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Mentoring others in the outdoors can be a very daunting but rewarding task for those who are intrigued in doing it and are prepared to invest their time into the process. Further, mentoring others in mountain activities such as camping, hiking, climbing, etc. AND establishing educational and conservational awareness is key.
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In the terms of Bri, effective mountain outdoor mentors must hold the following attributes:
1. Being genuine and true to yourself – In order to be a good mentor and find the right mentee(s), you must be your most true and authentic self. Being a good mentor does mean being knowledgeable in what you are guiding the individual(s) through, there is no doubt about that. But you must also find those who will allow you to lead them and will appreciate the strides of growth you anticipate bringing forth in them as well.
2. Showing knowledge and passionate about what you are leading – No one ever wants to be led by an unmotivated, seemingly annoyed person in any circumstance and thus being passionate about what you are mentoring one in is an absolute must. When mentoring and leading those around you, curiosity is ignited and being prepared to show each crook and cranny of what you’re doing should be expected.
3. Knowing your boundaries – Some may think about mentoring another person and think “this is cake” and others will run the opposite way. Regardless of your initial comfort level, knowing and enforcing boundaries of how you plan to handle the responsibility of mentorship is vital and must be taken seriously. You must be prepared to lead by example and provide consistency in your leadership and mentoring strategies. If you cannot establish these boundaries for yourself, then maybe it’s not the time for you to take this on. With that being said though, don’t put too many boundaries on what you are doing and remember this experience is supposed to be fun! With each person you mentor over time, the more experience you will gain and the more in control you will feel in establishing your boundaries.
4. Taking on the effort to do continued research and education – While some may argue that what they learned as a child or in their first years of mountain adventures is deemed the best, outdoor education and conservation measures, including the areas of wildlife and forestry initiatives, is constantly expanding and updated to the public year-round. For starters, I highly suggest checking out the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service webpage to see the general Land and Resource Management’s current objectives and public information available in your region. Also, see what your local community organizations offer in terms of various outdoor education classes. You may also check out REI’s Co-op Journal for new tips, tricks, and pieces of information to know before hitting the trail next. Nevertheless, regardless of what resources you utilize, yearning for new knowledge and the ability to learn must be in full-gear to be an effective mountain outdoor mentor.
Useful Links:
· U.S. Department of Ag | Forest Service Regional Office Listings website: https://www.fs.fed.us/about-agency/contact-us/regional-offices
· REI’s Co-op Journal website: https://www.rei.com/blog
· Websites to consider when searching for local outdoor education courses:
- National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) website: https://www.nols.edu/
- Outward Bound website: https://www.outwardbound.org/
o Their promotional video: https://youtu.be/noMrKQ326ew
- OutdoorEd website: https://www.outdoored.com/
If you have outdoor resources that you would like to share, please drop them in the comment section below!
With that, I will wrap up today’s blog by saying thank you for reading and please check back often for more mountain outdoor and adventure blog posts!
-B
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