Successful Career in Science & Technology

Naresh Chand BAE Systems, Wayne, NJ 07059

What is success?
Gaining or achieving the desired goal
We must define our career goals Chances favor the prepared mind - Louis Pasteur If we dont know where we want to get to, it does not matter which way we go Cheshire Cat

Work towards achieving the defined goals

Prepare to pay the necessary price Even to win a lottery, we need to buy a ticket

If we do our best with right attitude, everything is success and nothing is a failure

I rarely end up where I was intending to go, but often end up somewhere that I needed to be - Douglas Adams
We are the authors of our actions but the results are subject to hidden laws of nature Karma Yoga

Primary goal of life

Pursuit of Happiness

Happiness is a state of mind based on perceived needs

PHYSICAL NEEDS Physiological: Food, shelter, clothes, Safety Job security SOCIAL NEEDS Belongingness and love: Intimate family members and friends. Esteem and status: Drive for higher standing, reputation, and prestige relative to others. SELF ACTUALIZATION NEED Personal system of values leading to self realization.
A right choice of career with wisdom can fulfill most of these needs. 4

Happiness for:
An hour :
Take a nap

A day
Go on picnic

A week
Go on vacation

A month
Get married

A year
Inherit wealth
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Happiness for the lifetime

Enjoy what you do for living (Then you will never have to work)

When work is pleasure, life is a joy.

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Why Science and Engineering (S&E) career?

Fruits of S&E are essential to our modern society. For a respectful, honest and meaningful life To improve quality of life, develop the next generation of products and technologies, combat hunger and disease, To join the community of intellectuals and exchange knowledge with them To learn laws of nature and formulate theories for new ways of thinking

To sow seeds and then help the plants bear fruits

To do wonders by combining talent, technical skills, logical minds and proper human interfaces To be an entrepreneur

Study of S&E is challenging. It is not for everyone because it is very rigorous and demanding physically, mentally, and emotionally.
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Scientists and engineers see themselves

Ambitious Assertive Caring Clever Confident Emotional Determined Creative Possessing leadership capability Rational Cooperative Competitive Persevering Hardworking Risk taker People oriented Machine oriented Passive Team player Intuitive Imaginative Logical Methodical

S&E offers numerous career opportunities

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. University Teaching (need MS or Ph.D.) Basic or fundamental research (Need Ph.D.)
- More by academia, disappearing in corporate world

Applied research (MS or Ph.D.) Defense services Civil administrative services United Nations, world Bank, or other international services Foreign service Product (both hardware & software) development Product manufacturing Communication service providers (TELCOs, satellite and cableTV) Product or project management Marketing & Sales Technical services Entrepreneurships Financial world (investment and banking) Law Patent law S&E opens more doors than any other discipline. Patent inspector If one door closes, another opens so long Medical field Technical jobs we are flexible and mobile. High School science teachers Entertainment industry
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Excel in whatever career you choose

Burn as bright and as long as possible in the service of what really matters Compete against yourself, not others, for that is who is truly your best competition - -Feggy Flemming

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A few technological trends in Electronics and Computers Engineering

Continued innovations in consumer products withy friendly human interfaces Embedded intelligence Software defined devices and systems Dynamically reconfigurable communication networks System of systems Mobile ad hoc networks For technology trends: Sensor Networks Proceedings of IEEE January issues of IEEE spectrum Alternative energy sources Subjects of Technology Conferences (e.g., MILCOM) Scavenge of energy Micro sensor networks Energy efficient network protocols Multilevel security Technologies to deal with terrorist threats
Detect human intentions Look through concrete walls to detect human movement Remote detection of explosive material Persistent surveillance

More functionality at reduced size, weight, power and costs

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Hardware, software, firmware and glueware

Hardware continues to get better, smaller, lighter and cheaper Software is getting bigger, more complex, and expensive

Through firmware (embedded software), products are becoming more intelligent

As the product matures, 15% cost is hardware and 85% cost is software

Often products fail due to software

So software offers more opportunities Glueware is most important in making system of systems work in the global economy

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BS, MS, MBA or PhD?

Depends on our goals Many people find satisfying careers just after BS MS or MBA can equip us well for professional careers PhD is required for research and university teaching

No degree guarantees lifetime employment.

You may have to change jobs and even careers Lay the foundation for your journey, no matter how many turns your path takes. We need to continue learning to avoid obsolescence
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Careers in science and engineering have changed

Fewer full-time academic and R&D positions in
Universities, Industries, and Government labs

Global competition and outsourcing Demand for a breadth of competencies, both managerial and technical Working on wrong or risky technologies Threat from disruptive technologies Too early or too late in the market Wall street pressure, downsizing and limited resources More opportunities in military and home land security
We need to be more flexible and mobile for more opportunities and control over our careers
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Evaluating possible careers

Watch people around you People play multiple roles. Find which role appeals to you Ask where do you want to be after 5 years Consider your personal values and circumstances The more we plan our career, the better we can face unplanned events.

Decide what you want to do and make others to pay for it.
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Action points
Talk to people working in the fields of your interests
Their work and how they got where they are today How do they spend their time? What do they find most satisfying and most disagreeable? Does the life that they describe appeal to you? Ask them if anything they wished they had known early in their careers.

Pursue every opportunity to gain first-hand practical experience Go to conferences, trade shows, and job fairs Build network of friends and well-wishers

If you are in a wrong field, change it.

Most of us would rather hold on to a familiar pain than trade it to unfamiliar pleasure - unknown

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While employed:
Always respect your hiring manger Ask, if you dont know Go an extra mile Try to work on winning and long-term projects Find team-mates or collaborators Give credit to others. They will credit you Take advantage of career development opportunities at work Be honest to yourself and others Never stop learning In the beginning, learn as much technical skills as possible Work hard and smartly as best as you can Be ready to accept higher and meaningful responsibilities Periodically evaluate your career Beware of disruptive technologies and economic conditions
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You can achieve anything if you do not care who gets credit President Reagan

Find a mentor
A mentor listens to us and gives advice and objective feedback with our interests at heart A mentor shows us the rope at the time of distress A mentor identifies our internal strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats A mentor in your organization is more beneficial in teaching corporate culture and valuable career moves. Help us think through career options and goals and develop action plans We usually have multiple mentors A two way street
We get advice and the mentor gets the chance to pass on wisdom
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We need to be visionary, innovative and creative

Make full use of head, heart and hands Self and highly motivated Self learner, enthusiastic, optimistic, and risk takers Naturally curious, visionary, humorous, and self-accepting Adaptive, reflective, committed, intuitive, analytic and collaborative Articulate, resilient, persevering, and inspired

Tolerate ambiguity, strive for perfection, and love to do jobs at hands

Think objectively and have uncommon capacity for self instruction Challenge the status quo Innovators require no policing environment They want their ideas to be heard and listened
Champions arent made in gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them a desire, a dream, and a vision. - Muhammad Ali

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Some winning strategies

We are responsible for our career Dont count on others, laws and regulations Be comfortable with yourself and project a winning image Seek and accept help graciously, and prepare to listen NO Build clusters and networks of friends and well wishers If unsuccessful, change the game Be persistent, never give up Help others and others will help you Recognize your hidden strengths and weaknesses Thank others and express gratitude for their help Gratitude resonates: People who feel appreciated are more willing to help those who make them feel valued
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To be mentally strong, bring spirituality in your Life

To be fearless To purify head and heart
Spirituality: Knowing who am I?

To discover a path for self-realization or enlightenment More we know ourselves, more burden of the life is gone
We need Spiritual strength: commitment to our deepest values regardless of circumstances or any personal sacrifices, and Spiritual flexibility: tolerance for values and beliefs that are different from ours, so long they dont bring harm to others. Spirituality is not religion which is about fear (fear of unknown) and worldly desires

Nothing in life is to be feared. It is to be understood. - Marie Curie

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Keep your head and heart clean

Anything that is used becomes dirty Head and heart are used constantly and can be full of garbage, if not cleaned A varieties of agents for cleaning body, none for internal cleaning A meaningful prayer, meditation and service to others is internal purifying Remove jealousy, hatred and various other painful emotions and bring their opposites in your lives Be kind to yourself and others. Find out the features in you and others which are definitely appreciable. Accept non-conducive situations cheerfully without reacting, complaining or blaming. Clean head and heart before going to sleep like cleaning teeth.
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Take a lesson from a tree

Stand Tall and proud

Sink your roots into the earth

Be content with natural beauty Go out on a limb

Drink plenty of water

Remember your roots Enjoy the view and your true nature

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Summary
Define your short- term and long-term career goals Make a careful choice of your career Take advantage of dynamic, and vibrant global economy Find a mentor, and ask if you dont know Seek and accept help graciously Build network of friends Continue learning to avoid stagnation and obsolescence The more flexible and mobile we are, the more opportunities we will have and the greater will be our control over the shape of our career
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