EYE ON THE PROFESSION

A CLOSER LOOK AT THE TRENDS AND ISSUES IN THE PARK AND RECREATION PROFESSION

Professionals Speak Out "On the Job": What Helps, What Hinders

To find out what professionals in Illinois parks and recreation are thinking, what challenges they face and what issues are ahead for us all in the 21" century, I randomly selected 25 IPRA members to answer a question "On the Job." Opinions gathered through this informal research will form the basis for several of my columns in this last year of this century.

The answers I received to the first question (actually, a two-part question) are revealing and valuable. If we listen to each other and try to learn from the mistakes and missteps in our collective past, we will all enjoy our jobs more fully, perform our professional tasks better, and make a substantial difference in the communities we serve.

The two-part question was: "What helps me to excel at my job? and What keeps me from succeeding?" Read to learn the answers.

Things That Help Me Excel at My Job

1. A strong first in this category seemed to be the positive energy provided by bosses, staff and commissioners. As is true in jobs in every field, optimism, cooperation and positive feedback help us to succeed. Respondents provided the following comments.

• I enjoy working with staff who accept their responsibilities and pitch in when needed without being nagged.

• Strong positive support from the board of my agency encourages me.

• Teamwork and having a staff of dedicated team members help me to do my best.

• When I receive recognition for a job well done, I want to do even more.

• Recognition for a job well done, and doing something I enjoy have meant more to me than a pay increase.

• It is important to surround yourself with quality people on whom you can depend at all times. It is impossible for anyone to be totally responsible for all phases of any project or activity.

2. Being of real service is something most parks and recreation professionals value in their jobs.

• As a "people person," I've enjoyed the career positions where the public comes first. Public service is why I entered the field of parks and recreation in 1972. It's wonderful when you work for an organization that puts the public first, in all ways.

• Realizing that we, as professionals, are providing real benefits to our residents and participants. I entered this field because of public service, and sometimes we tend to forget that the public always comes first. The park and recreation profession grew out of the social service area, and when we remember our roots, we can feel better about what we do.

• To know that our hard work and ability results in something that is positive for the public is a GREAT feeling. This feeling is so wonderful that you immediately want to take on another challenge.

3. Being trusted and respected as a professional ranked high with many who answered these questions.

Kay Kastel Forest, CAE IPRA Executive Director

• It's important to me that I have a boss who believes in me, trusts me to do a good job, and allows me to be involved professionally both in the state and nationally. • I appreciated the ability to take risks. • I believe that excellence is the only standard. • I value honesty and the ability to say "no" when I don't know the correct answer. • I appreciated the freedom to do my job the way I like, not the way someone else wants it done.

"When I receive recognition for a job well done, I want to do even more."

8/ Illinois Parks and Recreation

4. Continuing education and networking are important benefits which encourage professional growth and maintain the excitement of challenge in our jobs.

• I like the opportunities for continuing education and the ability to attend conference and seminars out of state which allows me to network with other professionals from across the country.

• I need to maintain challenges in my job so I am not doing the same things over and over.

• Establishing goals for both my job and my personal life is important to me.

• Faced with a challenge, my problem-solving and creative thinking goes to a higher level. The fact that my goal is difficult makes me try even harder to succeed. In my career, I have always had some challenge: a project, a special event, a new program, or some formidable obstacle to help me feel alive within my profession. If I didn't have a challenge, the job would not be as much fun and certainly not as rewarding. In our profession, many times we are able to see the fruits of our efforts. Challenges help me to excel in my job.

• You must also be willing to attend conferences and seminars in order to keep informed. Any additional certifications you earn will also add credibility to you position and, at the same time, increase your knowledge.

5. And finally, there were a number of personal preferences which help us to excel at our jobs.

• I enjoy helping younger professionals to grow and develop in order to eventually take my place.

• Getting involved in professional associations has helped to boost my self-confidence. When I feel good about myself, I feel good about what I do.

• I believe that much of my success is due to my commitment to excellence and a desire to provide the best possible customer service. I also feel that my organizational ability has had a great deal to do with whatever success I may have had.

Things That Keep Me From Succeeding

Perhaps surprisingly, few of the respondents expressed the existence of obstacles to their success. There were only these replies:

• As a female professional in parks and recreation, I must admit that I've felt that "glass ceiling" a few times in my career. I've worked very hard over the years to have people treat me as a person first and a woman second. I've been reasonably successful but not always.

• There are always too many tasks and too little time.

• Paperwork... having to document everything...liability issues...these keep me from succeeding.

• Administrators tend to take the enthusiasm away from younger staff when they have to research an item to death before proceeding with it.

• The politics of the board can be detrimental to success.

• Having to drop everything to put out fires caused by politics is frustrating.

"Administrators tend to take the enthusiasm away from younger staff when they have to research an item to death before proceeding with it."

May/June 1999 /9