Wow, it wasn't until I looked back at my last post just now that I realized exactly how long it has been since I last updated this blog. I thought for sure I had written at least one more post since crew leader training started, but sadly I hadn't. I guess my life has just been so exciting recently that I haven't had the time to sit down and write about it. So much has happened since the last time I wrote that all I can hope to do at this point is write a quick summary of the past 3 months.
Most of the work we did during our training was trail work, which has I've probably mentioned before isn't my favorite, but the group of awesome people I was with made it fun and we also were learning a lot of new things about leadership and teaching and other skills that we will need once we have our own crews. Also, 2 of those weeks involved shadowing another crew, so that switched up what we were doing a little bit because in addition to the trail work I was doing, during the first week of shadowing I got to observe what the supervisor was doing and be more involved in the planning and decision-making process to prepare me for the types of things I would have to be thinking about with my own crew.
The week after the first shadowing was our 8-day long chainsaw training specifically for the crew leaders in training. They gave us this training because not everyone knew how to use chainsaws or didn't have much experience, and also so that they could observe us and decide which of us were going to be leading chainsaw crews over the summer. Since I was determined that I wanted to lead a chainsaw crew and not a trail crew, I put a lot of pressure on myself that week to do well and stand out in the crowd so that the staff would see me as a good candidate for that. That meant that often during downtime, I would start to worry about whether I was doing enough to impress the trainers and how my skills were comparing to the others in the group. I did get some very positive comments from one of the trainers that implied that I was making a good impression on them, so after that week I knew that I had a good chance of getting the summer placement I wanted.
After that week was the second week of shadowing, and this time it was my responsibility to take over leading the crew completely for the whole week. This is the week of the training that I was initially the most nervous about, but when the time actually came I felt like I was ready. All of the things I had learned and the confidence I had gained up to that point in the process really helped me with that week, and it turned out to be a really good week. The crew I was leading was really fun to be with and it was not as scary to be in that position of authority having to make all the decisions as I expected. I came away from the experience feeling like yeah, I really can do this!
Then came the time to find out what project I would be working on for the summer...and I get to lead a chainsaw crew just like I wanted!!! I was super excited when I found that out and I'll be working alongside another one of the crew leaders, James, and his crew, which is going to be lots of fun. I think we will work well together and he's an awesome guy to hang out with so I think it's going to be a great summer!
Once we found out our summer placements, the past month has been advanced training in groups based on which type of project we are each one, saw or trail. Our trainings for chainsaw were near Lake Tahoe, so we drove to the office in Reno that we will be working out of during the summer and camped near Reno. It was the first time I had seen Lake Tahoe, and it is beautiful! I can't wait to spend time there during the summer.
Today was the last day of our crew leader training, which was a little bittersweet. I'll miss spending time with all of the other crew leaders every week, but I'm excited for the next chapter in the leadership process. I know there will be challenges, but the past 3 months of training I believe have given me the tools I need to succeed at leading a crew. I have learned so much and grown in many ways, and I'm so thankful that I was given this opportunity to expand my experiences and become a more confident leader and a more confident and assertive person in general. Those were some of my goals coming into the training and the time and effort I put into this process have really paid off.
So the next few days will involve packing up and cleaning my apartment in preparation to move to Reno on Thursday, and then I will have a few days to settle in there before jumping right into the summer and leading my very own crew! I hope I will do a better job of keeping this blog updated once that happens because I want to keep you all up to date on what is going on in my life. I also will try to post some pictures to show what I have been working on for the past few months, because sometimes pictures can say much more than my words can.
