Every professional, business owner, self-employed person, and all others who set out to plan a career have specific skill sets, traits, and characteristics.
Most there are a few qualities that stand common for everyone, there are a few specific qualities that’ll help you shine through when you are working to become a train conductor.
Your aim is to shine. You are here to rule, to make a difference, and to grow through the ranks.
Here are some of those top qualities you should possess:
A natural people person
You don’t have as much to do with trains, routes, tickets, and schedules, as much as you have to do with people. You’ll meet customers everyday. Millions of people ride from home to work and back. Many others tour around cities and between them.
At any point during the day, you’ll find yourself dealing with a mind-boggling variety of people.
Most of us have a hard time dealing with a clutch of few people we know. Now, imagine having to deal with thousands of strangers.
That’s what you’ll need.
stay organized
In the thick of the human cloud, and you having to deal with your passengers along various routes, the only way you’ll function without losing your sanity is to stay organized – that means your actual work, ticketing, making notes, catering to a gazillion requests, remembering routes, and schedules.
If many others in their line of work don’t stay organized and productive, they’d just have a bad day. If you do, hundreds of passengers could be derailed.
A good follower
In most professions, success comes from “thinking outside the box”, “innovation”, “doing the old as new”.
For a train conductor, the chances for you to play on something new are rare. Maybe you can try to find new ways to deal with passengers and invent your own productivity tricks while those two feet – and your head – carry you through your day job.
Most of the times, however, you work with constraints. To allow this to happen, you’d need to be a good follower first. Learn from seniors and make your way up from there.
Know your pack
Sure, a train conductor is not the train driver. When you wanted to become a train conductor, you obviously didn’t sign up for driving, understanding the technical mumbo-jumbo, or handle anything complicated like driving trains, repairing trains, etc.
Not that anyone is asking you to.
Having a propensity to learn, understand how your team works (includes others such as station managers, train drivers, control room staff, etc.) positions you in the arena of strength, knowledge, and experience.
As you are aware of your team, the importance of each member’s role, and your own role in the whole scheme of things, you gain a competitive edge.
In short, you become indispensable.
What qualities do you think you should have to become a train conductor?
Did we miss any points here?
