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The Realities of Working as a Guide

 

The decision to work within the ecotourism industry is one that is mostly motivated by dreams of “living in the bush” and of remote places, beautiful scenery, wildlife experiences and a healthy lifestyle. In many cases this lifestyle is a real possibility and the dreams do become reality. However after a short period of time you may find that all is not as had been envisaged.

Working in the field of ecotourism takes hard work and many personal sacrifices. It is these factors that frequently lead to people leaving the field guiding industry in search of a more “normal” working environment.

What does one sacrifice to work in the field of ecotourism?

1. Social Opportunities

Ecotourism destinations very seldom have a large staff compliment and are generally far removed from cities and towns. In addition one seldom has free time such as weekends, or public holidays, and leave structures normally only allow you to leave the lodge environment every 4 to 6 weeks.

The implication of this is that one needs to socialise almost exclusively with your colleagues and the guests. This situation of isolation, continuous work and limited social opportunities frequently leads to tension amongst staff members and if not controlled, often leads to resignations or dismissals.

The social opportunities you sacrifice in order to work in remote places must always be considered before taking the steps necessary to find a job in this field.

• How would you feel about:
• Not seeing your close friends and family on a regular basis?
• Not being able to go to the theatre, cinema, rock concert etc
• Leaving your girlfriend/boyfriend behind?
• Not being able to go shopping as and when you please?

2. Personal Opportunities

It is not only social factors that alter dramatically when one enters in the ecotourism business, but personal goals and opportunities as well.

These sacrifices include:

• Giving up competitive sport and training for long periods of time.
• Having to leave all pets behind.
• Giving up on hobbies, or only working on these during periods of leave.
• Leaving most of your personal effects behind (most staff accommodations are already furnished and are generally too small to allow for further fittings such as furniture, books, kitchen appliances etc).
• Going without essential services such as banks and post offices for long periods of time.

Personal Requirements

In order to work successfully in these types of environments, certain personality traits and attitudes are important.

Tolerance: When your neighbour awakes at 05h00 and turns his radio / CD player on full blast, it takes tolerance to accept this. Reasonable discussion later in the day can sort out the problem. Do not react to these situations, but rather act on them in a reasonable fashion.

Sense of humour: With little other social interaction but between staff members, one often comes in for considerable mockery and jibing (mostly of a good-natured type). Without a sense of humour and the ability to laugh at yourself, these situations could become intolerable if not checked.

Team player: Individuals who prefer to work alone and tend to be solitary and introverted are seldom successful in these environments. This is not to say that one must lose one’s individuality, but rather that the team must be put before the individual in terms of overall importance.

Openness and honesty: Do not keep feelings and emotions bottled up rather talk about them before they become too weighty. One needs to be trusting of all staff members in small communities.

Personal Improvement

Since one has to sacrifice so many of the activities and opportunities that “normal” jobs allow one to participate in, what can be done to make up for these losses?

• Study - correspondence courses are an ideal way of furthering and improving one’s knowledge and skills.
• Projects - self-motivated projects on any subject that may be legally and safely studied within your area. These projects may be used to improve the level of knowledge of other staff members, or you may deliver lectures to guests to broaden their experience at your destination.
• Photography - most ecotourism destinations provide spectacular photographic opportunities. This is one hobby that can be practised on a daily basis (providing it does not interfere with the guest’s experience in any way) and provides many pleasurable memories.
• Diary - keep a diary of your experiences. After a few years you will be surprised at how much has happened to you. This could even provide the basis for a book!
• Learn to play a musical instrument.

There are many advantages to working in the ecotourism environment in that one has time to get involved in activities that one would not usually have time for elsewhere. All that is required is a shift of attitudes and an acceptance of things the way they are. After a short while you will find that these sacrifices are no longer important, and that the privilege of working in a natural and healthy environment becomes more important than anything else.