WEBVTT NOTE This file was generated by Descript 00:00:05.656 --> 00:00:07.215 mike: This is tiny improvements. 00:00:07.305 --> 00:00:08.236 I'm Mike by Fulco. 00:00:12.996 --> 00:00:14.526 Learning is an infinite game. 00:00:15.186 --> 00:00:17.556 You can't win or lose, you can only keep playing. 00:00:18.226 --> 00:00:21.346 AS a founder and a builder, you will regularly find yourself needing to 00:00:21.346 --> 00:00:23.296 quickly and efficiently learn new skills. 00:00:24.016 --> 00:00:28.066 I graduated from Yukon in 2009, with Juul engineering degrees, one in computer 00:00:28.066 --> 00:00:29.746 science and one in mechanical engineering. 00:00:30.316 --> 00:00:31.966 The first field of study was a no-brainer. 00:00:32.116 --> 00:00:35.386 Since my first days of high school, I loved writing code and building software, 00:00:36.076 --> 00:00:39.286 studying mechanical engineering was more of a misguided whimsy. 00:00:39.706 --> 00:00:42.076 My dad had a long career as a mechanical engineer. 00:00:42.076 --> 00:00:43.006 And thanks to him. 00:00:43.036 --> 00:00:45.526 I developed a love for classic American cars. 00:00:46.216 --> 00:00:48.076 I studied mechanical engineering thinking. 00:00:48.106 --> 00:00:50.026 I might want to get a job in the automotive industry. 00:00:50.636 --> 00:00:52.706 Fast-forward 14 years, my God. 00:00:53.066 --> 00:00:56.156 And I've never worked a day as a mechanical engineer until last week. 00:00:56.726 --> 00:00:59.516 At craft work, we recently signed on to do a project that has us 00:00:59.546 --> 00:01:00.866 painting the same type of door. 00:01:00.896 --> 00:01:03.806 Many, many times the doors are made of metal and we'll be 00:01:03.806 --> 00:01:04.946 painting them with a spray gun. 00:01:05.406 --> 00:01:08.976 However, we can't get paint on the latch mechanism, so we need to mask it off. 00:01:09.606 --> 00:01:12.216 We could do this by hand, but it would take a very long time. 00:01:12.576 --> 00:01:16.836 We have hundreds of these doors to paint, maybe thousands each with the same latch 00:01:16.836 --> 00:01:18.396 mechanism that needs to be masked off. 00:01:18.396 --> 00:01:19.986 And then unmasked after painting. 00:01:20.496 --> 00:01:21.666 Enter 3d printing. 00:01:22.506 --> 00:01:24.216 It's the perfect tool for this job. 00:01:24.456 --> 00:01:26.976 We can design a simple mask in CAD and then print it out. 00:01:27.166 --> 00:01:30.496 We can print as many as we need and adjust the design is needed. 00:01:30.856 --> 00:01:35.116 The only problem it's been 14 years since I've done any 3d modeling and 00:01:35.146 --> 00:01:36.706 I've never done any 3d printing. 00:01:37.336 --> 00:01:41.086 So in the span of about 10 days, I went from knowing nothing about 3d printing 00:01:41.086 --> 00:01:44.656 to having a working prototype of a mask that we can use to paint these doors. 00:01:45.346 --> 00:01:45.466 I 00:01:45.516 --> 00:01:48.306 I quickly researched a number of critical topics, including which 00:01:48.336 --> 00:01:52.086 3d printer to buy the latest in 3d modeling software, how to design for 00:01:52.086 --> 00:01:56.226 3d printing and the difference between various 3d printing materials all while 00:01:56.226 --> 00:01:57.666 working on a number of other projects. 00:01:57.726 --> 00:02:01.056 And in addition to the complexity of the actual problem, we're trying to solve. 00:02:01.356 --> 00:02:02.406 Painting these doors. 00:02:03.216 --> 00:02:05.886 That's not to say that I'm a particularly gifted engineer 00:02:05.946 --> 00:02:08.196 or a brilliant 3d print test. 00:02:08.496 --> 00:02:10.956 Instead I think the important nugget here is something that 00:02:10.956 --> 00:02:11.886 I've learned over the years. 00:02:12.096 --> 00:02:13.326 Learning is a skill. 00:02:13.506 --> 00:02:15.126 And as a founder, you need to be good at it. 00:02:15.906 --> 00:02:18.786 Here's some tips that I've picked up over the years that have helped me learn 00:02:18.786 --> 00:02:20.376 new skills quickly and efficiently. 00:02:20.376 --> 00:02:23.046 Number one, learn from the best resources you have access to. 00:02:23.706 --> 00:02:25.116 You don't need to reinvent the wheel. 00:02:25.326 --> 00:02:27.966 There are people out there who have already done what you're trying to do, 00:02:27.966 --> 00:02:29.496 and they've probably written about it. 00:02:30.156 --> 00:02:33.186 When I was learning about 3d printing, I found a number of great resources 00:02:33.186 --> 00:02:34.596 that helped me get up to speed quickly. 00:02:35.106 --> 00:02:38.886 From previous passing interest in 3d printing, I knew of a few YouTube channels 00:02:38.886 --> 00:02:40.206 that ended up being super helpful. 00:02:40.986 --> 00:02:41.916 Thanks to my schooling. 00:02:42.216 --> 00:02:46.026 I also have a cadre of actual mechanical engineers who I can rely on for advice. 00:02:46.476 --> 00:02:50.616 Shout out to Sean, James, Andy and Mike y'all are the true Mbps here. 00:02:51.306 --> 00:02:54.216 I also consulted my dad who spent 40 plus years doing CAD 00:02:54.216 --> 00:02:55.206 and mechanical engineering. 00:02:56.046 --> 00:02:59.196 I read tech reviews and I read the documentation for the 3d printer. 00:02:59.196 --> 00:02:59.946 I ended up buying. 00:03:00.666 --> 00:03:01.596 My point is this. 00:03:01.806 --> 00:03:03.006 You don't need to go it alone. 00:03:03.456 --> 00:03:05.826 Find the best resources you have access to and learn from them. 00:03:07.119 --> 00:03:09.399 Number two learn by doing and act quickly. 00:03:10.039 --> 00:03:11.809 I'm a big believer in learning by doing. 00:03:11.959 --> 00:03:14.599 I found that I learned best when I'm working on a project that I care 00:03:14.599 --> 00:03:17.719 about and I'm learning skills that I need to complete that project. 00:03:18.199 --> 00:03:21.229 While researching for my project, there were many opportunities along the way 00:03:21.529 --> 00:03:24.499 to take what I was learning and use it to make progress on my project. 00:03:24.889 --> 00:03:27.139 I could have spent more time researching, but time spent 00:03:27.169 --> 00:03:29.149 researching is time spent not building. 00:03:30.139 --> 00:03:31.789 Number three, learn from your mistakes. 00:03:32.269 --> 00:03:34.129 You're going to make a lot of mistakes. 00:03:34.309 --> 00:03:37.039 And everyone you learned from makes your understanding of the world 00:03:37.039 --> 00:03:38.389 around you that much more accurate. 00:03:39.019 --> 00:03:42.199 I iterated on the design for our painting mask five times before I got 00:03:42.199 --> 00:03:45.859 it right in 3d printing, that means I'd spend some time modeling the mask, then 00:03:45.859 --> 00:03:47.329 wait a few hours for it to print out. 00:03:47.719 --> 00:03:50.239 I then test it and see what worked and what didn't. 00:03:50.629 --> 00:03:53.659 Then I'd go back to the drawing board and make changes to the design. 00:03:54.169 --> 00:03:55.849 And repeat the whole process from the beginning. 00:03:56.929 --> 00:03:59.749 One thing that stuck out to me during this process is how similar modeling 00:03:59.749 --> 00:04:01.669 and printing are to debugging software. 00:04:02.209 --> 00:04:04.579 The main difference is that debugging software is virtually 00:04:04.579 --> 00:04:05.719 instant gratification. 00:04:05.899 --> 00:04:08.419 You can make a change and see the results pretty much immediately. 00:04:08.959 --> 00:04:11.719 With 3d printing, I'd have to wait literally hours to see 00:04:11.719 --> 00:04:12.889 the results of my changes. 00:04:12.919 --> 00:04:16.399 It requires more patience and a deliberate approach to getting things right. 00:04:17.209 --> 00:04:20.089 In the end, it's looking like this project is going to be a success. 00:04:20.119 --> 00:04:23.059 These 3d printed masks will do the trick for this project and the 00:04:23.059 --> 00:04:25.639 skills and techniques I've learned will be useful for future projects, 00:04:25.639 --> 00:04:27.199 whether directly or indirectly. 00:04:27.949 --> 00:04:31.099 Perhaps most importantly, this was another mega deep dive into 00:04:31.099 --> 00:04:32.449 something new and I'm better for it. 00:04:32.839 --> 00:04:36.349 I'm also deeply grateful to my wife who saw me disappearing in my office for hours 00:04:36.349 --> 00:04:39.439 at a time and put up with me, staring into the middle distance, as I thought 00:04:39.439 --> 00:04:40.789 through the next steps in the process. 00:04:41.099 --> 00:04:42.089 She's a Saint. 00:04:43.919 --> 00:04:46.379 So TLDR learning is a skill. 00:04:46.379 --> 00:04:48.509 And as a founder, you need to be good at it. 00:04:49.079 --> 00:04:52.679 Part of building something new is taking decisive action quickly and learning 00:04:52.679 --> 00:04:54.149 quickly from experts in the field. 00:04:54.419 --> 00:04:55.199 Take what you learn. 00:04:55.409 --> 00:04:57.509 Turn it into applied science and iterate quickly. 00:04:57.899 --> 00:04:59.519 You'll be amazed at what you can accomplish.