It’s end of the year and typically work slows a little as we head into the holiday season, giving us time to reflect on our work and the people who have helped us make it through another year. When I think back on the 30 years that I have been in the drilling business, I am grateful that the individuals who have been my boss have been willing to share their experience with me.
Over my career, I have had many bosses and mentors. My first several years in the industry were spent in the field working on drilling and pump service rigs. My supervisors on the rigs were sometimes not much older than me and sometimes old enough to be called “grandpa.” Their formal education was almost always less than mine. However, I very quickly learned that a degree in science or business was not needed to work safely and productively in the drilling field. I was the new “college kid” from the office and took the time honored ribbing that the new guy endured. (I think my favorite was pipe dope on the inside of my hard hat, under my truck door handle and on the back side of the steering wheel—all in the same day). I marveled at how they worked hard and solved problems day after day, in the rain, snow and heat. By asking questions, observing the operations and working side by side with the crews, I gained an understanding of how the drilling business worked, literally from the ground up.