On The Job Training

Your first few days of on the job training can be fairly intimidating. There is so much to learn about your surroundings and protocol and it’s a lot to take in. Rest assured they will not put you on the job to work on your own until they truly believe you are ready, and they aren’t bothered if you need extra training. Many people needed two weeks instead of one and our supervisors treated them just the same. It is also a little overwhelming when you are in the parks training and guests stop you and ask you questions, thinking you have any clue of what’s going on. And at this point, you probably don’t. That’s okay. Your trainer will not be far from you and you are given a sticker to place on your name tag that says “Earning My Ears” to indicate that you are in fact in training and not expected to know everything quite yet. I spent my first day of training in the Harambe Fruit Market in Africa. It is located directly in front of the Kilimanjaro Safari ride so there was quite a bit of traffic in this location. I remember the first day being a whirlwind. You are thrown so much information and it’s your first time out in the parks as an employee so you are feeling everything from excitement to nervousness to absolute fear. In Animal Kingdom we were always taught it was very important to know your surroundings, so as we trained for our individual location we were also filled with knowledge about the closest animal exhibits and facts about the surrounding locations. It was expressed to us how vital it was to be able to answer any guest’s questions, whether it pertained to your job or not. You needed to know the closest bathroom, the parade start time, the rides wait time, the nearest baby changing station, etc. It’s a lot. But with each day it gets easier and easier and eventually telling a women that she is not actually in Epcot becomes a regular and comical part of your day.