bosses

As for bosses, yea, a lot of bosses are that way, but by no means are all of them that way. I don't recommend sticking with ones who are. There's plenty of jobs out there with better bosses and working conditions.

But, I suspect there's a portion of the story missing from your telling. Some things that you're not getting. Some issues with time, standard procedures and such. For example, pulling the head to decarbon is standard tune up practice in any small engine shop. So failure to do so is normally frowned on. If things are slack in the class, and you've got the time to open up an engine to learn on, that's a good thing. But not of course if it's 2:30 in the afternoon and the owner is coming by at 4:00 to take it home.

I'd sit down in a huff and drink coffee for a while, then go to the growler for the rest of the day and file a really long grievance against him, then lay out the next day and let him try to figure out who he can get to cover my job.

IMO he is trying to "teach" you.
He is "on your case" because he knows you can do better. That you have the ability to do better, or better than you are.
He believes you can go on to do the things you want well, but you have to keep your head out of your butt. He wants you to do the best, because you are an extension of himself.
Who wants to look at something they have helped to build, and see something that is not the best it can be ?
When you screw up, if you have a good boss, he will straighten you out without belitteling you.
You will have all kinds of bosses during your life, and some of them will be better than others.
Look at all of them, and take the things from the good ones that you can use when you are the boss.
Most of my working life, I have worked for myself. It will teach you a lot of things that you will never learn working for someone else.
One of the things it will teach you, is that you, as the working stiff, will never know all of the reasons something "has" to be done in a certin way, or why it had to be done at all. Just go with the flow, keep you head out of your butt, and learn.
Some day you will go back to the "teacher" and thank him for all the things he did for you.
Have a good life, and good luck.

UG!

Bill

Just stay focused on your goal, getting eduicated and hired in your field. That first year of working for a real living is gonna be a son-a-gun, and the shop foreman gonna be watching your every move. Don't be a goofball knowittall playin' grabbass, be friendly and sincere and willing worker and then at the end of that year, evaluate your situation. Move on if you don't like it.

Heres a little story, my wife is a Dental Hygienist and many years ago we were living near Sacramento. 60 miles west in San Francisco, the Dentists were paying Hygienists $7/hr and jobs were hard to find 'cuz San Fran is neat place to play. In Sacramento, the Dentists were paying $14/hr and they couldn't find enuff Hygienists to staff their offices. The moral of story? Sometimes ya gotta go where the jobs are and sometimes the neat jobs arn't worth it. But sticking out that first job is worth its weight in gold..... .....Dell

As the others have said, You have a good teacher there. What he's trying to do since your a good student and want to learn, is to teach you 20yrs of experience in a few short months that your together.

When I had students that didn't care or would not be aggressive, I didn't give them any more than they asked for. Instead I devoted more time to the ones that did want to learn and rode the "good student" hard, as I wanted them to be the best.

You'll see that it was the correct way of thinking in about 10yrs.

T_Bone

The kids I have that might amount to something I try to stay shoulder deep in their a$$ every single day, even if I feel like sitting behind my desk, if my feet hurt, been up all night with the kid or a sick calf, whatever. 60% of my students dont give a rats hind leg about anything but smoking dope and drinking. The ones that do have a chance I try to keep them focused, just like the few teacher I had that I hated when I had them but wouldnt trade the experience now for anything.

I didn't realize what they were trying to do until one day in July of 1985 when I was out in the desert in El Paso TX raking sand at basic training. Senior drill was on me hard told me every single day what a screw up I was. I'd pulled double guard duty the night before and was 1/2 litre behind on the amt of water I was supposed to drink, white eyed from the heat. I raked sand 18 hours a day for 3 days. That was just one example of many. Maybe if I had had a few more teachers like yours he wouldn't have had to be on me so hard. I decided then that I was never going to work that hard again. Got out, went to college, ROTC, hitch of active duty, got out and became a County Agent first, then an ag teacher, and now a part time administrator thrown in. If it hadnt been for them I would have quit college when I almost flunked out b/c I skated in high school. Wasnt going to be the failure he said I was. That was less than 20 years ago and I thank them every day. Got a house that's almost paid for, decent wife, kid I love, new car and truck, and a farm that's paid for.

You will have bosses that push you because they want you to suceed when you get out. Also have bosses that couldnt find their way out of a wet paper bag. It doesnt matter, they are still the boss. When the economy is good you can tell a pin head boss to go stick it. If you do, just be fore warned, the economy will cycle down and sure as the world that same boss will wind up being a bigger boss at the employer you went to. Go to work evey day, if you are supposed to work 8 hours give them 150% from 10 minutes before starting time to 10 minutes after quitting time.

In the workplace, you will have good & bad bosses. But the real thing to watch out for are co-workers - they are supposed to be your equal, but they won't be. Will steal every bit of credit they can from you, to look good in front of the boss. Those are the people you will come to resent when you get home at night.

--->Paul

My story goes this way, I had a young man that was in school on the GI bill, but got hung up with a crowd in the class that was on some stupid govt program that paid them to go to class and paid for the class. You can guess why they were there.

Well his grades fell to match his friends, and one day I yanked his chain in private, I told him he was better than they were, he make it through the army, he knew what it took to get the job done. People pay you for what you know not who you are. You can be a winner or a looser at life the choice is yours.

Well about 6 months later I quit and went to a better job. A year later I got an invite to this classes graduation party, I decided what the heck and went. I was the only instructor there, not only had this young man finished with a 3.95 grade average and the best job out of the class he pulled his slacker friends out of their hole and they had all finished with B's or better. They all said it was because of me, they felt none of the other instructors cared.... A proud day for me, one that I will always remember....

One thing I might ask your instructor in private one day is something like, "You push me hard all the time, is it because you like me or because you hate me?" It might open up a disscussion that will allow you to mention that you don't need your A$$ reamed to learn something like 90% of the deadheads in the class.

Mike L. Ohio