My Boss was ridiculously good at dealing with the children at the camps and in the classes
- I got to lead warm-ups and some drills in most classes
1.
This summer, I was a coaching intern at a local Columbus Parkour gym (Parkour Horizons). Every day I would go into the gym at 9:00 a.m. to help run the day camps for children ranging in age from 6-14 years. We taught them parkour movements and we also held classroom sessions on topics such as the history of parkour and proper nutrition habits. In the evenings I helped to teach children and adult classes about parkour moves; these classes were based on a different theme each week (e.g. jumping. swinging, etc.).
2.
In spite of being the least senior and the least knowledgeable coach at the gym (I first had to learn some skills this summer before teaching them), I was able to make an impact. I understand better how and why it is possible to learn from anyone, because even though I was not very experienced in parkour, my people and leadership skills helped me to be an effective teacher. As a result, I am more confident, self-aware, and mindful.
3.
Parkour, which is basically finding the most efficient path to get from point A to point B, is tailored to the individual participant. As a coach I may teach an individual to safely execute a number of movements, but ultimately, that individual must decide how to use these “tools” to navigate the obstacles in his/her path. As a result, each participant ends up reaching the goal in a unique way.
Observing this in the practice of parkour helped me to see more possibilities when it came to maneuvering challenges in general. I could see that by breaking up a challenge into progressions made it easier to master. My enthusiasm to find ways to help my students succeed became apparent to my boss; he told me that he really admired and appreciated my work ethic and that he hoped that I would continue at the gym after my project ended because he wanted staff with my attitude. His statement made me realize that I made a strong impression on another person, without trying, just by whole-heartedly doing my job.
Over the course of this project, I was faced with several challenging circumstances – I do not have a car and had to depend on a ride to get everywhere due to a very inconvenient public transportation situation; there was one hour to get from my internship to my job but they were 15 miles apart; my days were very long (9 a.m.-8 p.m.) and physically taxing (parkour and lifeguarding) 5 days a week. This whole process was exhausting, but I never once considered changing anything because I really wanted to get my coaching certification. In short, my STEP experience has given me a glimpse of my resilience in addition to broadening my perspective on things.
4.
When I first started training in parkour I did it because I wanted to do cool tricks and have fun. However, being around the more experienced practitioners and having them mentor me while I coached forced me to have a different perspective. I had to teach others how to successfully master challenging skills. I had to repeatedly encourage the students to be confident and to pay attention to their bodies; eventually, I too got the message. This whole experience has taught me the value of purposeful actions.
Here’s a video of me interviewing one of the other coaches! More to come about my experience! https://youtu.be/OipCMs5s-gU