Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1494346
MARCH 2023 I DESIGN007 MAGAZINE 13 Matties: Perhaps informa- tion comes into a meet- ing, for example, and then someone must filter that information and make the choice to move forward on a particular path. Is that what I'm hearing? Yes, exactly. at's why we have experts and spe- cific teams, whether it's mechanical, engineering, electrical, or firmware. We can't be microman- aging and checking what everyone's doing. ere needs to be trust, respect, and the sense that your teammates will make the best decision for the project. ere are discus- sions and constructive conversations where we share our ideas and opinions but, in the end, you're responsible for your own portion of the project. Matties: The key word is "trust." When someone's sharing tribal knowledge, the more you trust that person, the more likely you will accept that knowledge. at's true. Aer working with someone for many years, you see how they operate, and you can predict the decisions they are likely to make (or not make). It is easier to trust some- one you know well and who you have experi- ence working well with, as you know it worked in the past. Matties: Where do you begin? It starts with Google, but there's a lot of infor- mation online. ere's definitely a filtering process to find out what's accurate and who to trust. I like to visit related blogs and read a little bit of everything. I like hearing real people talk about their issues and what they've struggled with. I also read forums from companies that sell specific chips or materi- als, depending on what I'm working on. at's my starting point, and then it's just a matter of where your research takes you. Matties: But Google can be an overwhelming resource that requires hours of filtering. I go back to trust. Often you don't know which "expert" you can trust. There are tons of unlim- ited streams about any topic, so it really becomes a challenge, doesn't it? Yes, the internet can be great, but it can also be a very dark place. If I'm working on a specific design with a specific chip, for example, TI has a variety of blogs, forums, notes, and good doc- umentation, so it's good to start somewhere like that. Much of it is open source so you don't know who you can trust. You just have your own personal knowledge to go on and help you understand what is good and what's not; you need to learn to filter everything you see. Shaughnessy: As Ronald Reagan once said about dealing with the Soviets, "Trust but verify." Yeah, exactly. Shaughnessy: Congratulations on recently earning your master's degree while working full time as a designer. Did you learn anything in your graduate studies that contradicted what you saw in the industry or vice versa? ank you. I wouldn't use the word "contra- dicted," but sometimes I might have felt that I was learning some outdated material, or going Tamara Jovanovic