Did you ever experience defeat—a defeat so great that you just want to throw in the towel and walk out of life? Engineering problems, challenges and obstacles will always be there.
Maybe you’re a student who worked so hard to pass Calculus. You studied every single night. You bought all the necessary books and you practiced, but in the end you ended up failing.
Or maybe you’re a young independent engineer working your ass off to get a promotion. You put all your dedication and enthusiasm on the table, you do all the necessary overtime, you even give up going out on dates and friends night just to get that promotion you’ve dreamed of—but in the end, the promotion was given to someone else.
You might have a different experience, but I’m sure we’ve all shared that similar feeling—that our best wasn’t good enough. The feeling is so deep that all of our enthusiasm, energy, and passion gets drained. Sometimes it even gets to a point where we don’t want to risk feeling the same way ever again. So whenever we’re faced with the same situation again in the future, we don’t want to risk anything and end up doing a mediocre job. The enthusiasm, the passion, the excitement, the motivation to do our best suddenly vanishes—why? Not only because we feel that our efforts have gone to waste and unrecognized, but because we know that our BEST didn’t make the cut! If our best didn’t make the cut, then there’s no use working harder, because that was already your ultimate BEST.
To everyone who feels or felt this way, here’s something that you should know—it’s alright. It’s alright to feel this way, it’s alright to feel sad, and lose motivation. You have every right to feel bad, after all that effort? You deserve a break.
What’s important to remember is that it will pass. Time heals everything and so will you. Like the old saying, ‘take a break, but don’t ever give up’. You may be in the slumps now, but the future may be yours for the taking. All you need is just the right timing, and when you get back your enthusiasm, passion and motivation—get back up in the game and give it your best shot once again!
