If and when you enter a trade, you will meet a variety of new people both as co-workers and mentors. As in any occupation, they are likely to be a mixture of personalities and attributes. Some may be hard-working, others not. Some will be outgoing, others introverted, and so on.
Some will likely share certain interests and personality traits and become your buddies. When you establish these friendships, it’s important to keep in mind a colorful adage: “It’s hard to soar with eagles when you’re surrounded by turkeys.”
Meaning, try to hang around with people who exhibit positive traits that will help you advance in your chosen career. You want to associate with individuals who are pleasant to be around, who take pride in their work and who are constantly looking to learn new things and advance.
Avoid the people who try to avoid hard jobs and always take the easy way out. Some may even be critical of colleagues who work too hard, because that raises expectations for everyone to match their productivity. Better to follow the lead of the best performers and help raise the bar. What’s more, you’ll find that keeping busy makes the hours go by fast. Workdays seem longer when you purposely drag out the time it takes to complete tasks.
Try to strike up friendships with positive people who see cups as half-full. They will stand in stark contrast to those who always know better than the bosses and are quick to find faults in everyone around them. These folks may act friendly towards you, but it’s a good bet they will talk badly about you behind your back just as they do about others to you. People with positive attitudes are the eagles you want to emulate.
You may not have a choice in who gets assigned to teach you the ropes. You may have the bad luck to work under someone with a bad attitude, or who doesn’t so much teach as treat you like a servant whose job is to fetch coffee and perform other menial tasks. Any novice can expect a certain amount of “go-fer” treatment, but when you find yourself spending most of the day fetching things and cleaning up, it’s time to go over your mentor’s head and let it be known you are serious about learning a trade and that isn’t happening.
Some tradespeople treat the work they do as merely a job that brings a paycheck. You want to aim for a rewarding career. The best way to do that is to follow the lead of those who show the way to where you want to go.
Ready to start your career in the skilled trades? Visit https://explorethetrades.org/new-to-the-trades/ to get started!