The ideas behind every well that we drill today have been built upon the ideas of others who have walked before us.

You can't find something until you know what it looks like.

Importance of a Mentor

by Bob Shoup

We as petroleum geoscientists are a part of a vast heritage. Where would we be without our Heritage? Every concept, every idea would need to be re-generated -- with the result that the world would have certainly run out of oil and gas. Not because we would have exhausted the supply, but rather we could not have sustained a pace of drilling that would have matched the demand.

The ideas behind every well that we drill today have been built upon the ideas of others who have walked before us. Our heritage is a rich one, and includes many noted individuals, Lyell, Hutton, Drake, Joiner, Platt, Leverson, and Halbouty to name but a few. But just as importantly, our heritage also includes those individuals that few may have heard of -- those who took the time and effort to take younger scientists under their wing and serve as their mentor.

As students, you should be looking for individuals to be your mentors. At least one of your mentors should be someone in the industry, or retired from the industry you are considering for your career. The catch is, you need to find your own mentor; look for individuals willing to be your mentor -- then go to them and ASK them to be your mentor. You will find that most individuals will be honored that you asked, and more than willing to provide guidance.

So what value will a mentor have that is worth all that effort to find one?

I remember being on a field trip many years ago. We had stopped at an outcrop noted for containing fossil shark’s teeth. All of the trip participants had no trouble finding a good collection of teeth whereas I had found none. As we were nearing the time we needed to leave, my good friend and mentor Blair Parrott came up and asked what was wrong. I confessed that I was not finding any sharks teeth. He bent down and pointing to a slightly darker spot in the shale, noting that this is what they look like in the outcrop. Almost as if by magic, I saw dozens of shark’s teeth where minutes ago I had seen none, and I too was able to get a nice collection of shark’s teeth.

This story illustrates to me the best of mentoring. Blair, as a good mentor, observed that I was having difficulty, and approached me. Just as importantly, I had to be willing to admit that I was struggling -- something our pride, or fear of ridicule often prevent. Most importantly, I realized that you can’t find something until you know what it looks like.

Do you know what your career will look like?

Do you know what will be expected of you in your career?

Once you know the answers to these questions, you can be more competitive in the market. With the guidance of a mentor, you can know what is expected of you.