My First Job

 

I think we can all look back and remember our first job…

Technically speaking, my first job was probably the Kool-Aid stand of 1993. Since I had absolutely no responsibilities in the 90s, I will accredit my first job to when I was in high school and responsible for my cell phone (huge Nokia style) and gas money.

Growing up in a small town had it perks, but also had some unfortunate set backs, like finding a place to work! Not only was my country town smaller, it was also a college town. Any available jobs worth having, were usually snatched up by the college kids.

At 16, I wanted two things in life: A car and a job.

I had neither, but was determined to find both. At the end of my sophomore year, I worked a deal out with my parents and was able to get a car. The catch? I had to pay for gas to go anywhere and I had to pay for a cell phone. So, I started job searching all around town. I sent in my application to dozens of businesses around town. Most I never heard back from, others said “Oh, your too young” or “We only hire college students.” Discouragement quickly set in and I thought I would never find a job.

By some miracle, I stumbled into a temporary babysitting gig that summer which eventually turned into a full time job and continued on for the rest of high school. I figured babysitting a five year old would be an easy money maker and would require little brain power.

A few months into it, I realized I was wrong about one thing… that this would be an easy job. Not only was this full time, but it was hard! Not mentally, but emotionally. Mixing a teenager and a five year old, plus hours and hours together all day every day became old fast. Once I sat down and calculated what I was really making, and it was equivalent to a dollar an hour! Sometimes I had to be there at 5:00am and would stay until 8:00pm in the summer. His parents both had demanding, full time jobs.

It paid my gas and phone though, so I stuck by it. Many times, I wanted to quit. I would start job searching on the side, but never had luck.

As my senior year came to a close, I looked back on those years and realized what an incredible learning experience it had been. Not only did I learn patience, but I realized that I wanted a career that would challenge my mind, keep me on my toes. I also learned that it isn’t always about the money, but passion. Being passionate about what you do is the most important part of a career!

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Math and science were always my favorite subjects, but math didn’t challenge me. It came easy and I always did well in it. Chemistry was one of my favorite high school classes and I knew that it would be a fascinating, yet difficult degree. I decided that is what I wanted to do in college. What do I do as a chemist? Read my post here about What Does A Chemist Do?.

To this day, I am grateful for the experiences of my first job. It taught me to keep trying and never give up…little did I know that even after college graduation, finding a job would be trying. An even deeper lesson learned, was being thankful for a job, even if it isn’t what you want, sometimes it is the stepping stone to the next adventure!

If you are a professional or working on your career, TheLadders is a great place to job search and they also have some valuable career advice to help you in your journey.

Do you have a first job memory? What are you favorite places to go for career advice?

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