Kudos for recognizing the misstep. Many Captains go their entire
careers without making your discoveries. In my short time as a Captain, I
have
adopted the following techniques:
1. First Leg - I let the FO fly the first leg. If I fly it, he
will mimic my
style. If he goes first, I have a better idea what I am working with.
With a FNG
(Fine New Guy, or something like that), you don't have that luxury.
2. Big to Small - If he messed up three big things and twenty
small
things, discuss the three big things and save the 20 small things for
another
leg. There is plenty of time to address them later.
3. Kudos Equal Hits - If you comment on three bad things, comment
on
three good things. Also, alternate them. The worst approach is "These
`goods',
and these `bads'". After a couple legs, they ignore the `goods' and await
the `bads'.
4. Progress Lines - Let them know how they are doing relative to
how
well they should be doing. A new guy makes mistakes. If he is ahead of
his
peers, he needs to hear this.
5. Bonehead Stories - I always save a couple of bonehead stories.
"I
heard about this one guy who..." It lends comic relief and perspective.
Remember, we are our own worst critics and the FNG is probably beating
himself
up over little stuff.
The good news is that every new guy improves your seniority <G>.
That is always a very good thing.
Steve Swauger
<Gerry wrote
<Flew the other day with an FNG on his first day as line pilot. After the
<day was over I realized I had tried to pass on 24 years of experience in 4
<hours without a plan. Most of the points just weren't appropriate for his
<level of experience. The trap is that we assume everything we have
learned
<needs to be passed on. I get the same feeling about the psycho babble
<discussion. What is interesting and useful in a clinic is not necessarily
<useful in a cockpit.