Path to ZENgineer ...

With this COVID-19 situation throwing our lives in disarray, have been counting my blessings and reflecting on my career path thus far. It has been a very satisfying albeit a long journey to become a ZENgineer, with opportunities to meet some wonderful teachers and mentors along the way, who have shaped me of who am today. Felt it would be worthwhile in sharing my experiences to help others - especially engineers early in their careers.

But, wait !!! what is a ZENgineer ???

Have to admit that coined this term as a combination of Zen + Engineer.

Zen is a state of mind that is an embodiment of compassion and wisdom. Just like the spiritual masters practice discipline and rigor to attain this state of Zen, so must the engineers in order to reach the ZENgineer state.

Make no mistake, this is by no means a recipe for fast track to ZENgineer, but a disciplined, focused, and rigorous path towards a ZENgineering journey.

Through my own ZENgineering journey, have observed the following to be some of the core, inter-related behaviors of my teachers and mentors:

Passion

Successful engineers share a common trait - Passion. They are full of energy and have an unwavering love for what they do. They go above and beyond to get things done because they truly believe in their mission and the end goal.

What is Passion ? It is an intense burning drive or a strong unbounded enthusiasm to focus all our energy towards some enjoyable activity. One of my favorite movies that embodies passion is Ratatouille. Remy’s (a highly intelligent young rat) dreams of being a chef motivates him to achieve the unthinkable.

For me, solving problems using technology is my passion. Our life is like a roller-coaster with some UP days and some DOWN days. Irrespective of how the weekdays play out, it is the time set aside every weekend to explore and experiment with different technologies, is what keeps my mind nimble and my spirit energized.

Passion is like a magnet - it naturally tends to attract opportunities. My passion for solving problems has played a major role in opening doors throughout my career. During my cherished and memorable time at Lehman Brothers, was fortunate enough to work with some extremely passionate engineers in solving a wide range of interesting problems. We had the opportunity to build many enterprise solutions that were performant, resilient, and scalable. Two examples: in 2001 we were the first in the industry to build a scalable streaming solution for the web. In 2005, we delivered one of the earliest distributed and resilient messaging solutions on Wall Street.

Perseverance

Life often throws curve-balls at us. There are times when a solution to a problem is elusive, times when experiments fail badly, and times when we feel disconnected and frustrated at work. During these desperate times, when all hope is lost, one must stay the course.

The combination of perseverance and passion leads to an unwavering drive to never give up in the face of obstacles.

What is Perseverance ? It is an ability to keep a steady course despite difficulties, obstacles, and challenges. It is sometimes also referred to as Grit. One of the great movies portraying perseverance is Finding Nemo. Marlin and Dory embark on a brave journey from the Great Barrier Reef to Sydney to find Nemo.

For me, have a set of disciplined daily routines that involves waking early in the morning, working out for at least 45 minutes, and attending to my prayers for at least an hour. This daily morning routine energizes my body and prepares my mind to persevere through any challenges encounter that day.

During my stint at Citigroup, was tasked with salvaging a critical project from crisis. This engagement lasted for 6 long months - requiring 17 hour days and weekends throughout that time span. Our engineering team chipped away at a long list of issues one by one, until we were finally able to turn the corner. There were many moments in time when it would have been easy to throw up our hands and admit defeat, but we prevailed by staying focused on the goal and taking each challenge one step at a time.

Learning

We live in a world where everything is constantly changing and evolving - and the pace at which changes are happening is accelerating. This can feel overwhelming. The antidote to feeling helpless is continuous learning. Over time have realized that it is wise not to just focus on familiar subjects, but instead to put oneself in an uncomfortable position through exposure to a wide variety of topics and dedicate time to acquire completely new skills. Knowledge unlocks creativity and gives us more options when solving difficult problems.

One of my favorite movies that showcases Learning is A Bug's Life, where Flik (an ant) is constantly learning and innovating.

For me, learning has never stopped and hope never will. The burning desire to learn and explore has been a constant throughout my life. As mentioned earlier, weekends are my getaway into the learning zone to explore and experiment on new topics - some of which document and publish in my personal blog so others can benefit.

The above three traits: Passion, Perseverance, and Learning are the core foundations for a ZENgineer. These are like the shock absorbers that help one withstand turbulent situations. The next 2 traits are in the realm of the Zen state.

Humility

With knowledge comes power, and from power comes confidence. With confidence comes a potential pitfall: Arrogance. Arrogance hinders one’s ability to be open to other ideas - some potentially better than our own.

What is Humility ? It is an ability to lower one's own importance and be free of pride or arrogance. The movie The Emperor's New Groove does a good job of breaking down arrogance of Kuzco (the young, selfish, and arrogant emperor).

In my situation, to practice humility in engineering as well as in personal life, have been volunteering in a place of worship during weekends for many years now, without any expectations. To me, this is serving a higher purpose as it helps me appreciate life with gratitude.

Altruism

Being open and willing to help others with no expectation in return is a natural outcome when one is passionate, humble, and committed to the idea of continuous learning. Internalizing the above four traits anchors us on a strong foundation of knowledge and wisdom.

What is Altruism ? It is a selfless act of helping others at some cost to oneself. A good movie that depicts this trait is Cars, in which Lightning McQueen hands Chick the victory while pushing The King over to the finish line.

It is a win-win when you open yourself up: you learn by teaching, and grow by sharing and caring.

Living all five inter-connected behaviors as you practice engineering is what it takes to become a ZENgineer.