Probably every question you have about Lakes could be answered by reviewing the threads.

Just have a mission statement in mind if you come here. You need to study hard through training, fly as much as you can, and upgrade. Be a good FO and learn from your captains (become a chameleon). Keep your nose clean here and try to do everything as a professional. After about 1 year you can upgrade to Captain (if you meet ATP requirements) and enjoy that for a little while. Then move on to whatever will further your career. You will make lifelong friends and have a great time flying in our environment. There will be days that are not so fun (junior man / extensions) but if you keep the end goal in mind then it helps.

We seem to be stretched thin on pilots (whats new?) so even if you are on reserve you will be flying a bunch. In all reality you will probably hold a line right out of training as some of the outstation bases have lines that are "open".

Just keep an open mind and please do as much research as you can before making a decision on where to go. For me, the pros outweighed the cons and I don't regret working at Lakes. I am looking forward to moving on one day though