Measuring Up
On a visit to Sea World in San Antonio, our family of four got in line to ride the "Steel Eel," a triple loop roller coaster. Imagine my young son's disappointment, after waiting in line for 20 minutes, to get up to the entrance to the ride, only to find out that he was not tall enough to qualify! One parent stepped out of line and stayed with him while the other rode with our daughter - but the day had lost a bit of its luster for my son.
In order to prevent a future disappointment, we asked how tall a rider had to be (42") and came home to measure where that was against the door jamb to his bedroom. Every week, my son would stand against the door jamb, hopefully asking if he had grown at all and was he 42 inches yet. When the day finally came, we planned another trip to Sea World, where all four of us experienced the ride as a family for the first time. I'm sure you can imagine my son's delight at doing things that the "big kids" did! All those months of patience had paid off for him!
This story has a happy ending, but only because we knew what the target was, and didn't try to rush the desired result (and don't think that platform tennis shoes weren't suggested more than once!). The same thing is true in our careers. We are often disappointed when we don't measure up to something we are striving for - whether it be faster speed on a new package, enhanced reliability of a new material, decreased thermal coefficients of expansion, or a smaller footprint or height to meet board requirements. But by careful planning to help us achieve our goals, along with a little patience, we can often meet or exceed our initial targets.
This issue, on European technology, shifts the focus from a specific type of electronic packaging, to a specific geographic area of focus. I hope you find this issue thought-provoking and challenging. And remember, if you're stuck right now, hang in there! Time and hard work may be just what you need to get beyond this barrier!
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