Vint Cerf's Career Advice for Engineers

Vinton G. Cerf, recipient of the 2023 IEEE Medal of Honor and the 2004 ACM A.M. Turing Award, offers advice to engineers starting their careers.

• "If you really want to do something big, get help, and preferably from people who are smarter than you are."
• "Be humble, because unless you approach things with the understanding that you really don't know exactly how to make it all work, you may overlook possibilities."
• "Listen to other people. I tell my engineers that if they know I'm about to do something stupid, they have to tell me. When you're in a position of responsibility and authority, people may assume you've already figured out where the hazards are, but you may not have."
• "Try hard to stay on good terms with everybody. Civility is an important property, and burning bridges is generally a bad idea; you never know who you're going to work with again, who you might work for, or who might work for you."

From IEEE Spectrum
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