Benjamin Thomas

Teamwork - Through my role as a lifeguard i have learned good teamwork skills Working together with colleagues in a training scenario has developed this skill so that when it is needed in a real lifesaving scenario i am ready to work with others to save lives Over the past 2 years as a lifeguard i have worked with a lot of different people and feel like i am able to happily get along and work well with anyone I also completed my bronze Duke Of Edinburgh award and this involved a 2 day long walk During this we worked as a team to navigate our route

Communication - Both of my current jobs require good communication skills When i am working in the shoe shop it is important to talk with customers to build a rapport and help them to the best of my ability Working as a lifeguard it is important to be able to communicate well in different scenarios When telling somebody that they can't do something or dealing with argumentative customers it is important to do this in a friendly and professional manner and not come off the wrong way For example, there have been times when I've had to deescalate arguments between clients

Problem solving - I feel like i have developed good problem solving skills from my time as a lifeguard In my 2 years of lifeguarding I've had to deal with many different unique situations I've also dealt with lots of different injuries as a first aider

Focused - I am a very focused person and that comes from being a swimmer for my whole life until i was 16 I would spend 15 hours training every week including morning sessions This has helped me to become more driven and more focused which helps in lifeguarding as you always need to be paying attention and can't miss anything that happens