Hello World

I've started to notice that as I progress through my degree, I've been feeling increasingly more creative. I'm not too sure what it is, maybe its the fact that I've been drowning in math equations, or lab practicals, or both. Maybe it's the fact that I threw myself headfirst into an intellectually challenging degree program without the best preparation. Either way, there's a certain amount of creative energy that I feel has been lacking in my coursework as I progress through this degree. 

And I personally don't enjoy that. 

People tell me that I put in more effort in some of my creative projects than my own schoolwork. That's only partially true. I think I'm so motivated by the program I start to think about what I can apply my knowledge to; and since I don't know enough about my field, I'm just jumping into everything. This might be done to the detriment of my studies- or to the enhancement. I guess that's more opinion than fact.

Is there a way to be a creative engineer?

I don't believe I'm the first person to ask that question. I'm 100% sure there are plenty of creative engineers out there. The entire point of an engineer is to create things, build things. Sometimes it's hard to see that as an undergrad when all that matters is your next grade.

But isn't the whole point of the degree to build and create things?

I guess so. Sometimes it does seem difficult to piece that together your first few years; the only time you really learn what you can do with your knowledge is the senior level classes. It's hard to see what you could build without knowing how to build it, what to build it with, and where to start. Though, it's very tempting to just jump the gun and dive into a project, and teach yourself the material along the way. 

And frankly, sometimes that's the best way to learn something.

Now granted, that method of learning doesn't work for everyone- some people do better with structure than others. There's nothing wrong with that, and I'd argue that is a very beneficial thing, especially in terms of organization for classwork. But there's something gratifying in throwing caution to the wind, doing things on the fly, learning things along the way, and succeeding in some way. In any way. Maybe I'm just that type of person. Maybe I just need to balance my creative projects with my studies. Maybe I could combine the two?

Maybe I can.

Hello World.