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Being a Good Protégé

Overview

When someone agrees to become your mentor, they are giving you a gift which you can never repay: their time. We only get so much of that whilst here on Earth, so we dare not waste it. You must be cognizant of their time and be a good protégé.

Up Front

When you are looking to begin a mentoring relationship, talk with the potential mentor about these topics:

1. Your background (both beekeeping and other).
2. What type of beekeeping you want to pursue. For example,
   • Do you want to use horizontal hives or Langstroth?
   • Do want to be treatment free (natural), or are you OK with using treatments to control pests?
3. What got you into beekeeping? What do you want to achieve?
4. What you are hoping to gain from the mentor's assistance.
5. Where do you expect to place your apiary?
6. When would you like to meet with this person?

Your Mentor's Approach to Beekeeping

It seems that every beekeeper has at least one opinion on the best approach for a given task. I recommend you pursue the approaches advocated by your mentor for a year or two: Their recommended approach is based on their experiences with what has worked for them.

Some examples of this are:

• When do you add more space to a colony? Some advocate an aggressive approach; other advocate a more conservative one.
• How many of the honey cells need to be capped before harvesting the frame for extraction? Some advocate 100%; other 80%.

It takes quite while to develop the skills to understand the subtleties which can be used for taking a different approach. You need to build the gut feelings needed for taking action, and you will not have all the data needed for data based decision making. You often must act when you only have partial information. The "rules" imparted by your mentor should make the actions easier to take. And once you've mastered your mentor's approach and seen them in action, then consider other options.

On the Day Your Mentor Is At Your Apiary

When your mentor shows up, you should have these ready:

1. A draft of the planned activities in the apiary, broken down by hive. Review that plan with your mentor to ensure your thoughts are aligned with their ideas.
2. All the needed materials ready to go.
   • Smoker ready to light
   • Tools ready to go
   • Additional hive boxes and frames as necessary.
     • If you are not sure if a new box needs to be added, but suspect it may, have it ready. Best to have it and not need it than vice-versa.
     • If you may be harvesting honey, bring along an empty box (or two). You may need to pull some frames and leave others. Also, bring along some extra frames.
   • Varroa test kit and wash material (i.e., alcohol or soapy water mix)
   • Gloves for your mentor. Powder-free nitrile gloves are recommended.

After the inspection(s)

1. Discuss what you did, and ask any questions which were to involved to ask when you had hands inside the hives.
2. Ask your mentor if they have any other thoughts and ideas you haven't discussed.
3. Ask your mentor what they want to see done before the next time you meet.

Assess Your Relationship

If your mentor is not helping you grow your skills, assess what may be wrong.

Step 1 - Look at Yourself

• Are you not listening well?
• Do you not take constructive criticism well?

Step 2 - Look at the Relationship

• Is the mentor working in a way which does not fit your style? For example, if you are a bit lackadaisical in your approach but your mentor expects military precision, this may not be a good fit.
• There are some people who should not be a mentor but are greatly experienced in beekeeping so they try. Maybe your mentor is one of those.

Step 3 - Take Action If you cannot get the relationship improved after attempts on you part, consider ending the relationship and seeking a new mentor. Do be aware that there are not a lot of people who have both:

• The skills to be a good mentor, and
• The willingness to give you their time.

Sometimes, it may be best to modify your own approach to continue learning.

Final Notes

• It is not your mentor's role to do your work. They are to help you learn to do it yourself.
• Your mentor will probably ask you to assist with club activities (like working the club's booth at the county fair). If you can, give back like was given to you.
• Pay the mentor tax. Give your mentor at least one bottle of your extracted honey. It is the least you can do for all that you've been given.