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The First Job(s) I Ever Loved- Part 2

posted 28th December 2009    Written by: Robyn    CATEGORY: All Posts, Job/Career/Work, Quarterlife Crisis, Robyn, Season 1

Jeans, t-shirts, comfy shoes, familiar faces, friendly coworkers, inside jokes, free food and drinks, and of course…cash in hand at the end of the night—all perks of working in a restaurant or bar.

Last week I wrote about how much I loved my first jobs in the restaurant/bar industry. I wrote about how my serving and bar-tending jobs never seemed much like real work because I loved what I was doing and the people I saw every day. Most of all, I loved the team mentality and the overall sense of family.Truly working together and allowing the workplace to start feeling as familiar as your own home is an irreplaceable experience.

As I was saying before, my experiences in the industry had a great effect on me and who I am today. Being a server is tough, and if you can survive the first couple days, then you can survive and will come out of the profession stronger in the end and ready to take on anything.

My friend, Paul, was the one who convinced me to start serving to overcome my shyness. He had been a server for a while at this point, and he swore it was the reason he had kicked his nervous stuttering habit. In the beginning, he was terrified of talking to strangers, but he made himself do it. With every new table and every new customer, it got easier and easier. He was less and less nervous, and eventually he wasn’t nervous at all, and his stutter disappeared.

When I started my first serving position I was pretty young, somewhat insecure, a little fragile, and very shy. I didn’t like criticism, and I broke under pressure. Obviously, this doesn’t describe the ideal server, and that’s a fact—I definitely was not the ideal server. I hated the thought of forcing small talk with the people at my tables. I hated the idea of customers treating me like their own personal food slave.

However, eventually I toughened up. I needed to. I think most people need to. It took a couple weeks of messing up orders and spilling drinks, a couple rude comments, and a couple really bad customers, but I came out of it a better server and, most importantly, a better person. Through serving, I gained confidence and a sense of self. I found my own voice and my own personality. It was fun meeting new people constantly and striking up random conversations with random people. I loved my customers, and I actually had “regulars” come in and request me to be their server. I became close with my coworkers, and we used to rock the bar after hours.

Besides just overcoming my shyness, I started to really respect myself and demand respect from others.

Since I worked at a family-owned bar, I was actually allowed to stick up for myself when it came to rude customers or drunken men attempting to hit on me. I developed a quick wit and a snappy-I-don’t-take-crap-from-anyone attitude. Even when a customer complained that his burger wasn’t cooked right or his beer wasn’t cold enough… It was fun to say, “Chill out, Buddy. I’ll get you a new one.”

Nothing seemed to faze me—no amount of complaints could ruin my day because what was the worst that could happen? Someone would leave me a bad tip? Who cares… I’d make up for it with all the tables that loved me.

By the time I had graduated college and was looking for a job, I had been in the restaurant/bar industry for six years. I know that the skills I gained while serving definitely helped me obtain the jobs I had after college. Honestly, interviews were easy for me. I was used to having strangers ask me about myself. I was also just plain comfortable around people I didn’t know. I knew how to talk my way out of awkward silences. I knew how to find common ground with anyone. I was confident and secure and ready to try something new. Serving shaped me into a multitasking, people-person who knows what she wants.

I have continued to carry what I learned from serving with me throughout life.

If any of you readers are currently unemployed or looking for a new challenge. I would recommend serving or bartending as an excellent interim job. I can only rave about everything you will get out of it!

photo credit: Oakley WebCam

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