Learning new things

Everyday I am learning new things (go figure a veterinary student learning new things!). But this week at work, I got the opportunity to learn how to drive the fork lift! I know, sounds kinda crazy and strange, since I know how to drive a car, but the fork lift is nothing like a car. And to make things more complicated, when driving the fork lift, there is usually a big muck cart attached to the back. 

I learned some very important lessons in my 3-4 hours of learning how to operate the fork lift. My co-worker that trained me has been working at the VMTH for many years and has a large breadth of  knowledge to offer me. Sometimes I wish I could just tap her brain and know everything she does, but I have to learn it a little bit at a time from her. 

The most important lesson I learned was that I am my own worst enemy. As I was learning how to back up the cart into a parking space with the fork lift, I would make drastic movements with the steering wheel when I was trying to avoid jack-knifing or going over the parking space lines (which were supposed to represent a barn)...lets just say if it had been a barn, it might not have remained standing after I was done with it. Anyways, until I learned to train my mind to communicate to my hands that I only needed to compensate for the movement of the trailer a little bit, I struggled and became very frustrated. My co-worker sat on her stool with her arms crossed shaking her head. She was like the wise woman that was trying to teach me a great lesson. Finally after seeing me fail to accomplish the task three times in a row because I was making the same mistake, she came over and turned off the fork lift. I told her maybe I'd had enough for the day and we should do fork lift training another day. She smiled at me and said, "well maybe, but do you realize what you are doing?" I shook my head and said, "I'm over-correcting, I'm not that great at this!" She said, "you know what, you are your own worst enemy, I hope you'll be a better vet than you are at learning how to drive a fork lift." That stung a little bit cause I felt like I was REALLY trying. I was so frustrated, but I took a deep breath and said to myself, "I can do this!" My co-worker fired up the fork lift and said, "give it another try, watch your wheels!" she said over her shoulder as she walked back to her perch on the stool. 

Something in my mind clicked, I had been over-doing it entirely...by just looking at where my cart was going, when I finally took a second to look at the wheels on the fork lift, I saw a pattern...I was finally able to park the muck cart without taking down the imaginary barn. I couldn't believe it, why had I sat there beating myself up when I hadn't researched every option?  I think this is a very common occurrence among veterinary students. We get our minds going down one path of diagnosis, but then when that is proven incorrect, we back-pedal as fast as we can to go down another road of diagnosis. However, if we had just considered a broader range of diagnosis in the first place, we might not hit so many dead ends and we will be able to think through each potential diagnosis carefully. 

I never would have thought that learning how to drive a fork lift would teach me such an important lesson. I'm sure it won't be the first time I experience it, since I am so strong minded I will probably forget this very important lesson. But I hope I think about it every once in a while...

 

Hard Work: What it really means

I have a lot of appreciation for those that work hard in life. Hard work is the basis for everything worthwhile you will achieve in life. Hard work is the process of changing both the world and yourself so that at the end you and the world have become more connected: you've become more real to other observers in the world and they have become more real to you.
My parents always taught me to work hard for things I wanted in life. I have always worked hard for anything I wanted, things have not been handed to me that often and when they are, I am greatly appreciative. When I started riding horses, my parents payed for a weekly riding lesson, well I wanted to spend more time with the horses and learning how to ride so I arranged to clean tack and groom horses in exchange for an additional riding lesson each week. The more I worked around horses, the more I learned about them. I stood out from others in my group lessons who just came for their weekly lesson and eventually grew tired of the whole horse thing altogether. I found a passion for horses and working hard to spend time with them. At eight years old, I was already working off my riding lessons. As I got older, I really wanted my own horse. I saved all the money I got for my birthdays, from chores, etc. for 2-3 years. I saved enough to buy a $500 Arabian gelding that taught me a lot about working hard. Comson was my first horse and I was able to keep him for free at my grandmother's house. I had to buy his hay and pay his vet and shoeing bills, but luckily I did enough chores to afford that. I also had to feed him twice a day which meant persuading my mom or dad to take me by my grandmother's house morning and night. Comson was high strung and bucked me off a lot, he was a firey little horse with a big heart and full of tough love. After owning Comson for two years, I sold him in hopes to use the money to return to a stable for more riding lessons. I remember when Comson's buyers were surprised when they met a 12 year old girl selling her first horse. I was always mature for my age and my dad taught me how to hold my ground on a set price and market my horse in the local newspaper.

I got my first "real job" (actually paying taxes) when I was 15 years old. It was a part-time job working some weekends and after school during weekdays. I actually had to get a work permit from my high school that allowed me to work under the age of 16. I worked at a Take and Bake Pizza restaurant down the street from my house so I was easily able to walk there until I got my driver's license on my 16th birthday. The perceived potential benefits of youth employment include earning money, gaining relevant work experience, achieving autonomy, easing the transition from school to work, and developing work attitudes.

Read more: Working in Adolescence - Advantages And Disadvantages Of Adolescent Employment - School, Youth, Job, Time, Youths, and Experiences http://social.jrank.org/pages/690/Working-in-Adolescence-Advantages-Disadvantages-Adolescent-Employment.html#ixzz1E3wOmidg

Some may think that this is ridiculous for a teenager to work while going to school, but let me tell you how rewarding it has been for me. I have had the opportunity to work with the general public in several different capacities, by working during high school, I discovered that I wanted to attend college in order to improve my ability to find a job that I loved working. While attending college, I always had a job, I worked hard to keep up on my studies and good grades, get scholarships, and keep a horse (for the first year of college). I have a lot of appreciation for people who work and pay their own way through school. In this economy, that is no easy feat and having done it myself, I know that work in addition to school can be challenging.


I feel sorry for those people that have never had a job and don't have any experience working with the general public. More than that, working for money that you can spend/manage is a very rewarding experience. Getting your first paycheck is really awesome. Having the autonomy to do what you want with it is even a better experience. Working is part of growing up and I don't understand why anyone wouldn't work hard to do that. 


I feel sorry for those people who's parents incapacitate their children from learning these very important life lessons. By giving your child everything he/she desires, you are only hurting them. As kind as it may seem, your children need to face reality and realize that the way you enjoy life is working hard for the things you want in life. 


Having got into veterinary school, there is no doubt that I have worked hard to get here. I want to work hard and have fun doing what I love (veterinary medicine) and most of all, I want to make a difference. I want to make lives better for animals and people. I am in great debt to my previous experiences that have molded me into the person I am today. 

I have a strong appreciation for those that are hard workers that strive every day to reach their goals and improve this world for others. I think people that choose not to work hard and take the easiest route by letting mommy and daddy shield them and shower them with everything are the ones in danger of not learning anything from their lives. I encourage all parents to foster creativity and a hard work ethic with their kids. It is so important to their success as an adult and their interactions with those around them.


Check out all my experiences: http://livingmydreamkn.blogspot.com/2010/11/my-experiences.html

"You will never find happiness if you do not conquer your own doubt"