Meryl's Notes Blog

I wrote a letter in response to the question [might require free registration] posed by The Dallas Morning News Collin County Edition: What did you learn from your first summer job, and was it worth it? During summer, are today’s teens better off getting a job or going to summer school?

The long version of my response:

I learned that I shouldn’t just take the first job offer that comes along. One of my biggest regrets is that I went to work for a store far away from me when I lined up an interview with a library within walking distance. The store gave me a job and I took it instead of waiting till after I had the library interview.

As for today’s teens — it depends on the kid and his needs. He may go to camp or travel with a group, both of which are beneficial. While having a job is great and teaches a lot of things, we’re only kids for so long and once we reach adulthood, we don’t have as much time for camp and travel. Perhaps it can be worked out to do more than one thing.

Teen jobs I’ve done: babysitting, gift wrapping in my mom’s store that didn’t last long, Tandy Center administrative employee, Toys R Us cashier and stocker, and campus bookstore (didn’t last long as I couldn’t handle class work and the job especially since I had a commute).

I don’t think I learned any special lessons like those we hear from the bigwigs these days about their paper route and what not. I was just being a kid who wanted to earn money. I wasn’t thinking beyond that or about the business lessons I could pick up. But I did pick up that it’s not necessary to accept the first job offer.

However, I kind of did it again years later when I moved back to Texas. I was anxious to get a job as Paul and I didn’t have one lined up when we moved back (he got out of the Air Force). I went on two job interviews and accepted the first one before having been offered the second one. The second one offered better pay and a job more aligned with my background than the first. But I had a better rapport with the first company.

I didn’t regret that decision anything like the library one. It was good experience and eventually I landed a permanent job with a telecommunications company that later took me to another telecommunications company with a far better commute and a part-time hours for a few years. I doubt that path would’ve happened had I taken the other job.

But with not taking the library job — the path didn’t lead anywhere or give me experience so I regret not having the opportunity to work in a library that happened to be close to home. Years later, I finally worked in a library as a volunteer in my daughter’s elementary school.

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