Career Exploration: That First Job

Our First Jobs: Team BT Reflects

For most of us, first jobs are not just about the paycheck. First jobs allowed us to take on real responsibility, stay accountable, and learn the value of work. Team BT reflects on our first jobs and the important lessons we learned for our futures, financial and otherwise.

Carissa (Co-Founder of Benjamin Talks)

“While I started babysitting and tutoring at the age of 12, my first real job was working as a teenage waitress at a neighborhood pizzeria. Let me tell you something…nothing says pressure like working at a pizzeria in an Italian-American neighborhood in Queens on a Friday during Lent!

One of the most important lessons I learned was how to effectively multitask while simultaneously answering take-out orders, checking out counter customers and boxing deliveries.

Perhaps most importantly, I also learned how to deal with all types of customers with a smile on my face.”

Nikki (Co-Founder of Benjamin Talks)

“Although I worked as an assistant coach at soccer camps from the age of 12, my first real job was as a filing clerk at a logistics company the following year. The company was a family-owned business that opened their first packaging supply store in Lower Manhattan at the outbreak of World War II.

During my time working there, I learned a lot about company organization and attention to detail. I also learned about time management, as I would work each day and then head straight to hours of soccer training...no doubt the days were long!

Those bi-weekly paychecks were certainly an important experience in understanding the value of a dollar (and the cut for taxes, yikes!).”

Alanna (Head of Marketing & Social Media)

“My first job was as a CIT (Counselor-In-Training) at a local summer camp where I had previously been a camper for many years. CITs are there to help the counselors with the campers and ultimately train to become a full-time camp counselor the following summer.

At the time, CITs were paid well below minimum wage (cue first valuable lesson about minimum wage!), but at the end of the summer all the parents would typically give a generous tip.

This summer job taught me the importance of giving good gratuities, especially to people who help out with my children!”

Emily (Editor In Chief)

“My first real job as a teenager was working as a summer lifeguard at a nearby pool. Over the course of the summer, I learned about the importance of arriving on time (there is no way to fudge a time clock!), how to decode my paycheck and how to manage my schedule around work hours.

I was motivated to work extra shifts to save up my spending money for college…and I certainly thought a lot harder about how I’d use the money after working an entire summer to earn it!”

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The Takeaway

While a first job may not pay the big bucks, there is no doubt that the experience can be immeasurably valuable. It’s critical that parents take just a few moments to share the important lessons they learned from their first jobs with their kiddos.

From learning to be accountable, answering to a boss, multitasking under pressure, or interacting with even the most difficult customers, first jobs help new workers gain meaningful skills - one bi-weekly pay stub at a time.

What do you think you might want to do for your first job? What opportunities for work are available to young people where we live?