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What is one of the most difficult things you experienced in college or in your job?

#engineer #software-engineer #programmer #engineering #job

engineering engineer software-engineer programmer
Thank you comment icon Sometimes, one of the biggest obstacles is getting stuck in your own head: either feeling that your college, major, or station is way above your station or letting arrogance get in the way of getting things done. It pays to be thoughtful and deliberative, especially when it's your career on the line, but try not to get lost in thought. Daniel Kim
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Nancy’s Answer

The most difficult part of college for me was the complete environment change. You are going from a familiar hometown where you know many people to a new place where you don't know many or anyone. I went from being a top student at my high school to being average at my university. It was a culture shock.

It helped to stay busy and keep to a routine at first until you can establish new friendships and relationships. Make sure you allow time to explore and enjoy your time as well.
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Anthony’s Answer

The most difficult thing I have experienced in my career is not getting a position that I thought I was more than qualified for. Being rejected can hurt, and if taken negatively, can cripple your career progress. The underlying lesson in this is don't be a victim. The failure you experience when taking risks should make one feel successful because this is the foundation for success. Failure and difficulty brings growth. Growth brings success.
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Thejas’s Answer

Choosing the right Career path.
Its always a challenging step in our life and the most important one.
You would tend to compare yourself to another person and end up disliking yourself which is more toxic.
The grass is always greener on the other side.
Never compare yourself to another person which will affect your own mentality.
There should be healthy competition that will boost you in different ways
and always follow your passion that will give you sense of satisfaction.
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Jeff’s Answer

In the work environment I think it's important to be flexible and adapt to changing requests. Even if your job is fairly routine you will always have ad-hoc requests to complete assignments or have changes to processes and tools. Being able to embrace change and lead initiatives will typically help you grow your skills and career.
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Peter’s Answer

The most difficult part of my college experience was taking calculus and differential equations. This level of math is typically required for entry into engineering or sciences majors. It can be difficult for some. But by allowing entry into these high-level professions, it is well worth the effort. So stick with it. I can promise you that your overall college experiences will be among the best times of your life.

Pete Sturtevant PE
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Jackson’s Answer

I agree with Jeff. David F. Jakielo said "if you don't like change, you're going to like irrelevance even less."
If you work in the technology field, innovation drives constant changes. Be able to learn new skills quickly and adopt to new environment are keys to remain successful.
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Rafael’s Answer

In college the most difficult thing was Cobol programming, the teacher was horrible and I had not experience in programming. The worse things for me was encounter that after working my behind off in college when I graduated I could not get a job in my area of study. Many things were not in my favored, but I have found my way and go back and specialized in other area of computer.
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Robin’s Answer

For me one thing that I did struggle with a little was work life balance as well, but it did not come along until I had my kids. I am the type of person where I would spend all the time I needed and whatever it took to perfect my job or even my college career. I put a lot of my focus on my job because I did not have anything outside of work that needed the same amount of attention.

When I got pregnant and had my twins I had a hard time learning how to be good at both things. Sometimes there are days that I still have to re-evaluate how I am spending my time and make sure that my priorities align with my values. I think there is always going to be something that takes some adjusting in any job and it all comes down to routine and being flexible.

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Satyajeet’s Answer

College and job each offers you with different set of challenges. While in college focus is purely on academics and students deal with competition to excel in their batch, peer pressure, maintain good GPA and finally land up with a good job after placement. Talking about engineering focus is mainly to get the basics right as subjects across semesters are of varied interest and to maintain consistency is difficult.

On other hand in job there is a constant pursuit to excel in whatever job is assigned to you. The scale of competition is at a very different level than what you have experienced as a college grad. Also with increasing years of experience the competition is going to grow fierce, expectations are high so are stakes, as they say with more power comes more responsibility. The area of influence increases your decision affects product road-maps and hence contribute to the revenue for the company. Peer pressure, constant learning and upgrading with latest technologies, staying and staying ahead of the curve entails lot of hard work and commitments though it all seems insurmountable at the same time with passion one can deal adeptly.

To sum up in every field of work, in every phase of life as a student as a employee or as a employer challenges are there with varying degree it all depends how it affects you and how you have braced yourself against these with your passion which makes it a cakewalk.
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Kaitlin’s Answer

Time management took me some time to figure out in both college and when I started my career. At first I was very overwhelmed and did not know how to tackle all the competing demands. Finding time for work, study, class, extracurricular activities, family/friends and myself took some trial and error. I found that keeping myself busy made me more accountable to achieve everything I wanted to do on a daily basis. This sounds counterintuitive, but being busy forced me to stay focused and manage my time to get everything done. In college, I kept a detailed calendar planner. I would map out my day/week to ensure I could fit in all the elements of my life that were important. When I started my job after college, I moved my planner to an online calendar that linked to my phone. This was a game changer! Now, I put everything on my calendar. It keeps me accountable and allows me to visually see how I will accomplish everything each day. Being organized is key for time management.
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Chaitra’s Answer

In college there were difficulty with regard to understanding the subject and preparing for exams. After graduating, finding a job, facing job interviews was a difficulty. Once I found a job, there were challenges while learning the work, tools needed at job. It still is.
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Kiana’s Answer

In college, one of the hardest things to figure out was work-life balance. It was important to stay focused and put school and work first, but taking breaks, participating in social events, and extracurriculars was also important for overall well-being. I think it is important to find this balance and when you do it will help you overall.
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Marc’s Answer

For me, one of the most difficult parts of my career to navigate was finding the right fit. I was looking for work that was engaging, interesting co-workers, and a company that appreciated and rewarded effective work. I know some people say, "you don't go to work to find friends", but you do spend 1/3 or more of your life working so why can't you have the right fit?

I went to graduate school later in life and that opened doors for me that wouldn't have been open otherwise. The first position I took out of grad school was at a small for-profit college. I quickly learned that it was a culturally cold work environment. Never once did a coworker ask me how my weekend was, about my family, or ask me to join them for lunch. I tried being the initiator, but it didn't make a difference.

I chose to leave that position at the end of my 90-day probationary period because it wasn't a good fit. I'm not old, but I am too old to spend my days working somewhere that sucks the life out of you.

Since then I have had other positions where the fit was great. It has made all of the difference for me.
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