| MENTORING By Coleen Mitchell Children learn alot through observation. Behaviors both positive and negative manifest themselves through the observations of a child. Our Parents ( Our first mentors), normally, would try to redirect those negative aspects that are not readily excepted in society. (Example- Even though little Johnny could pee behind the bush, I couldn't because I was a girl). What is learned from this is to accentuate on the positive characteristics of an individual and incorporate it into thier personality. That's where that saying "You learn what you live" comes from. As adults we basically do the same thing. When we get a new job, we emulate the traits of the trainer to a certain degree. If there is only one person training us, we tend to learn thier habits, both good and bad. If we are exposed to more then one individual, that's where that pick and choose comes in, and we pick out those positives and make them part of our work ethic. As a new recruit, I found the male environment a bit of a challenge. Learning the basic "stuff" was easy, it was a formatted regiment of steps. But how to interact in this new environment was going to be interesting. Of the instructors, about 20 of them, only one was female. The persons I wanted to emulate were normally about 6', this included the female instructor, and had a presense about them. I could never "pull off" that silent presence standing at 5'2' could I? What I decided to do was to take the lessons learned from my first mentor, my Mom, and let those experiences guide me through. She was a Pioneer in her own right. The beauty of having my Mom as my first mentor was that by observing her struggle through divorce, single parenthood 4 children with no education she taught me the best lesson of all.... If you put your mind to it you can do anything and if you have no choice, flying by the seat of your pants may not be the most graceful way to trudge ahead in the future, in the end it's still effective. She made mistakes along the way, as all pioneers do, but her courage to forge ahead was truly inspirational. She became a R.N. and is STILL attending school. To this day, I do not know how well this approach worked, but it got me through school. After the Fire Academy I felt a strong pull to mentor. I certainly don't know all the answers, but maybe I could be a guide, a sounding board, a example. There were times I really needed an answer and didn't have anywhere to turn. I felt a responsibility to help others through this. I think anyone in a position that offers a unique perspective should consider Mentoring. Being open, honest and approachable are keys to effective mentoring. For those Parents out there, there is really no difference between mentoring and parenting.You do not need P.H.D. after your name to do this, the best education in this instance is experience. |