Today we were privileged to welcome Old Boy Mr. Joseph Watts (2004-2008) to assembly. Upon the completion of his time at PNBHS Mr. Watts completed a Sports Science degree at Massey University. He was an accomplished squash player - a member of the PNBHS ‘A’ Team for five years, selected into the Central Districts Junior and Senior teams, the Central Districts Under 19 Champion and a New Zealand Secondary Schools Representative – and worked hard at trying to forge a career as a professional sportsman. Mr. Watts was very much a ‘townie’ with little interest in agriculture or farming.
After this Mr. Watts moved to Raetihi and it was here that he began a series of farm related jobs, including a decent stint shearing, developed a passion for farming and completed part-time distance study through Massey University to change his career pathway. Mr Watts is currently employed as a Technical Field Representative with PGG Wrightson, a role that entails working with other industry experts to advise farmers on all things agricultural related, in particular about what crops to grow when and how to manage those crops.
Earlier this year Mr. Watts won the East Coast Young farmer of the Year and in a couple of weeks will compete in the national final in the Hawke’s Bay. We wish him all the best for this.
Some of the key messages from Mr. Watts’ presentation included:
· Career pathways are not linear – there are a huge range of employment opportunities available, especially in agriculture, but the movement from one role to another doesn’t happen by chance or according to any pattern. It is important to go looking for opportunities.
· Developing relationship building skills is essential – technical knowledge and skills can be developed over time and you can look up the answers to technical questions, but you first of all need to build the relationships with the people you work for and with
· Learning is continuous – there is always something new to learn. Being enthusiastic and committed in your work is important and will help to build a positive reputation and create opportunities for different experiences and promotion.
· Set goals and work hard to achieve them – Mr. Watts gave many examples of this as he went through his career trajectory. He explained the meticulous preparation he has gone through in the lead up to the Young Farmer of the Year competition.
Click on the link below to vote for Mr. Watts in the Young Farmer of the Year 'People's Choice' award - it takes only a few seconds: https://www.fmg.co.nz/peopleschoice/joseph-watts
