A wise old engineer named Paul once said to me, “In life it is important to dance with as many people as you can.”  I thought about what this meant as he proceeded to explain, “When you dance with someone who is worse than you, your teaching abilities come out, but when you dance with someone better than you – you learn!”

Since we were walking out of an NX training class I was somewhat confused, at first I thought this guy was trying to sell me dance lessons, but then I realized that there was a profound meaning behind what he had just said to me. As an engineer, it is important for me to work with as many other engineers as I can. Some of the engineers I will work with may not know as much as I do, so it will give me a chance to reinforce what I know by teaching them. On the flip side, some of the engineers I will work with may know much more than I and I will become more knowledgeable as a result.

So what’s the moral of the story? There is no end to learning! For example, even when there aren’t any more college classes to attend, there will always be more training classes to take. These classes will teach you how to apply invaluable tools such as FEMAP, Solid Edge and Teamcenter software.  Iron sharpens iron, engineers make other engineers better.  Let’s not forget that companies like Saratech have much to offer with training courses… and perhaps a few dance moves as well!