The 10 Most Inspiring Engineering Quotes

But if we just tell you the broad definition of engineering, that won’t exactly inspire you to go create stuff straight away, right?

So we thought hey, what do famous people have to say about engineering? How do they understand it? We compiled a list of 10 engineering quotes to inspire you and make you go build something you thought you never could!

1. “Design is not how it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works” – Steve Jobs (Apple co-founder and former CEO)

2. “A good scientist is a person with original ideas. A good engineer is a person who makes a design that works with as few original ideas as possible. There are no prima donnas in engineering” – Freeman Dyson (theoretical physicist and mathematician)

3. “I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do.” – Leonardo da Vinci (engineer, inventor, artist, mathematician)

4. “There is nothing I believe more strongly than getting young people interested in science and engineering, for a better tomorrow, for all humankind.” – Bill Nye (science educator, former mechanical engineer)

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5. “Engineering stimulates the mind. Kids get bored easily. They have got to get out and get their hands dirty; make things, dismantle things, fix things. When the schools can offer that, you’ll have an engineer for life.” – Bruce Dickinson (airline pilot, musician)

6. “To the optimist, the glass is half full. To the pessimist, the glass is half empty. To the engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.” – Unknown

7. “One man’s “magic” is another man’s engineering. “Supernatural” is a null word. – Robert A. Heinlein (Sci-FI writer)

8. “Failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently.” – Henry Ford (founder of the Ford Motor Company)

9. “If I had nine hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend the first six sharpening my axe.” – Abraham Lincoln (16th President of the United States)

10. “At its heart engineering is about using science to find creative practical solutions. It’s a noble profession.” – Queen Elizabeth II