Personal Achievement Reflection

The personal achievement that I am most proud of is the completion of all my lifeguard
certifications. I have been awarded my National Lifeguard (NL) Pool, NL Waterpark, Standard
First Aid with CPR-C, and my Water Safety Instructor. These certifications make it legal for me
to lifeguard and teach swimming lessons. I first started my lifeguarding courses when I was 10
years old, I earned my Bronze Star. I completed my final NL courses in grade 10 (2019) around
May. Since then, I have been re-certifying my courses. For as long as I can remember, I’ve been
told I was going to be a lifeguard; I also looked forward to it. In my opinion, being a lifeguard
provides some of the best job experience and life skills to younger employees. The pay rate is
also very good.
Earning all of my certifications was important to me because I’ve always wanted to be a
lifeguard. There were times when I didn’t want to go to my courses but my mom made me go
and I always had fun in the end. I also have anxiety, so often simply beginning the course was
the scariest part for me because of the people. Therefore, when I was done with all of the courses
I was extremely proud of myself due to my perseverance. Many of the courses are also
physically exhausting. For example, during my NL we would spend upwards of 4 hours per day
in the pool, sometimes exceeding 8. There are also physical standards such as a 50m head-up
sprint, and 20-pound brick retrieval, that must be completed to pass the course. Once I had
completed the whole course and passed it was very gratifying and it reassured me that I was
good at my job and I possessed the skills I need to be a lifeguard. Lifeguarding now and earning
a healthy wage alongside the skills I gained have made all the time spent on my training
worthwhile.
The transferable skills I gained and developed include leadership, teamwork, judgement
and critical thinking, problem-solving, and communication. The leadership skills I improved
stemmed from taking control in “situations.” (A “situation” or “sit” is a fake scenario one could
encounter while lifeguarding that they must respond to appropriately. The management of the
“sit” is graded and monitored by a superior or instructor.) When I was the first lifeguard on the
scene I would have to take control of the situation and delegate jobs to the lifeguards helping me.
If I was not the first lifeguard on scene then I would be required to ensure I was utilizing good
team member skills. For example, completing tasks assigned to me and listening to instructions.
As a lifeguard, I also need to be able to get along with all other lifeguards especially because I
will be working with them under pressure. It is important to ensure that I am still being respectful
towards my team members. Judgement and critical thinking are vital in lifeguarding and go hand
in hand with problem-solving. When assessing a scene, especially if I don’t know what
happened, it is important to use judgement to figure out if the scene is safe for me or other
bystanders and critical thinking to figure out what happened. Then, I must use my critical
thinking and problem-solving skills to figure out the best way to solve the issue at hand, preserve
life, and protect all parties involved. This becomes even more important when resources are
limited because I have to be creative and resourceful. Lastly, communication is a skill that
became enhanced due to my lifeguard training. I must be able to communicate quickly,
effectively, and calmly at all points. This may include hand signals, providing instructions,
asking questions, or explaining what I am doing, all potentially under great amounts of pressure.
This has taught me to be concise with my words and clear with descriptions of my actions or
plans. All of these skills that I have further developed through lifeguarding, help me both as a
lifeguard and as a student. They will aid me in the written work and research as I communicate
my findings and potential solutions. I want to get my Ph.D. in anthropology, therefore I will be
doing a lot of research. The critical thinking and judgement skills will help me to ensure that I
am considering many different aspects before reaching my conclusions. I will also be able to
analyze my solutions more effectively.
Throughout all of my training I learned that I am a good leader and with success, I
become more confident. I am also very introverted and anxious when meeting new people. When
I am in control of a situation I am typically able to delegate jobs well and ensure that we are as
productive and efficient as possible. When I started the training I was usually very quiet and I
didn’t say much. However, as I have progressed through my training and been successful I have
become more confident. This has allowed me to better take command of situations and trust
myself and my instincts. I think that taking all the courses and meeting new people has also
helped me interact with new people. Now, meeting groups of new people at once is not as scary
for me as it used to be. On the contrary, taking these courses has made me recognize how much
of an introvert I am and how much my anxiety can impact me. I often feel physically ill before
courses because I am so scared of people. I think acknowledging the impacts of my anxiety as
impacts of my anxiety allows me to better mitigate them. It is something I need to be mindful of.
This experience connects to my future aspirations because of the skills it has provided me
with. The insights I have gained from taking these courses, such as the impacts of my anxiety,
will help me to be more mindful when going into new settings. Through the many courses I’ve
taken, I have also been able to build connections with many aquatic supervisors. As a result, I am
more likely to get hired and I have lots of references for jobs, who have a good understanding of
my skills.
In conclusion, the process of gaining all my lifeguarding certifications has been long and
tiring but extremely beneficial. I have learned and developed many great skills and created
extensive networking. The experiences have also taught me a lot about myself and it is
something I am very proud of and helps me in many ways, especially economically.