Top 3 things you like about being an engineer?

This delightful question came up on a recent survey at work. Not job specific but something that was in my Team's notifications.

Now I'm curious to hear others' answers.

My answers:

1. Hacking away at a problem and coming up with creative solutions
2. Writing the code to make that solution real
3. Iterating on feedback to make the solution better

These are also the top 3 things I liked about being a consultant and founder.

How alike are we in this particular field?

What are the top 3 things you like about engineering or working in tech?

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Photo by Victoria Borodinova from Pexels

Comments

[Ben Halpern]

1. Outlet for creativity: The things you can do with code are so expansive and amazing. Sometimes you're in a rut and it doesn't feel that way, but it's true.
2. Agency: Many jobs require chain-of-command decision making. It's not like you can just do whatever you want as a software developer, but in general, you have agency to do something positive and your colleagues appreciate you when you solve problems. As much as you can sometimes be stifled by engineering politics or bureaucracy, it's nothing like getting a marketing budget approved, etc.
3. Learning by default: If you are actively practicing software development, you will always be learning. Some other crafts don't inherently come with that. But if you code, you will learn a lot along the way.