Teaching Young Men Life Skills As A Boss And Mentor

Introduction

As a young man, God blessed me with several good mentors. A few of these helped me acquire critical technical skills. Kris Nehmer taught me how to be a practical geodesist and to map large projects. Brett Setness taught me how to be a good boundary surveyor. Brent Boitano taught me how to be a good field surveyor and the meaning of "adapt and overcome".

Other mentors taught me life skills.

My Teachers Of Life Skills

Paul Atkinson was the meat department manager at Safeway in Whitefish, Montana. He taught me the importance of patience. When I went to work for Paul, I was transitioning from the graveyard shift to the day shift. I was a few minutes late more than once the first couple of weeks after the change. It also took me way too long to learn how to tie pot roasts, and I was afraid of the band saw. He never lost his temper.

Doug Yeager ran the facilities maintenance department at the Big Mountain Ski Resort. One fall as we prepped for the ski season, I took an inventory of our snow removal tools (without Doug asking). When I brought Doug the inventory, he gave me a 2$ raise - on the spot. He also ate breakfast with our small team whenever he could make time - and paid the bill. When he saw us mistreated by other departments or management - he immediately defended us.

Randy O'Dell was the civil engineering principal at O'Dell Engineering. He taught me that leaders need to prevent emotions from ruling their decision-making process. Whenever I brought him an issue or problem, he would:

1. Ask me questions to understand why I was in his office.
2. Take time to gather all the facts.
3. Wait a day or two before taking action.

At the time, I had no comprehension of how valuable these life skills would be to me.

My Role Teaching Life Skills To Young Men

Now, at 45 years old, I'm trying to lead my own team, which includes several young men. I've realized in the last few months that I see a little of my younger self in each of them.

• Dave works like a mule and is super tough, but he is a hothead with a short temper. He gets very angry when he thinks people are being treated unjustly. I need to teach him to control his anger.
• Lance is book-smart and good with computers. He is one of the smartest people I've ever met. But I need to help him recognize that intelligence isn't the only way people add value to a team.
• Ryan is thoughtful and careful, but he is too cautious and lacks confidence in his abilities. I need to push him out of his comfort zone.
• Bobby executes his technical work with skill and is a good manager. But he can be socially awkward and snarky. I need to help him be more self-aware and realize how his behavior impacts his coworkers.
• Ben is eager to learn with more life experience than the others but feels guilt for not having his life completely figured out when he was 20. I need to help him understand that a little wandering in your 20s is OK and doesn't diminish you as a person.

One of my top five challenges as a boss right now is helping these young men become mature men. The type of men who strengthen and protect their families, communities, and our business. I need to help them gain not just technical knowledge but life skills, just as Paul, Doug, and Randy helped me. This is important - not just because my business needs these mature men - but because our world does.

Conclusion

I'm not sure I understand how to overcome this challenge. It is much more difficult for me to lead the young men on my team than it is to lead the young women on my team. I don't even know why this is true. I'm not sure if it is a shortcoming of mine or if it is inherent in the nature of young men.

I hope I can imitate the mature men who shaped me for the better as a young man. If I can succeed in that, it will be one of my greatest accomplishments as a boss and a leader.

(Some names in this article have been changed.)