What type of person would you hire as your apprentice?

[jefhatfield]

with so much talk about donald and martha, and apprentices, what type of person would you hire for your business?

[eva01]

someone that i don't pay.

yay a slave.

:)

[iGary]

Blonde, 6'0", 180, tan, blue eyes, male...:D

[Blue Velvet]

A genuine enthusiast. I believe in the concept of vocation...

[jefhatfield]

Blonde, 6'0", 180, tan, blue eyes, male...:D

he he...i think you are thinking about interns, upaid and consensual, and all

but what about a paid employee of your business/company?

[eva01]

Blonde, 6'0", 180, tan, blue eyes, male...:D

man i am blonde 6'0, 118, not tan, blue eyes, and some gender

almost there for you :eek:

[Sun Baked]

he he...i think you are thinking about interns, upaid and consensual, and all

but what about a paid employee of your business/company?Actually I'd think you'd get the same answer from iGary if he was being forced to pay.

Some people are looking for the ass-kisser, the guy willing to stand up and question what is being done, the dangerous person of questionable morals willing to do anything to get the job done, the drone, etc.

[Applespider]

Someone who wants to do the job, shows enthusiasm (but not so much enthusiasm that I'd want to hit them if I had a hangover) and self-motivation.

Depending on whether my apprentice was there to be groomed as my successor, I'd look for someone like me so that we could bounce ideas of each other etc. But if they were there more to learn the ropes of a particular job but not necessarily take over, then I might go for someone who had the strengths that I know I lack. I hate routine so having someone who liked it, might make my business stronger by ensuring that some of those boring rote tasks got done.

[jefhatfield]

since i started out in 1989, i have had every type of person work for me, but i have a simple (and small) gardening and landscaping business so i was only able to hire people part time

if my computer consulting business grows and i need somebody, i would definitely try to find a woz type of person...when i first started i did meet this woz type of machead who was unhappy with his low paying job which he complained was only 44k a year...i simply could not afford him and didn't have the work (and i live in a very depressed economy, especially in computers, so he was doing very well with his pay, for the area)

i have never fired anybody

but if i had to choose, the best worker i had in the gardening business was this man who never had to be told what to do and he was a better gardener/landscaper than me and had a natural green thumb

sadly though, when he got into his mid-20s, he developed schizophrenia and became unrecognizeable and doesn't remember who i am or what he has achieved in his jobs, college, etc

[iGary]

Honestly, I find kids right out of college (if you find the right ones) are best in my business.

I have a girl who works for me part time and she is a gem - hard working, very good.

[jefhatfield]

man i am blonde 6'0, 118, not tan, blue eyes, and some gender

almost there for you :eek:

oh great, eva

now you are going to have most of the male members of macrumors, many of them still in high school, asking you out on a date ;)

[Deepdale]

with so much talk about donald and martha, and apprentices, what type of person would you hire for your business?

In addition to having a feel for the job in which they are being matched up with, two key characteristics would rate highly: a cooperative attitude and a real committment to solving more problems than they cause.

[JesseJames]

Uhm, is anyone elses HTML and attachments inoperable? WTF?

[jsw]

oh great, eva

now you are going to have most of the male members of macrumors, many of them still in high school, asking you out on a date ;)
Well, those that aren't lined up to ask KT to the prom, anyway... ;)

Who would I hire? By "apprentice" I think naturally of someone to be my successor or a partner, so my standards are a bit different than hiring someone to fill a position.

For an apprentice, the first key trait is that we'd have compatible personalities. I would not bring anyone on that I wouldn't feel comfortable sharing a reasonably long car ride with, say a few hundred miles or so. Not because I'd ever expect to do that, but because there are people I can tolerate, and there are people with whom I can spend a long time in a confined space, and that second group is miniscule compared to the first.

Second, the apprentice would need to be able to speak their mind to me. I would not want to hire someone who would blindly follow orders if s/he disagreed. Yes, I'd be the boss, and yes, ultimately, if they couldn't convince me their way was better, I'd expect them to do as I said... but I'd want them to try to share their opinions, and, as often as not, I'd probably do it their way. I've never been one to assume there's only one right way (although I know there are infinitely many bad ways to do things).

Third, I'd expect a real love for the career path they'd be on. Enthusiasm for more than just the initial job, but the jobs that would develop afterwards.

Fourth, I'd expect competency and intelligence. I place this lower because inept fools would never make it past the first step. And I've found that, for most jobs, attitude and overall intelligence result in at least as good a result as sheer ability.

That's about it. Good people make good co-workers.

[XNine]

Blonde, 6'0", 180, tan, blue eyes, male...:D

:eek:

THAT'S ME! I demand 40K a year and I'll play your victem but not your catcher. :D

[Mitthrawnuruodo]

Uhm, is anyone elses HTML and attachments inoperable? WTF?Just until you empty Safari's cache (http://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?t=156464) :)

Back OT:

I would probably look after someone similar to myself only younger and better, if I was to hire an apprentice. Even smarter and harder working, but still sharing enough of my views on how things should be done, without just agreeing with me all the time. Just a hint of friction is always good... (;))

It would be very delightful to seed an idea and through discussion get someone to develop it into a brilliant concept with me or even for me.

[leekohler]

A genuine enthusiast. I believe in the concept of vocation...

I agree. Let me further say that person would have to be someone who hasn't had the all the advantages in the world. Someone willing to work to better themselves. Someone who knows the value of money. I see way too many spoiled college graduates these days- kids who think the world owes them something.