAL number of ATOMS of each ELEMENT in the REACTANTS as in the PRODUCTS of the CHEMICAL EQUATION. Before we BALANCE a CHEMICAL EQUATION, let’s look at the GENERAL FORM of the SKELETON EQUATION for any CHEMICAL EQUATION

Where:

  • A, B, C, and D are the GROUPINGS, which represent the NUMBER of ATOMS in the REACTANT or PRODUCTS. A GROUPING is typically an ELEMENT, MOLECULE, or COMPOUND.
  • N, M, O, and P are the COEFFICIENTS of each GROUPING, which REPRESENT the NUMBER of MOLS for each ELEMENT, COMPOUND, or MOLECULE.
  • W, X, Y, and Z are the SUBSCRIPTS, which are part of the CHEMICAL FORMULA for a particular GROUPING and cannot be changed.

When approaching a CHEMICAL EQUATION, it is important you understand the difference between COEFFICIENTS and SUBSCRIPTS.

The STOICHIOMETRIC COEFFICIENT is a WHOLE NUMBER INTEGER placed in front of an ELEMENT, COMPOUND, or MOLECULE, and denotes the AMOUNT of MOLES for a particular ELEMENT, COMPOUND, or MOLECULE.

The SUBSCRIPT is placed behind the ELEMENT, MOLECULE, or COMPOUND and denotes the NUMBER of ATOMS in that GROUPING.

To BALANCE a CHEMICAL EQUATION, STOICHIOMETRIC COEFFICIENTS are used to MODIFY the NUMBER of MOLES of REACTANTS and/or PRODUCTS, such that MASS is CONSERVED on BOTH SIDE of the CHEMICAL EQUATION.

CHANGING the COEFFICIENT changes the TOTAL NUMBER of MOLES of that ELEMENT or MOLECULE.

The SUBSCRIPT, however cannot be changed, as altering a SUBSCRIPT would change the MOLECULE itself.

A DIATOMIC MOLECULE is a MOLECULE made of only TWO ATOMS, of either the SAME or different CHEMICAL ELEMENTS.

Some ELEMENTS can only exist as DIATOMIC MOLECULES and are not physically able to exist as a single ATOM, but as a PAIR of ATOMS that share ELECTRONS to reach the nearest OCTET.

You can easily remember the DIATOMIC ELEMENTS with the phrase:

Have No Fear Of Ice Cold Beer

Where:

  • H represents Hydrogen (H2)
  • N represents Nitrogen (N2)
  • F represents Fluorine (F2)
  • O represents Oxygen (O2)
  • I represents Iodine (I2)
  • C represents Chlorine (Cl2)
  • B represents Bromine (Br2)

As with any EQUATION in engineering, we can BALANCE A CHEMICAL EQUATION using a simple 4 STEP PROCESS on how to balance a chemical equation.

1.Write Out The Skeleton Equation For The Chemical Reaction:

IDENTIFY all REACTANTS and PRODUCTS and WRITE their correct FORMULAS on each SIDE of the CHEMICAL EQUATION.

It is crucial to correctly TRANSLATE the PROBLEM STATEMENT to correctly WRITE out the CHEMICAL EQUATION.

For example, a sample of sodium is mixed with chlorine gas to form sodium chloride. We can write the SKELETON EQUATION for this CHEMICAL REACTION as:

Na+Cl2→NaCl

2. Balance The Atoms For Each Element In The Chemical Equation:

Begin balancing the equation by trying different COEFFICIENTS to ADJUST the NUMBER of ATOMS of each ELEMENT to be the SAME on both sides of the CHEMICAL EQUATION.

We can change the COEFFICIENTS (the numbers preceding the formulas), but not the SUBSCRIPTS (the number within chemical formulas), as changing the subscripts would change the IDENTITY of the SUBSTANCE.

1 Na +1⁄2Cl2→1 NaCl

3. Adjust The Grouping Coefficient For The Chemical Equation:

Although the equation is now BALANCED, the COEFFICIENTS must be WHOLE NUMBER INTEGERS.

So we MULTIPLY the ENTIRE equation (per the laws of algebra), by the SMALLEST possible WHOLE NUMBER that ELIMINATES any FRACTIONS.

In this case, we MULTIPLY by 2 to ELIMINATE the FRACTIONS for chlorine (Cl2):

2Na+1 Cl2→2NaCl

4. Verify Mass Balance Of The Atoms For Each Element:

VERIFY that the NUMBER of ATOMS for each ELEMENT is the SAME on both sides of the CHEMICAL EQUATION:

Reactants (2 Na, 2 Cl)→Products (2 Na, 2 Cl)

How To Construct A Mohr’s Circle

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Engineers most often wants to determine the maximum normal stress induced at a given point for a particular application or design.

Mohr’s Circle is graphical tool that is commonly used by engineers to graphically analyze the principal and maximum shear stresses on any plane, as well as provide graphical coordinates of these shear stresses.

How To Construct A Mohr's Cirlce Stress Analysis on Mohr circle - To get normal and shear stress values at any plane theta, take angle 2ϕ in the Mohr’s circle starting from diagonal of the circle and locate a peripheral point as as shown. Shear stress value will be on the y-axis and normal stress values will be on the x-axis.

However, there can be infinite number of planes passing through a point, and the normal stress on each plane will vary.

The PRINCIPAL PLANE or maximum principal plane is the plane on which the normal stress value is at a MAXIMUM, with this value being referred to as the MAXIMUM PRINCIPAL STRESS.

Similarly, there will be one more plane, known as the MINIMUM PRINCIPAL PLANE, on which the normal stress value is at a minimum, with this value being referred to as the MINIMUM PRINCIPAL STRESS.

A typical 2D stress element is shown below with all indicated components shown in their positive sense:

Mohr’s Circle is diagram that is commonly used to graphically analyze the principal and maximum shear stresses on any plane, as well as provide graphical coordinates of these shear stresses. However, there can be infinite number of planes passing through a point, and the normal stress on each plane will vary. The PRINCIPAL PLANE or maximum principal plane is the plane on which the normal stress value is at a MAXIMUM, with this value being referred to as the MAXIMUM PRINCIPAL STRESS. Similarly, there will be one more plane, known as the MINIMUM PRINCIPAL PLANE, on which the normal stress value is at a minimum, with this value being referred to as the MINIMUM PRINCIPAL STRESS.

The TOPIC of MOHR’S CIRCLE can be referenced under the SUBJECT of MECHANICS OF MATERIALS on page 81 of the NCEES Supplied Reference Handbook, Version 9.4 for Computer Based Testing.

Using a graphical approach, we are able to determine the PRINCIPAL STRESSES on each plane using a MOHR’S CIRCLE.

Mohr’s circle is a geometric representation of the 2-D transformation of stresses, in which the component stresses  and  are found as the coordinates of a point whose location depends upon the angle  to determine the aspect of the cross section.

The Mohr’s circle is used to determine the principle angles (orientations) of the principal stresses without have to plug an angle into stress transformation equations.

To draw a Mohr’s Circle for a typical 2-D element, we can use the following procedure to determine the principal stresses.

Define The Shear Stress Coordinate System:

1. Define the coordinate system for the normal and shear axes – Tensile normal stress components are plotted on the horizontal axis and are considered positive. Compressive normal stress components are also plotted on the horizontal axis and are negative.

1. Define the coordinate system for the normal and shear axes - Tensile normal stress components are plotted on the horizontal axis and are considered positive. Compressive normal stress components are also plotted on the horizontal axis and are negative.

 

Define The Torsional Coordinate System:

2. For the construction of a Mohr’s circle, shearing stresses are plotted ABOVE the normal stress axis when the pair of shearing stresses, acting on opposite and parallel faces of an element, form a CLOCKWISE (cw) couple. Shearing stresses are plotted BELOW the normal axis when the shear stresses form a COUNTERCLOCKWISE (ccw) couple.

2. For the construction of a Mohr’s circle, shearing stresses are plotted ABOVE the normal stress axis when the pair of shearing stresses, acting on opposite and parallel faces of an element, form a CLOCKWISE (cw) couple. Shearing stresses are plotted BELOW the normal axis when the shear stresses form a COUNTERCLOCKWISE (ccw) couple.

 

Plot The Shear Stress Values:

3. Plot the shear stress values given in the problem statement, or plot generic points on the for σx-axis and σy as shown below.

Plot the shear stress values given in the problem statement, or plots generic points on the σ-axis for σ_x and σ_y as shown below.

 

Plot The Magnitude Of The Couple:

4. Plot the magnitude of the couple given in the problem statement with a clockwise (cw) couple being plotted above the σx-axis, and a counterclockwise (ccw) couple being plotted below the σx-axis.If not values are provided for the moment plot generic points above and below the  σ-axis for τxy as shown below.

Plot the magnitude of the couple given in the problem statement with a clockwise (cw) couple being plotted above the σ-axis, and a counterclockwise (ccw) couple being plotted below the σ-axis. If no values are provided for the moment plot generic points above and below the σ-axis for τ_xy as shown below.

 

Obtain The Center Of The Mohr’s Circle:

5. The center of the Mohr’s circle is obtained graphically by plotting the two points representing the two known states of stress, and drawing a straight line between the two points. The intersection of this straight line and the -axis is the location of the center of the circle.

The center of the Mohr’s circle is obtained graphically by plotting the two points representing the two known states of stress, and drawing a straight line between the two points. The intersection of this straight line and the σ-axis is the location of the center of the circle.

 

Draw The Mohr’s Circle:

6. Draw the Mohr’s circle assuming the connection line as the diameter of the circle, using the intersection of the diagonal straight line and the σ-axis as the center of the circle.

Draw the Mohr’s circle assuming the connection line as the diameter of the circle, using the intersection of the diagonal straight line and the σ-axis as Draw the Mohr’s circle assuming the connection line as the diameter of the circle, using the intersection of the diagonal straight line and the σ-axis as the center of the circle.

Stress Analysis With The Mohr’s Circle:

7. Stress Analysis on Mohr’s circle – To get normal and shear stress values at any plane theta, take angle 2φ in the Mohr’s circle starting from diagonal of the circle and locate a peripheral point as as shown. Shear stress value will be on the y-axis and normal stress values will be on the x-axis.

Stress Analysis on Mohr circle - To get normal and shear stress values at any plane theta, take angle 2ϕ in the Mohr’s circle starting from diagonal of the circle and locate a peripheral point as as shown. Shear stress value will be on the y-axis and normal stress values will be on the x-axis.

 

The Oddest Place I Found the Impostor Syndrome (and how I beat it)

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The Oddest Place I Found the Impostor Syndrome (and how I beat it)

Is the FE Exam hard?

It’s a question I get often, and one I wish I could tell a student with confidence whether or not it is.

But as much as the FE is an exam testing our understanding of the fundamentals, its just as much an exam testing our overall confidence in how we can operate under pressure in technical situations.

Going in to College, I thought I was set. 

I was a Madden champ, could do Math problems with my eyes closed and had college coaches sending me letters daily selling me on the benefits of their football program.

But I wasn’t set…far from it.

Let’s discuss.

I was the Master at Madden back in the day.

My friends and I would play that game on Playstation for hours and I would just unleash slant routes and tear them apart.

I got the nickname “Slants” doing this.

I dominated.

While in high school, I killed it in my Math classes.

I was also recruited by some of the most elite college football programs out there.

Going in to College, I thought I was set.

I was a Madden champion, could do Math problems while drawing pictures of hamsters, and college coaches were sending me letters in the mail daily selling me on the benefits of their University, but…

I was wrong – so wrong.

At the peak of my naivete, the perfect storm was brewing, the clouds of reality were taking shape in a number of ways:

  • First, I broke my ankle a week before my senior football season, sidelining me and putting strain on my chances of a D1 Scholarship.
  • Second, because I was being recruited for football and knew that whatever school I chose to attend would get me in on the academic side, I was relying on that, and in turn, only applied to two “fallback” schools, none of which I expected to attend.
  • Third, I was faking my way through High School, looking for any way to game the system and get the grades I needed

The storm swelled, and it hit, in the blink of an eye, I was heading to college with no major chosen and unsure of what I was going to do.

So I met with an academic counselor and did one of those neat little career assessments to determine what majors I should consider.

The result…Architecture.

So I did as any other 18 year old would do and went straight to the library.

Not to study, but to do research on how much money Architect’s made, and my conclusion –

They didn’t make “enough money”

However, Engineers did, and so an engineer was what I was going to become.

…and an Impostor was born

It didn’t take very long in to my first semester of college to acquire a strong sense of “I don’t belong here”.

My mental Ren and Stimpy began to run with a firestorm of thoughts:

  • “That dude looks smart.”
  • “That girl just finished the exam so fast, and I am a quarter of the way done!”
  • “What the heck is this squiggly line in my Calculus book…this is a math book right (check front cover)”

I began to feel that those around me were pulling further and further ahead of me.

My self image was in sharp decline, and I found myself at the end of my first quarter with a war of thoughts mobilizing on the horizon in preparation for a point blank attack.

I’m not too good at this engineering stuff, I don’t belong here, can I really do this?

What’s wrong with me…

From the moment I stepped on to my college campus, I was in a mental battle, which only intensified once I set foot in to the corporate world.

I remember clearly the times when I would walk in to a meeting with my coworkers and just sit silently watching as they conversed about the topics at hand.

The little orbitofrontal cortex was having it’s heyday telling me over and over…

You don’t belong here.

You know this feeling.

It didn’t matter how many times my boss shot me compliments, I never gave myself credit, chocking all my success up to pure luck.

I never felt worthy.

You may be feeling exactly this as you sit there studying for the FE Exam.

You may be telling yourself that you can’t do this or that those that have passed the exam have something you don’t.

Despite surviving arguably one of the most stringent college curriculums and obtaining your degree in Engineering, you sit there questioning your abilities.

Where do these thoughts come from?

Are you the only one experiencing them?

The answer to that is simply…

No.

Nearly 40 years ago a pair of psychologists, Pauline Rose Clance and Suzanne Imes, contributed these mental bombs to a mindset called…

The Impostor Syndrome.

To this day, the Impostor Syndrome wages war on high achieving individuals all around the world, leaving a residue of destruction with one simple, yet debilitating message…

You are “intellectually phony”.

Studies have shown that 7 out of 10 people feel like impostors at one point in time or another, that’s seven-zero!

Can you relate?

I know I can.

When I get an idea to do something new, something without a clearly defined path for how “exactly” I am going to get it done…I end of waiting to commit until I am certain I can make it happen.

Whatever the pursuit is, there will always be excuses not to do it – the Impostor syndrome makes sure that these excuses are front and center at the exact moment we are making critical decisions.

The result.

No action…radio silence.

Maybe you are sitting there right now, wanting to take the FE Exam, but think that you don’t have enough time, or don’t know enough.

Or maybe being out of college for a long time has left you thinking that you are way too far behind in possibly understanding all the material covered on the exam.

That may or may not be true, but let me tell one thing…

It doesn’t matter what you feel you may lack, the Impostor Syndrome is the one driving those thoughts.

As long as you are thinking that way, accept that you won’t see any action in your life worth noting…you’ll dig yourself deeper in to a rut that will become harder to get yourself out of as the time goes on.

All of a sudden, you realize that what you wanted to do tomorrow, ends up being put off until next week, which ends up being put off until next month, which ends up being put off until next decade.

Which ends up never getting done.

Are you in the middle of the war?

The first step in waging any type of counter attack to our tendency to downplay our abilities is to get real with ourselves…so let’s be real:

  1. Do you find find yourself obsessing over the things that are wrong rather than those things that are right?

    When I first opened up my FE Review manual, I knew right then that there was a challenge ahead.

    I glanced over the table of contents and quickly found myself transitioning from a state of excitement to one that was anything but that.

    I was good at a number of the subjects that were listed, but my eyes continued to bounce back to those subjects like Electrical Circuits, Thermodynamics, and Materials…the ones I wasn’t so good at.

    I was focusing on the “to be” hurdles of my studies, dwelling on the assumption that it was going to take a small miracle to become anywhere near competent in those areas.

    You see, when we are in Impostor mode, we attract towards the negative, completely discarding the positive.

    Living in a world where we are anxious comes a lot easier than beating down the walls with a hopeful outlook, so we set up shop in this mindset, developing a habit that spins us in to a perpetual state of…

    Doing.

    Absolutely.

    Nothing.

  2. Do You think everything you do should come easy?

    There is a coach in our FE Exam study Program, Prepineer, that I would label borderline genius when it comes to anything engineering.

    He has a background in Civil, a California Licensed Professional Engineer in Civil…arguably the toughest state to get licensed in the discipline.

    Just this past year, he decided that he wanted to get his Mechanical PE as well, so he taught himself that material – and passed the exam on his first try.

    From the outside, his journey seemed effortless, and quite frankly amazing, I’ve personally never seen anything like it.

    But the thing is, what we often see as effortless to someone else, is actually usually the exact opposite.

    When we see these things in the real world, we just see the “event”, the success…but what we don’t see is the “journey”, the obstacles and struggles that it took to get there.

    Because of this, when we initiate a new pursuit, like preparing for the FE Exam, we by default feel that it should come with relative ease…I mean that’s what we see others (read, one person) experiencing.

    So when we experience even the most minor hiccup, we fall back in to a mindset of “I don’t know enough” to pass this exam.

    We don’t think we are “smart enough”, or “have enough time”, or [Fill in the Blank].

    We obsess and tell ourselves that we just are not on the same level as that person (singular) because we aren’t able to do what they are doing with seemingly no effort.

    And as a result…

    We quit.

  3. Do you believe that what you’re doing is never enough?

    I am constantly fighting the inner warhead of peer validation.

    I feel in order to be successful, I’ve got to constantly hear people giving me props for what I am doing.

    We all want to keep that inner need of recognition pegged full, it feels good that way.

    For me, in college, it was going after an engineering degree and hearing people enviously saying “You are getting an Engineering Degree!”.

    At work, it was holding the position no one else at my age had and hearing people say “You are the Project Manager!?”

    In my professional life, it was getting my Professional Engineering license, “You got your PE at 27!?”

    Nothing is wrong with any of these pursuits, it’s just what is driving us to reach for each of them.

    We set unrealistic expectations, comparing ourselves with others and think we need to constantly be in the hustle, in the struggle, to measure up with where they are.

    We are only feeling worthy when we are achieving, as that’s what it takes to get positive attention.

    So when we are trapped in this pattern, if we aren’t getting that positive attention, we aren’t measuring up…we are falling short.

    We can’t accept that no one is always achieving, in all possible ways, all the time.

    But that’s the standard we judge ourselves against.

Fake it ’til you make it

For many years, I walked around with a war raging within…but no one ever knew.

On the outside, everything looked solid. I came across confident, I came across educated, I came across on point.

But that was all pretend.

The early days of my corporate life was spent mastering the art of “faking it until I made it”

College was hard, but at the very least, I had structure.

Working in the corporate world, and now running an EdTech Startup, things are the exact opposite.

There is no structure.

Uncertainty is the name of the game day in day out.

Abstract problems present themselves in need of equally abstract solutions.

On paper, I’ve have had some tremendous successes, but I still have the war waging inside. Even if it has retreated, the combatants are passionate in seeing their mission through. The mission to print the message that I am an “intellectually phony” and it was luck that got me here.

It hasn’t been…

  • The all nighters I’ve pulled to support my students.
  • The tens of thousands of hours I’ve spent educating myself and sharing with my students.
  • The commitment I’ve made to instill change in an industry that is desperately in need of disruption.
  • “What the heck is this squiggly line in my Calculus book…this is a math book right (check front cover)”

It hasn’t been any of that…it’s all been luck.

That’s my internal dialogue.

Hannah Kent, in her TEDxWomen Conference speech, put it this way:

As Impostors, we attribute our success “to luck, to being in the right place at the right time, to factors other than ability. […that we] live in fear that eventually some significant person will discover that [we] are, indeed, intellectual impostors.

Do you feel like you are pretending to be someone you aren’t?

Is this how you feel deep down inside?

Don’t worry if the answer is yes.

Accept it, it’s real, and rest in comfort knowing that you aren’t alone.

At this point, we (collectively) can do one of two things.

We can either brush it off as if it’s not happening, or we can take intentional action in changing it’s course so we can learn and grow towards our true purpose in life.

The Daily Battle of David versus Goliath

I’ve been aware of the Impostor Syndrome for some time now, and since identifying it as a primary contributor to the obstacles I continued to experience, I’ve been aggressively pursuing a personal counterattack to minimize it’s affects.

I can look back and say with confidence that I’ve personally come a long way.

One benefit at this point is that I can objectively look back at my own journey, and in doing so, put together some “lived” advice for that person stuck in this state of mind.

There is so much I could say, but to honor brevity, here are three tactics I would give the old Justin had I’ve been able to communicate from the future.

  1. Ask.

    When I first opened up my FE Review manual, I knew right then that there was a challenge ahead.

    On any given day, many things can happen that make us feel slighted.

    Maybe in your case, you were left out of a project meeting at work that you have been a major contributor on.

    In the Impostor state, our mind instantly goes to thoughts like:

    • ”Maybe I’m not as important as I thought I was”
    • “Why wouldn’t they want my opinion on the project?”

    This is the clear, unobstructed, dark path that the mind tends to go down.

    But what I have learned over these years is that there is one thing that can stop this Impostor thinking dead in it’s track.

    Just Ask.

    Sounds simple right, it is.

    Everything that is running through our minds right now is pure speculation.

    • How do I know that I am the only one struggling to understand the FE Exam material?
    • How do I know that my students aren’t getting enough value out of my FE Exam study program, Prepineer?
    • How do I know that I shouldn’t be writing about maximizing performance both on the FE Exam and life?

    How do I know those things?

    I don’t.

    That’s the point.

    Research tells us that the Impostor Syndrome is irrational, yet, I sit here accepting everything that it is telling me.

    So to counteract that, I now ask.

    • I ask my friends, or other people in the Prepineer forum, if they are struggling in their studies.
    • I ask my students in Prepineer how we are doing and what we could do to make their experience even better.
    • I ask our readers if they are finding inspiration, motivation, and value in the words I am writing.

    And now I have true objective Reality.

    I’ve passed the FE Exam.

    My students continue to gleam about their experience with Prepineer.

    I continue to get “Thank You” letters daily for providing the inspiration, motivation, and value that I do.

    So I continue, despite what the impostor wants me to do.

    And I am telling you, that’s what you must do to.

    Asking is hard, but so is surviving through years of assumptions that are most likely untrue

  2. Focus on the strengths of being different rather than the weaknesses.

    When we are in an impostor state, we just try to blend in with the pack.

    We view our differences as things that need to be overcome, balanced out by more effort, more ‘pretending’ in areas we view as valuable.

    From my own life, naturally, I am an introvert at heart.

    So when I see all these talents out there expressing their opinions so eloquently on specific issues, my initial thought process is that I can’t hang.

    I once looked at my introversion as a weakness that I needed to overcome.

    It wasn’t until I began getting repeated feedback about how thoughtful I was on some topic, or how my research and conclusions were spot on, that I realized that what I thought was a weakness was actually one of my strengths.

    That strength being the ability to sit back, be objective, gather facts, rally the troops and provide valuable insights.

    This doesn’t mean I don’t have areas that I need to develop…this means that I have areas that are developed now that the world needs….so I need to push forward exercising my natural gifts…otherwise I am doing both myself and those in need a disservice.

    Today, I am aware of my weaknesses, but I choose to focus on my strengths, leaning in to my fears and taking action regardless of what the impostor is telling me.

  3. Let your insecurities bleed.

    This is probably the one that’s going to hit you hard, because it hit me hard when I first admitted it.

    For years, I would bury my emotions deep in to the pit of my stomach.

    I would fall in line and try to perform at the things I thought others were looking for, rather than doing the things I truly wanted to do.

    You know the term “fake it ’til you make it“…that was my life.

    So I felt that by acting like someone else, it would help me get to where I wanted to be…that I would eventually after time become that person.

    Looking back, that’s just a dumb way of thinking.

    In faking it, I closed myself down to any opportunity to grow and learn.

    I closed myself down to times that I could expose my vulnerabilities and come out stronger.

    I’ve learned that through vulnerability, some of my greatest progress in life has come.

    There is a power that lies between us verbally opening ourselves up to these vulnerabilities, and the wisdom and knowledge from others that can come from it.

    Here is the greatest lesson I’ve learned from this…

    Everyone has their own issues and baggage to deal with.

    We are all suffering in some way or another, and if we can just see that our pain is just a part of the collective pain of human suffering, we can realize that at the very least we have each other and are in it together.

    The more willing you are to open up, the more willing (and able) others will be ready to help.

    So start with your best friend, your spouse…heck your dog – It doesn’t matter.

    Just release the built up tension you’ve stored inside for so many years.

    Over time, you will find it easier to open up, and in doing so, your situation, mindset, progress will significantly be better because of it.

    Just don’t sit there and pretend that your insecurities don’t exist, open up, be you.

Leaning in…

There have been some amazing stories that have come over the past decade plus working with EngineerInTrainingExam.com and Prepineer.

Stories of students who had failed the exam 5 times, then found our program, restructured their approach, and went on to be successful.

Stories of students who had been out of school for 30+ years, having not opened up an engineering book in what seemed like ages, yet they connected, committed, and made the FE exam a thing of the past.

Yet, even with experiences like these, it may seem like Prepineer has gone off without much effort, but the insecurities that seep behind don’t ever go away.

This is the reality to some extent for everyone.

Today I sit here writing this article to 20,000 plus people, I’ve served almost three-million lessons to engineers all over the world…and I still dominate all my friends in Madden.

But, even now, I feel like an impostor at times.

This is just life.

As long as we accept it as a known quantity, we can take daily action against it and not be surprised when it pops up telling us to step back and stop pushing so hard.

The more intentional action we take, the less and less it defines our lives and the more and more we can be ourselves.

When we are ourselves, life becomes seemingly effortless because we are living out in line with our true intentions.

You may not believe me right now at this moment, but believe this…

You belong right where you are, and I am 100% confident in saying that you are going to do some amazing things in your life.

So now that we are here, I’ve got two things for you, a question and an ask:

  1. How do you deal with the Impostor Syndrome? Share your experience in the comments.
  2. Do you know someone who has been struggling with the impostor syndrome? Share this post and help them with a push in the right direction..

Trust that it becomes easier.

Because it does.

7 Keys To Getting Out Of Your Rut (Let’s Get Personal)

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Prepineer Digest 012

7 Keys To Getting Out Of Your Rut (Let’s Get Personal)

Most people don’t want to talk about it, and instead, bury themselves in a life of inaction hoping it’ll just pass by. But it doesn’t and it won’t, so…let’s talk about it.

I started this post 3 days ago, and today, I am finally putting the finishing touches on it.

I considered reworking this whole introduction to avoid being too vulnerable…but that’s not going to happen, it’s just not how I roll.

If you’ve been following me for any amount of time, you know I pride myself on being open, transparent, and honest with myself and others I am working with.

Whether it be my family, friends, or students…you are going to know exactly what I am thinking…not just what I want you to be thinking.

So with that being said, I am just now getting myself out of a rut that stopped me flat in my tracks.

This is how the post started 3. Long. Days. Ago.

Currently, as I type this very sentence out…I am stuck.

This isn’t a great feeling at all.

With a family of four at home who rely on me being there to support their emotional and physical needs…this is ripping me apart inside.

For the students I am mentoring and guiding here in our FE Exam study Program, Prepineer…being in a rut, stuck, is far from an ideal situation.

I am certain that most all of you who are reading this right now are familiar with this feeling.

It’s not a productive emotion…but an unfortunate one we will all experience at times.

Maybe you are currently stuck in or feel like you are on the precipice of hitting a rut in your studies, at work or at home.

Or maybe you are just finding your way out, experiencing the energy that comes from a mind clear of clutter, tracking forward towards your goals once again.

That’s a beautiful thing, and please share your experiences in the comments below, we need to hear your story, it’s both powerful and inspiring.

Regardless of what side of the fence you stand, this is life.

Every single one of you is an incredibly talented engineer, just accept that right now. You have educated yourself through a curriculum that is viewed as one of the most excruciating, with a graduation rate less than 50% here in the United States.

Yet, you and I both sit here at times with a troubling level of self-doubt. Wondering how we got to the point that we are, wishing we had an ounce of courage to get ourselves unstuck and moving back in the right direction.

Here is the problem.

Most of us have “day jobs,” putting in hours and hours behind a cubicle, doing things that in the long run, really don’t matter much to us.

But we hold on to a hope that some day some amazing turn of events will arise to bolster our careers, our lives, to levels we have always wanted.

But for many, right now, it seems like this day will never come, and we continue to sit in line exchanging our dreams for a number 2 pencil and free access to AutoCAD.

Somewhere along the line we stopped growing and learning…reaching for the stars, and…

Those days seem lost.

But the truth is, they aren’t lost.

We haven’t lost the ability to learn. We haven’t lost the ability to grow. We certainly haven’t lost the ability to reach for the stars.

We’ve just buried them deep inside, creating a misalignment in our life that doesn’t resonate with what we were put here to do.

It’s time to break out of this rut, get unstuck, and realign our mind, body, and soul once again. Actively pursuing alignment isn’t binary, it’s a must do activity…taking intentional action towards moving forward isn’t an option.

If it was, then, what’s left? A world of highly talented individuals left on life support.

But that isn’t us, that’s not your destiny.

So with that, here are 7 key things I’ve done personally in the last three days to get unstuck.

This isn’t another crappy list of half hearted advice, we will get philosophical, we will get tactical…but at the end of it all, we will get thinking clearly once again.

Let’s do this.

1. Lean In.

From the very second that we enter this world we are terrified.

Naturally, we shy away from doing things we don’t see others doing.

We avoid putting ourselves in to positions that we don’t feel comfortable in, or rather, assume we wouldn’t be comfortable in.

We define our limits within.

Whether they are real or not, they become very real, and very tangible to us.

They are the fence holding us back from living a life fully lived.

This is natural.

But what we have to realize is that when we are feeling discouraged, these fences become brick walls, which manifest themselves even further in to concrete reinforced barriers.

We tell ourselves that doing anything to test these barriers is sure to lead to failure…or is it?

Let’s pretend for a moment, that we are able to test these barriers without the fear of it pushing us back even deeper…let’s switch up the narrative a bit.

Today, lean in to your fears.

  • Are you fearing going in to your bosses office and asking them a tough question?
  • Are you fearing opening up your FE review manual and finding out that you have forgotten a lot?
  • Are you fearing [FILL IN THE BLANK]?

Whatever it is you are fearing today, I want you to lean in to it. Accept it for what it is, and push through it anyways.

And you will realize one thing…

What you are fearing, what you see as barrier, doesn’t even exist.

It’s not real.

It’s just a projected image you have put out there to hold you in a “safe zone”.

But a safe zone isn’t safe forever…the monotony leads us to being stuck in a rut.

Fear can protect you, yes, but it can also paralyze you from taking any action in line with what you were put here to do.

But here’s the good news…fear takes a back seat to action, and action is a choice.

Your Choice.

Choose action.

Lean in.

2. Live Your Legacy.

When we were kids, our imaginations knew no limits.

We wanted to do big things, make big impacts, and change the world.

This was my story, and I’m confident this is your story too.

Then we got in to the corporate world, and suddenly we found ourselves living by other people’s agendas.

Our dreams and aspirations became second fiddle to what others wanted us to do or say.

Where did we go wrong?

When did we trade in our dreams for “corporate security”?

This isn’t a bust on the corporate world, it’s a bust on us not staying true to ourselves.

Let’s be honest, when we are in a rut, it’s even harder for us to believe in ourselves and live out the legacy we once dreamt.

Our creativity, will and drive are diminished – on fumes.

We need to flip that, and start thinking big again.

Be still for 5 minutes and ask yourself, “What do I want to be remembered for?”, “What do I want to stand for?”

Meditate on that answer and be real with yourself…are you doing everything you can do to be the best you can be?

The answer is most likely not.

When you realize where you are putting your focus, it helps begin the process of detangling your thoughts, ushering you back in to alignment with your true inner desires…clearing a pathway for courageous, unfiltered action against the resistance that has made itself a home between you and your ultimate purpose.

3. Make sense of your story.

When we are in a rut, its common to look outwards for answers.

Looking within at our story, at our journey, is the last thing we want to do, because frankly, at this moment we don’t have much faith in ourselves or our abilities.

But looking at our story is exactly what we need to do.

Our story is the most powerful thing that we have. It’s what makes us unique. It’s what makes us strong. It’s what makes us who we are.

If we turn our backs against our story, we become the ultimate pawn in the world’s ongoing chess match.

We become part of the herd, the sheep, creating a reality where our story really doesn’t matter, that we need to rely on others to get us to where we want to go.

This is not true. We are not pawns…we are Kings and Queens of an amazing story that has unfolded over the last 20, 30, 40+ years.

In this moment, we need to slow down, and be OK with that.

We need to reflect on where we have come from, the challenges we have faced, and the results of our actions. We need to recognize just how Blessed we are, and that where we are today is the result of our amazing story.

And it’s not over.

Accept your story, every part of it, the good, the bad…it is what makes you a conduit for change in a world that needs exactly that.

4. Help someone.

When we are rutted out, stuck, the last thing our mind allows us to consider is how we can help someone else in need.

Our negative thoughts have driven us so low that a thought of driving a positive action in to this world is quickly muddied up by a 1000 other negative thoughts.

But think about it, have you ever walked away from helping someone feeling worse?

The act of helping is an act equivalent to leaning against the resistance. The mind provides you resistance, you lean in to it, you conquer it, and you come out better because of it.

Acting in this manner gives you perspective on your situation and gives you confidence that no matter how low you feel, that your help, your support, your being, is still mightily important to the other people that are out there.

People everywhere need our help, and I believe this is by design, so that we don’t crawl back under our covers and dwell on our own personal situation.

Instead, the hurt that surrounds us affords us an opportunity to reach out and help others, and regain perspective in our own lives.

A perspective which illustrates what really is reality, that in our pain, almost every other individual out there is struggling in some way or another. And if we can just see that our pain is just a part of the collective pain of human suffering, we can realize that at the very least we have each other and are in it together.

5. Fall Back on the Fundamentals.

When life is stripped down to it’s bare essentials, you are left with your habits.

Whether you are aware of it or not, habits drive our lives more than we can ever understand.

The Habit Loop, as Charles Duhigg defines it in his book “The Power of Habit”, can work miracles in your life. Understanding what drives you and how it’s driving you is paramount in gaining the control and momentum you seek in your personal life.

Stripping life all the way back to our habits is crucial to getting ourselves headed back in the right direction.

For me, mornings start with meditation, reading, reflecting, exercise, and the sauna…which leads in to a dose of Bulletproof Coffee, talking with friends, and daily planning.

This is all done with near zero effort.

My mind doesn’t have to make decisions, because I have created a Habit Loop to do that for me.

This means I don’t have to rely on my Will Power to get going, a resource that is near depleted when we are in a rut.

When my mind is cloudy, stuck, dark, the last thing I need to be doing is making decisions, or trying to force myself forward.

I revert to my fundamental routines to do this…and that’s what you need to do.

I know its easier said then done.

  • When I am stuck, the last thing I want to do is wake up when it’s pitch dark outside.
  • When I am stuck, the last thing I want to do is sit down and meditate…that just seems torturous.
  • When I am stuck, the last thing I want to do is go and put myself through an intense workout.

Our fundamental routines may seem like the last things we need to be doing to get unstuck, but it’s actually the opposite – these fundamentals are exactly what we need to be doing.

We get out of a rut because we focus on the fundamentals, the building blocks that lift us up and make us stronger. Period.

“A body in motion tends to stay in motion…” rings as true today as it did in the 1687 edition of Principia Mathematica.

6. Trust Yourself to Fail.

You need to fail more.

A strong statement, yes, but what initially came to mind when you read it?

In a recent Inc Magazine article, Mark Cuban stated “If you’re not failing enough, it’s likely that you’re not taking enough risk.”

The mindset of failure is huge when it comes to getting unstuck.

Most of us have been brought up to believe that failure is permanent and that we need to hedge risk as we move through life.

Unfortunately, this way of thinking is a primary reason why we stopped dreaming big in the first place…dreams are thought to be risky, and open us up to the chance of failing.

When we are stuck, we tend to roll back in to this belief system, we shy away from risk because it could set us back even more.

But we have to do just the opposite…we have to trust ourselves, take risks, and fail.

Failing isn’t permanent, it’s an opportunity to learn and grow. When we are learning and growing, it’s impossible to feel stuck because we are reinventing ourselves by the minute.

When we are reinventing, we see light, an opportunity, and because of that we are energized.

Get out and fail…and fail fast.

7. Commit

I’ve touched on the importance of Quick Wins while you study for the FE Exam.

In the same sense, Quick Wins are just as important in getting unstuck.

When we are stuck, everything we try to do looks gargantuan. No matter what the task is, we are quickly overwhelmed, “June Gloom” fills our minds, and we lose sight of where we are going.

There is a simple solution to that…take the first step, a micro step…get your Quick Win.

Lean on that Quick Win to push you in to the next Quick Win, until eventually, quicker than you may think, you will have established sustainable momentum moving forward.

Start small, very small, and commit to that first step, then worry about the next step after that…but only think about one step at a time. Let go of being perfect. Let go of what you feel is the external bombardment of expectations…expectations which may or may not be real.

Be prepared to come up short, but have confidence in the process, and keep pushing…it’s all part of the process.

When you are 100% committed to seeing it through, it doesn’t matter if you stumble along the way. All that matters is that you know you will get there. So be persistent, stay determined, and fight the good fight…because this too shall pass.

This too shall pass.

A Powerful thought that has rang true as I sit here in the coffee shop wrapping up this post.

It’s been three days since I started, and it hasn’t been easy to gather my thoughts and get them out on paper.

But I’ve leaned in hard, pursued perspective, and meditated on the legacy that I’m creating in a story that is still unfolding.

I stripped away the weight of life and resorted to my fundamental building blocks, trusting myself that movement forward is more important than perfection and the key to getting back up and running.

I was committed, and am committed, and know that a discouraged heart will try to make itself at home once again.

But I am Ok with that, because this is life…and we are all in it together.

If you are in a rut, keep pushing forward.

Be intentional in your actions, and this too will pass.

Whether it’s at work or in your FE Exam studies, stay committed to seeing the process through.

It’s easy to fight and push ourselves down even lower, especially when you have high expectations.

However, its just as easy to flip that switch and pull yourself back up.

And now I want to flip it back to you…I’ve got two things I want to ask:

  • What’s something you do to get yourself out of a rut? Leave your comment below.
  • If you found this post helpful, please pass it along to one person you think could use a little extra support as they work towards their dreams in life. They may need to hear these words at this exact moment.

“Our Actions may be impeded…but there can be no impeding our intentions or dispositions. Because we can accommodate and adapt. The mind adapts and converts to its own purposes the obstacle to our acting…the impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way” – Marcus Aurelius

See you in the comments below!

Your buffer zone (and how it is affecting your FE Exam results)

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Your buffer zone (and how it is affecting your FE Exam results)

One of the first (not always) common sense lessons we get when learning how to drive is that of maintaining a buffer zone between us and the cars around us.

Sound advice.

But we are ignoring this concept altogether, and it’s affecting our FE Exam results

Let’s discuss.

Maintaining a buffer zone on the road is just good practice, it keeps us safe and it keeps others safe.

We have been ingrained with and indirectly learned to protect it no matter the circumstances.

But what about our personal buffer zones?

Do you treat your time with the same respect?

My guess is a solid “no”.

It seems that as we age, we more or less sell out on the fundamental importance of protecting our own personal time.

We, without much resistance, hand the keys over for others to drive the trajectory of our lives.

It all starts with a single request coming our way, and over time, this request balloons in to many until our life is being driven completely inline with other peoples agendas and goals – not our own.

Is this something that resonates in your life today?

I get it, it’s hard to say NO, but in order to see successful FE Exam results, saying NO is a fundamental precept we must reintroduce in to our lives and protect it by any means.

BUFFETzone

There’s a story I once heard about a meeting had between Warren Buffet and Bill Gates that illustrates the importance (and power) of honing the ability to say No.

At some point during the meeting, Buffet pulled out his personal calendar, and to everyone’s surprise, it was relatively empty.

How could one of the most successful investors of our time have a schedule that was practically wide open?

Buffet was quoted as saying:

You’ve got to keep control of your time, and you can’t do that unless you say No. You can’t let people set your agenda.

This is wisdom we must adopt for ourselves.

Productivity Starts at No

It’s hard to say No – and it seems the older we get, the harder it becomes.

I don’t know what it is, but my guess is that it has something to do with our natural tendency to want to please others.

Going in to our careers, we have our minds set on progressing, and though we come in with clear intentions, the buffer zones we set around our goals slowly degrade until they are nearly non-existent.

Where we were once going in to our days with a clear focus on what we were going to get done, we are now letting people tell us what we are going to do every waking second.

We succumb to the social pressures of feeling that we will be fired, or not get that promotion, if we say No to our supervisors request to do a task that we had never planned on doing…

Even if it keeps us away from spending time on a task that is of far more importance.

As we mold in to our standard corporate routine, the tendency to “sell out” on our buffer zone becomes part of what’s reality.

So now not only are we accepting the “reality” of working 60+ hours at work, but we are now giving in to the inundation of people’s requests for our time outside of work.

Before we know it, we are booked from dusk to dawn with obligations to be somewhere or some place to do some thing that we don’t even want to be doing just because we weren’t able to maintain our buffer zone.

And all it would have taken was a simple, genuine, and honest, No.

This is our reality.

This is the world we are living in.

A world that is constantly pulling us towards committing our time to something that at the end of the day will bring limited benefits to us when it’s all said and done.

We need to recognize this for what it is.

It’s holding us back at work.

It’s holding us back at home.

And it’s holding us back from preparing for and seeing the FE exam results we want and need.

Own Your Time, Do Work That Matters

Our time is finite and it comes down to the buffer zone that we build around it that will determine how far we get with this limited asset.

I was reading through a discussion where former Reddit CEO Yishan Wong defined with clarity how time is limited in 3 distinct ways:

  • Time is highly limited: As humans, we’re immature in our first decades, and declining in health in our last.
  • Time is uniquely limited: You can’t bank, transfer, or recover time, unlike money.
  • Time is equitably limited: Americans can, on average, expect to live about 77 years. That expectation isn’t equal with resources like money.

Some may read these limitations and suddenly be struct with feelings of anxiety.

Some will take action.

Some will let it go in one ear and out there other.

Whatever route you choose for yourself, at the end of the day, your life is your canvas.

You can do anything you want to do with it, and if FE Exam results is what you want, make that your reality.

Your Life Your Canvas

Warren Buffet explains how Berkshire Hathaway is his canvas…a canvas that he gets the Blessing to paint every day.

If you are to be successful in painting your personal canvas, and ultimately achieving the desires in your own life, then you are going to need to build, maintain, and/or reconstruct buffer zones around the limited and declining asset of your time.

Kevin Ashton, the British technology pioneer who co-founded the Auto-ID Center at MIT, wrote an essay where he pointed out that being stingy with your time is part of leading a creative, productive life.

Saying No has more creative power than ideas, insights and talent combined. No guards time, the thread from which we weave our creations. The math of time is simple: you have less than you think and need more than you know.

Being successful isn’t about doing everything.

It’s about doing the right things at the right time – being productive and honing the ability to say No when it needs to be said.

So I have to ask this again…

Do you have a hard time saying No?

We all do.

You are human and it’s not in our nature to disappoint, and when we find ourselves in a position where saying Yes would be easier than saying No, we tend to fold our convictions and fail to maintain the integrity of our own buffer zone.

There are many reasons why saying No is hard, and the first step in maintaining (or reconstructing) our buffer zone is to understand these reasons deep down.

Five Reasons Why It’s So Hard to Say No

  1. We want to be helpful

    We all want to help others when they are in need.

    You are kind, sensitive, and empathetic and want to see others who may be struggling have it easier.

    When we find ourselves in a position where we could potentially make an impact, we tend to lean towards setting aside our boundaries and give in.

    I am not saying that helping isn’t good…I do it every single day here at EngineerInTrainingExam.com and Prepineer and it’s extremely rewarding.

    What I am saying is that being helpful can become tainted to a point where every request that comes your way seems important and you no longer have the ability to help yourself.

  2. We are afraid of being rude

    I was raised to respect my elders, to respect those in authority, to respect others.

    Today I teach my daughters these same life lessons, they are important.

    But there is one thing I failed to learn in the process of learning how to be respectful, and that’s how to respectfully say No.

    Maybe this is your story too?

  3. We want to be agreeable

    You don’t want to be an outlier.

    You don’t want to stand out from the group because you have a different opinion on how things should be done.

    So with that, you resort to Group think, where the default response to any and all requests is a simple (although tough)…Yes.

  4. We fear potential conflict

    Saying No is hard.

    I am going to go out on a limb and assume that you want people to like you, to look to you as a good person…you want to be agreeable as we just discussed.

    I am right there with you.

    You may feel that saying No to a request might cause that person to get mad or feel like we have disrespected them.

    Even if a confrontation doesn’t arise, you might feel there will be collateral damage filled with dissent created leading to negative consequences in the future.

    This is uncomfortable…no one likes uncomfortable.

  5. We fear losing future opportunities

    I remember when I was working for the first time as Project Manager and the Project Director called me and asked me to do some (very inconvenient) company training.

    I was in the middle of a project, racing time and money to get the facility we were constructing open for the client – yet, here I was being asked to do some training.

    This was the wrong time, but I said Yes because I felt as if I said No, I would be closing the door to some future opportunities.

We by nature want to be helpful, agreeable and avoid coming across as rude. We want to stay within our comfort zones as much as humanly possible and skirt anything that may result in us losing future possibilities.

If any of these (or all) resonate with you, then let me be the first to tell you that you are not alone.

We all are in this battle together.

Some will admit it, while others will hide behind a false narrative.

But regardless of where you sit on this spectrum of acceptance, understand that these mental bombs will continue to put heavy stress and strain on our ability to maintain buffer zones – and the slow drain on the limited resource of time will continue unless we take accountability and start working on…

Breaking False Beliefs

This is my story, and I am a continuing work in progress.

What I have found, is that ever since I began implementing an intentional No program in to my day to day life, all of these reasons I stated above are revealed for what they truly are:

False beliefs.

People don’t get mad, people don’t get broken, you don’t lose opportunities, you aren’t looked at as rude.

On the contrary.

Saying No actually earns you respect and understanding from those you are interacting with.

They begin to see what your priorities are and that they you are true and genuine in building something that matters.

Your Customized No Program

When it all comes down to it, maintaining (or rebuilding) your buffer zone all comes down to you nurturing an ability to say No…and to deliver that No in a way that is graceful and meaningful.

It’s about communicating it in a way that says “I value my time and space”.

But how do you say No with grace and conviction without coming off like you don’t care about the person your talking to?

We need to (re)learn to say No.

If we want to excel to where we want to be in life, it’s time that we begin implementing a solid No program in to our own lives.

Learning, knowing, and feeling comfortable saying No is an art form that comes with time.

And I’ve done a lot of the dirty work, here’s what I have learned along the way.

7 Simple Ways to Say No

When I began intentionally saying No to others, I realized something right off the bat…

It wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be.

Those who I was saying No to were understanding and the resistance I thought I would be getting was not there.

I’ve come to the conclusion that saying No can be placed in the bucket with all my other irrational fears that have traveled freely through my head throughout my life; ie, I don’t think I am smart enough to take the FE Exam, I’ve been out of school for too long to pass the FE Exam, I will not get a good raise if I don’t say Yes to this request…

The list is longer than a CVS receipt.

If you are unsure how to begin your No campaign in route to reestablishing your personal buffer zone, then here are 7 simple scenarios that you can get started on.

Mix it up or choose the method that works best for you in your particular situation and run with it:

  1. I can’t make the commitment to complete [FILL IN THE BLANK] because I have other priorities that I am currently working on

    This was the first road I went down when I launched my No campaign.

    I was busy.

    You are busy.

    So this simple and honest approach will let the requester know that your plate is too full to complete his or her task at that moment.

    They will either hold off until a later date and come back to you, or they will go off and find other resources to backfill the request.

    I use this all the time when my calendar begins to look a little too thick for my liking.

  2. Today’s not the best time as I am wrapping up [FILL IN THE BLANK]. How about we rally back at [FILL IN A SPECIFIC TIME]?

    It’s not uncommon to get sudden “urgent” requests when you are in the middle of wrapping something up.

    Often times, I would get a phone call from someone frantically requesting my assistance on the other line – it’s always a dumpster fire right?

    It’s tough to resist the emotion that’s coming through the receiver, so the best approach in this situation is to just temporarily set aside the request with grace and inform them that you will get back to them at some specific time.

    This will ease the individuals mind knowing that they will have some help coming, and it also allows you your space to continue closing out the current work you are doing.

    This approach is great for two reasons.

    For one, you maintain your buffer zone by telling the individual that now is not a good time and that you are doing something. Second, it makes your desire to help known to the individual, at a time that is convenient to you.

    The individual won’t feel blown off…they will feel relieved knowing you will “eventually” help them.

  3. I would love to, but [FILL IN THE BLANK]

    This is my gentle approach towards saying No to individuals that respectably come to me with a legit request that I just shouldn’t be spending my time on.

    Often times I will get requests from individuals looking to partner with me or have me lead a certain engineering review course, or speak at some conference.

    The ideas are almost always great. But I know there are other, more impactful, areas I should be spending my time, so this is my gentle way of letting them know that I respectfully decline.

  4. Let me take a look at my schedule and I’ll get back to you

    This is more like a soft No, borderline Maybe, response.

    This is presented when you are actually interested in doing the request but you aren’t able to fully commit at this time.

    Sometimes I am approached by other business owners and pitched on some great idea that is completely in line with my ultimate vision in life and would make a huge impact on people around the world…yet I know I need to hold off and gauge where my current commitments lie before I make another one.

    If the person who is proposing something to you is sincere about their request, they will not be put off or disappointed that you are asking for some time to consider it.

    This is the right move…but remember to specify a date and time that they should expect you to get back to them in the future.

    If on the other hand, you are not interested at all in the request, use that next 3 methods and be more definitive about it.

  5. This doesn’t meet my needs or goals right now but I’ll be sure to keep you in mind

    This is my recruiter line.

    I often, as I am sure many of you as well, am contacted by recruiters looking to bring me in to some firm or on to some project.

    I am wholeheartedly and genuinely grateful that they are reaching out to me, but most all the time, I am just not interested in pursuing their opportunity.

    So with that, I respectfully decline and note that I will be contacting them in the future when I am ready to talk.

    Definitive and buffer zone resistant.

  6. I don’t think I am the ideal person to help you with this, why don’t you talk with [FILL IN THE BLANK]?

    If you are being asked to do something that you either:

    a) Don’t have much to contribute to or

    b) Don’t have the right expertise and/or resources to help, then let that be known and point them in a direction that will get them closer to what they are looking for.

    If possible, lead them in a direction that they can immediately following up on, whether that be with another person or even another resource online.

    When I say No, I always try and add value to that response by identifying potential resources or leads that they can follow up on.

    In that case, I might not have been able to help with there task, but I still helped in moving them forward towards getting it complete.

    And I am good with that.

  7. No

    Here she is…the straight up No.

    This is simple.

    This is direct.

    This is hard to say.

    We put up way to many barriers in our mind in route to simply saying No.

    But as we discussed earlier, these barriers are nothing more than false beliefs that lead us towards total destruction of our personal buffer zones.

    Try turning off your mind for a second, and just say No.

    I am certain that you will be surprised by the response you get and that it isn’t one that you imagined it would be.

    Once you get past the first No, the second, third, fourth…one hundredth No comes a lot easier.

    And in return, feel liberated in your new freedom and health of your buffer zone.

    You will have more time for yourself, to focus on the things that actually matter to you – like spending time with your family, friends…and preparing for and receiving the FE Exam results you have always wanted.

    I know I do and I am happy that I finally started down this road of saying No.

    Going back at this point will be impossible.

    A healthy buffer zone has lead me down a road of productivity that I haven’t experienced since I was in my younger years.

    Intentionally implementing your own No campaign will bring in to this same world.

So with all of this, I’ve got one simple question…

How do you guard your time?

How do you protect your buffer zone?

Let us know in the comments.

Productive People Say No.

If you struggle to stay focused, THIS is your solution (HINT: It will SOUND insane)

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Enable Images to see Engineering and Music

Right now I am listening to Pandora…to be precise, the current track playing is Testarossa by PANTyRaiD Superior.

This is a little early to get off on a tangent…but I would have to say that’s an interesting name.

How much money I am willing to pay to take a trip through the heads of these creatives for just a day to see where it takes me, that would be…ah, a trip.

We shall continue…

As I sit here at Starbucks, their are two ladies in front of me participating in a Bible Study…

Two guys to my left making a business deal…

A guy to my right talking on his phone and typing on his laptop…

Espresso machines spitting out noises like freight trains…

Baristas yelling out insane drink names (John, your tall, skinny, soy, chai latte add a shot…what does that even mean?)…

And people walking in every 3 seconds through the door in front of me.

Amongst this madness, I sit here in a calm, creative state of mind typing away on my MacBook Pro while listening to…uh…PANTyRaiD.

I have always been one to do work while blasting music in to my ear drums…at times when others would think it would be distracting.

In college while studying for exams I would be bumping beats by Dre.

While running up against deadlines at work I would be in my own little euphoria while I listened to classical Bach.

When studying for both the FE Exam and the PE Exam, the sounds of Slug would be in between my ears carrying me along.

Science was not the reason I ever did this…it was just part of my life. I only do this because I feel more productive, more focused, and on point for longer periods of time.

I didn’t know why, nor did I care…I was just trying to make miracles happen daily, so the reason didn’t matter.

Turns out, research backs the use of music as positively attributing to individual performance.

In a 2005 study titled “The effect of Music listening and workplace performance”, Dr. Teresa Lesiuk found that individuals who listened to music while completing a task actually completed their tasks more quickly and more innovatively than those in the comparison group who did not listen to music.

In a related discussion on the topic, Dr. Amit Sood from the Mayo Clinic stated that “Melodious sounds help encourage the release of dopamine in the reward area of the brain”

Biologically, when we listen to music, dopamine is seeping in to the “reward” channels of our minds. These are the same channels that deploy the good feelings we get from eating a super stellar dinner or connecting with someone on a first date.

Dopamine does a solid for us by covering up the little stresses that are camped out in the crevices of our dome pieces, helping us stay focused on the task at hand.

“Dopamine does a solid for us by covering up the little stresses that are camped out in the crevices of our dome pieces, helping us stay focused on the task at hand. – @prepineer” – Click to Tweet

Researchers confirm and directly correlate the increased focus with the relief of stress due to the seepage of dopamine.

Thinking about this in my personal experiences, it makes sense.

When bothered by stress, we are more likely to lose perspective and make decisions that are not as methodical, well thought out, or contrary to our better judgment.

On the other hand, when we are in a good mood, we tend to keep things in perspective with a better propensity to roll with the punches.

Studying for the Fundamentals of Engineering Exam is nothing less than constant ups and downs…what state of mind do you want to be in?

One major caveat to these results is this…

Dr. Lesiuk study concluded that having the ability to choose the music you listen to was a key factor in whether or not the result was optimal. In other words, we can’t rely on the music at Starbucks or the elevator music in the lobby at work to give us these benefits…we need to actually have control of what we put in to that protected spaced between our ears.

If you know you aren’t someone who tracks well while listening to music, you can still benefit from the use of music in your daily routine of studying for your professional engineering exams.

In fact, Dr. Sood of the Mayo Clinic states that just listening to as little as 15 minutes of music can do major movement in your ability to regain concentration once you find your mind wandering.

So if you are are hitting a road block in your Fundamental of Engineer Exam studies, take a 15 minute break, throw in some tunes, and get your mind back on track.

So what about you, do you listen to Music while studying? Or does listening to music just complicate things while you are focusing on the FE Exam material? I would be curious to hear your experiences in the comments below.

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