For Lantra Instructor Josephine Hedger, training is more than merely gaining qualifications and keeping current with sector trends. It helps shape her very development as a human being, she believes.
"I love my job as a climbing arborist and run a tree care business," she explains, "and realised I enjoyed teaching people and passing my knowledge on to others.
"Working with a training Provider who specialised in forest and arb courses allowed me to focus on what I was good at - teaching and specialising in climbing-related subjects.
Jo runs her longstanding tree care business in the New Forest in Hampshire and feels it feeds into her teaching role. "It's a huge benefit to me as a Lantra Instructor," she says.
"As an active arborist, I keep current with techniques and systems, which in turn benefits our Learners." Clearly a master of time management, she also runs a Lantra Provider training company, Instructing or conducting assessments when required.
Typically, she'll either be climbing commercially - pruning or removing trees - or working with the public to ensure correct care is carried out on their specimens.
"If I'm training or assessing, I usually work from our training centre in the New Forest," Jo adds, "with up to four Learners working on a practical training course or assessing them to an industry-recognised qualification: a requirement in forestry and arboriculture."
The great outdoors
Like many who work outside, it's the open air that cuts the mustard for Jo. "The weather can be nasty at times but days when the sun shines from blue skies more than makes up for that.
"Climbing trees in spring is perfect as you can see the new annual growth emerging and the temperature is just right for working in."
Employers have a key role to play in giving their raw recruits the chance to get up close and personal with Arboriculture. But is it happening, Jo asks?
"Training has become difficult as fewer people are given the opportunity to work before they take a course, resulting in a lot of inexperience.
"This isn’t necessarily always the problem, but I do find that employers or individuals can fail to appreciate just how much time it takes to fashion a really good operator, rather than simply pushing them through, merely to take the minimum, cheapest option."
Jo turns to various sources to seek inspiration and guidance under her commitment to continue learning her profession throughout life. Closest to home is her husband .
"I admire him," she states. "Not only because he has to work with me most days, but mainly because of his wealth of knowledge of the agricultural and arboricultural industries. He's worked in them for a long time and is a great Instructor."
Age no barrier
Instructors have to earn Learners’ respect, and age can be deciding factor in them gaining that, something Jo feared when she began in that role. "Starting out as a Lantra Instructor in my mid-20s could have been an issue with Learners as it was common for older people to come on courses and there have been cases of them being a bit negative to someone young teaching them.
"I never allowed it to be a problem, however, because I believed if you had good subject knowledge, were able to do the task and had a positive Instructor technique, this would be what students were looking at, not my age."
Jo's career path to date in the land-based sector she acknowledges has proved "smooth enough without too many issues". The role of training and continual professional development going forward will always rank high for her, she adds, given her obvious need to advance and excel.
Does she still have further ambitions? "I don’t really have goals," she says surprisingly. "I have achieved plenty in my 20 years as an arborist. Particularly as when I started, female Instructors or Assessors in arboriculture were rare.
Champion climber
"I have also won five World Tree Climbing Championships." It certainly sounds like her work is far more than going through the motions and is in fact part of her work/life balance. "My hobbies are my passion for climbing trees, so in a way its balanced as it’s what I enjoy doing."
"I started as an arborist because I liked to be challenged," she adds. "You need to continue to challenge yourself throughout your career, and also do something outside your comfort zone to improve as a person.
"If you do not regularly update yourself, you'll soon be left behind in this industry - not a good place to be as an Instructor. Training is an extremely important part to becoming the best version of yourself.
"Gaining knowledge from others will always improve your daily work and learning safe and efficient systems means you don’t put yourself or others at risk.
"I enjoy what I do but I don’t work the same way I did in my first 12 months in the industry. If I hadn’t evolved then it would have been boring and hard work, resulting in accidents no doubt."
My job in three words
"Challenging. Awesome. Satisfying"