Getting My First Job

First jobs are always something special, and mark a great time of change in your life. My first job was gained back on December 15th, but since my blog posts have been very rare, it's probably been that song since I was constantly posting.

I was very picky when I was applying for jobs; which may not have been the best. I knew I didn't want to work with food, which ruled out sit down restaurants and fast food restaurants. I also didn't want to work at a grocery store, because I felt those jobs were always offered and you just got right in. A little bit of competition was something I was looking for; the possibility of rejection but satisfaction if I got the job. Weird, I know.

So I applied to Menards, which sort of like a Home Depot/Lowe's sort of store. It's basically a "whatever you need" kind of store. It's based in the Midwest so if you live in a different around of the country or world you've probably never heard of it. A call came about a month or so later (my application had gotten misplaced or something when I applied so they got to it really late), and I had an interview set up. The day of the interview I was SO nervous, and when I get nervous and have to talk, I blurb up a lot of my words. Luckily I did pretty well in the interview, and found I was talking slowly and was honestly pretty calm; the nerves had just built up beforehand.

A second call came a few days later with the manager saying that I could start working and needed to come in for a few days of orientation. After orientation was done and I passed my cashiering test, I was set up to work 3 weekends in a row, since it was around Christmas and people had already asked for time off. The shift on Saturday was 1-9, and Sunday's shift was 1-8. Those first couple weeks were long and rough, but that first paycheck was a LOT!

Then things settled down and I got into my schedule and the routine of it. I'm still trying to learn where everything is in the store because the store is huge and has so many different departments. It also doesn't help that merchandise gets moved around all the time.

For all of you younger folks looking to get a job; be confident and just get one. It may not always be fun and you may dread having to go to work, but as long as you like what you're doing and who you're working with, you will have a fun time. You know what I've said before; "be happy and do what you love." Well I mean I said it once in a video and put it on a whiteboard in my room but, I still think about that all the time.

~Isaac