Starting With Why
On the very first day of my entrepreneurial leadership class, we learned about something called the Golden Circle. It’s this idea that most people approach a problem by asking what they need to do, then how they’re going to do it, and finally why they’re doing it. But if you approach it that way, you can lose sight of the purpose. You really need to start with why.
That resonated with me right away. From there, I was hooked.
Ever since I was young, I knew I wanted to study engineering. I was good at math, and when I came to Tufts, I jumped right into the mechanical engineering program. I’ve loved it, but a lot of engineering is math and theory. I wanted to develop more leadership and interpersonal skills, which would help me understand how companies operate and how ideas become products.
I started taking classes through the engineering management minor. In my first class, we had to come up with an idea for a company and build it from the ground up. We interviewed people to understand their needs, figured out budgets, and developed a business plan and pitch. I’d never done anything like that before, and it was eye-opening to think about why a company should exist in the first place, what problem it would solve, and how it could distinguish itself from the competition.
I’ve found that my engineering and entrepreneurship classes really complement each other. In engineering, you’re working on these massive group projects. Learning how to work with different people, manage a project, and think about the business side of what you’re building has helped me approach that work differently.
My senior engineering project involves redesigning a lifeguard rescue tube, the equipment lifeguards use when they’re rescuing someone from the water. It’s a really cool project, and the technical challenge is only part of it. Now I’m also thinking about how you build something like that, how you might bring it to market, and most importantly, why you’re doing it in the first place. In this case, our why is pretty clear: We want to save lives. We want to make something better. That’s a pretty admirable cause to get behind, and then you figure out how to design it.
I think the beauty of what I’ve been able to do at Tufts is combine engineering with entrepreneurship, finance, and management. It’s given me a more well-rounded perspective than I would have gotten by focusing on just one field.
When I started studying engineering, I wasn’t necessarily thinking about business or entrepreneurship. But those classes have reshaped how I look at problems and how I think about my future. I’m taking what I’ve learned and applying it to my other classes and projects—sometimes without even realizing it—and finding ways to make them that much better.
—Trace Norwell, E27, mechanical engineering major, engineering management minor