1. Writing a book: The best way to give back and share your knowledge with your community and your profession is to write a book. By writing a book, you not only impart knowledge to the most people, you also create a knowledge legacy that can educate and inspire people well into the future. If you are successful and are considered an expert in your field, there should be no shortage of topics you can think of to share. This is one of the hardest options to choose from, as a form to give back, due to the time commitment required. Many successful people will talk about it, but very few will do it. I recall one of my bosses talking about it all the time. Sadly, he never got the chance. If I can write a book, certainly you can too if you put forth the effort. In my case, it has been one of the most rewarding accomplishments in my career. I never thought I would, or could, ever become a published author. Yet, I set my mind on it, laid out my goals, planned it out, prepared, and the end result was my first book titled Engineer to Entrepreneur: Success Strategies to Manage You Career and Start Your Own Firm published by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). The way it developed, once I decided to write it, was through my association with ASCE, having been a member of the ASCE Architectural Engineering Institutes (AEI) curtain wall committee, and being asked to prepare a webinar that would be sponsored by the committee. That opportunity allowed me to create a rapport with the publication and media branch of ASCE and opened the doors for our future collaboration. The impetus for writing the book was as a result of being asked to speak about my experiences of opening my own engineering firm by a professional engineering association. Members of which I met at a networking event for my college of engineering alumni association. Needless to say that I went ahead with that presentation, and it was so well received that I kept being asked to present by that same organization numerous other times, as well as by many other organizations who had heard about it. The only logical outcome, in my mind, was for me to write a book. Having written the book has allowed me to meet and inspire so many people throughout the years whether during in person presentations or by allowing me to share my knowledge with so many more people that I may not ever meet. My first book was geared for engineers, and that is the audience that I targeted that book to, but the concepts of entrepreneurship stretch far beyond engineering or any single profession. That is why, I decided to write a book that would be relevant to, and inspire students and young professionals in, all professions and not just engineering. If you are interested in writing a book, you can go back to Chapter 4 (Identifying and Attaining Your Goals) and find the section where I provide an example on how to go about it. A good way to do it is by writing what is called an inquiry letter and looking up the name of the publishers that put out books in your specific topic and send them your proposal. The inquiry letter and proposal usually contains: the topic, proposed book title, a one-page introduction, the estimated number of words and pages, a completed table of contents, estimated completion date, samples of completed chapters, your bio, and answers to relevant questions such as: Who is the target audience? Why is the book unique? How many books are available in your topic? What is the market size? Why would people want or need you book?

2. Presenting to student organizations or professional groups: The best way to give back to your profession, and impacting an entire group of people, is to talk to them in person and look them in the eye. An alternative is to do so via video conference which is used much more prevalently due to the global pandemic of 2020. This allows you to have the most immediate and direct impact with your audience. It allows you to get a good sense of those individuals who you are profoundly affecting and who are being inspired by what you have to say. In my case, as a result of opening my own firm, networking, and the publication of my first book, I have presented to numerous student and professional organizations on both entrepreneurship and topics of interest to my profession, most of them after I became an entrepreneur. I most appreciate my experiences with those individuals who pay close attention and are impacted enough to reach out to me after the presentation or beyond, to express their gratitude. There is no better pleasure than positively affecting the lives of those you surround yourself with. A good way to do it is by reaching out to your high-school, college, or university alumni association.

3. Mentoring: The most effective way to impact someone, a student or young professional, in your profession is one-on-one mentoring. This allows you to impact and make a difference in the life of one person directly and vividly. In my case, I have made it a point to make myself available to any student or young professional who has a desire to succeed. Regardless if that individual is an employee, student, professional, or just an interested party. A good way to do it is by reaching out to your professional association student or young members groups.

4. Taping a television interview, podcast, or webinar: One of the most exciting ways to share your knowledge, with the community and your profession, is to tape a television special, podcast, or webinar. It is a great way to inform the public, in your capacity as an expert, of potential hazards or new developments on a specific topic of interest and to help raise awareness of needed changes in your industry. In my case, I have used webinars and podcasts to caution and raise awareness directly to the public after particularly troubling natural disasters. I have also had the pleasure of being asked to tape a television special, during sweeps week, on the potential hazards to North Florida from a strong-category hurricane, especially after a very strong hurricane devastated portion of the state not too far away. The interesting part, and key to that story, is that based on the suggestion of the news anchor that I drive by an area of the city where there was much construction underway to see if I could notice anything that could prove relevant to the story; I actually did. As it turns out, I was able to identify potential defects in the installation of the windows on a very high-end condo unit on the coast. We reached out to the developer and the manufacturer of the windows of the building to inform them and comment on the findings, but received no response. Issues such as these are the ones that I see commonly in my profession, in my capacity as a consultant and special inspector, and one of the main reasons I continue to try and raise awareness of the issues in my profession. A good way to secure an interview on television is to reach out to television news editors, find out when their sweeps week is, and make a proposal. The first one is the hardest, depending on the success of the story; once you are on their radar, they will look for you in the future. A good way to participate in podcasts it to reach out to the show runners. For webinars, you can reach out to your professional organization. You can find all these individuals on LinkedIn or you can get their contact information from their company websites.

5. Writing an article for a trade or industry magazine: The best way to keep your profession informed of the latest trends or developments is to write a magazine article or be quoted for a story in one. It is important that you share the knowledge you have gained throughout the years to positively influence and affect your industry. This is the easiest and fastest way to get published. An article, compared to a book, is not that difficult or time consuming to write. Especially if you have the knowledge to share. In my case, I have written and contributed to numerous magazine articles. In one, I was able to provide my professional opinion regarding recent changes to the building code and how it would affect the industry. In another, I was able to explain how to design safely with glass in hurricane-prone regions of the country. In many others, I was reached out to and quoted regarding my professional opinion on topics of interest that affect my industry. A good way to do it is to subscribe to your industry magazines and read some of the articles published. Look up who the authors are and make a connection. Ask them for an introduction to the editors. You can also simply find information on the editors in the front pages of the publication.

6. Presenting a paper at a national conference: The best way to affect your profession and your peers directly is by presenting to them in person at a professional conference. In my case, the opportunity arose while serving on a technical committee where the members were considered experts in their field and were encouraged to answer a call for papers and submit an abstract. I was able to collaborate directly with my peers and expose them to areas that they had not necessary been exposed to, such as design of exterior glazing products for hurricane-prone regions of the country. I feel that by raising awareness among my peers, there exists the potential to affect change in a positive way in how structures are designed in the future with hurricanes in mind. A good way to do it is to participate and become active in the local branch of your professional organization and subscribe to their newsletter or e-mail lists. Most professional organizations have yearly conferences and send out request for paper or abstract proposals to be presented at the conference.

7. Speaking at a lunch and learn: The best way to inform or update the people in your community on an issue of need or concern is to present it during breakfast or lunch. Presenting during breakfast or lunch is a great way to attract busy professionals and allow them to attend, enjoy a good meal, and get educated at the same time. In my case, when I had been asked to do so by a client, I was able to raise awareness of the need for design changes to the building codes based on investigations and observations I had made while performing hurricane damage assessments after a recent rash of hurricanes had made landfall in the United States and the Caribbean. A good way to do it is to attend one of those events yourself and introduce yourself to the sponsoring organization representative. Present them with a well-thought-out proposal that includes the topic, the target audience, and the expected demand for such a presentation.

8. Presenting at continuing education seminars: The best way to give back to your profession, in a more intimate way, and get as many of them to attend your presentation is to provide continuing education credits sponsored by your local professional association. It is important to understand, for these types of presentations, that you are typically not allowed to frame the presentation as a sales pitch for yourself or your company. Remember that you are there to provide a service. If performed well, the benefits will follow. In my case, recently after I had started my own firm, I was asked to present to the Florida Structural Engineers Association (FSEA), regarding my specialty, to other engineers, after a particularly confusing transition in the code. I was able to help clarify some of the code changes and give a thorough overview of the intricacies of designing building envelope systems for hurricane mitigation. That opportunity also allowed me to make a statement as to my area of expertise after having just opened my own firm. A good way to do it is, similarly to a lunch and learn, to attend one of those events yourself and introduce yourself to the sponsoring organization representative. Present them with a well-thought-out proposal that includes the topic, the target audience, and the expected demand for such a presentation.