Do you remember your first job?
Mine was at a pizza restaurant…Mother’s Pizza. It doesn’t exist anymore, but I don’t think that was my fault.
Actually, I loved this restaurant. My family frequented it on Friday nights. It had a lot of old collectables and would show silent movies too. As a kid I thought it was a cool place.
I was 14 years old when I joined the payroll and my main responsibilities were bussing tables and washing dishes. It certainly wasn’t glamorous…the kitchen was hot and the commercial dishwasher even hotter and I remember some late nights closing where I was almost asleep on my feet. My pay was $2.70 an hour. But it was a job and I was glad to have it.
Soon after getting my drivers license I went from making pizzas to delivering them. I started at Giorgio’s Pizza where my boss let me drive his van…it was awesome. I loved driving, even into the early morning hours. I was fast, I made good tips and my boss trusted me to be responsible with his vehicle.
I had numerous driving jobs over the years including Purolator and UPS. Yes I was a teamster, and I know where the bodies are.
But you want to know something else?
Mothers Pizza wasn’t my first job…not really.
My first job was delivering a weekly paper called the Brant News. I was around 9. It was in a neighbourhood not far from my house, where the homes were on big lots which meant walking…lots of walking…Did I mention I had to walk…a lot!
Soon after, I started delivering the Globe & Mail. I can still hear that awful alarm going off at 5:30am…I was 11 or 12. I had four or five different paper routes over the years.
I bet you had some kind of a job when you were a kid as well. Maybe you mowed lawns or shovelled snow or sold lemonade on hot summer days.
Why?
Because children understand intuitively that business is good…it’s a noble thing…it’s honourable…and it’s better than sitting around doing nothing.
I learned so much from my earliest jobs…
- how to interact with adults
- manners
- responsibility
- the value of showing up and being punctual
- being consistent and reliable
- weekend papers are HEAVY!!!
- pulling Saturday papers on a sleigh in winter was a life saver.
- that it’s easier to sit at home than to walk the streets in the heat getting ink all over your hands
- how to prioritize a part-time job with family, friends and school
- how to problem solve (ever had a customer not get their paper? It’s not pretty)
- how to manage money
- receiving remuneration for a product or service is good
I learned so many valuable life lessons from my earliest entrepreneurial ventures…I’m sure you did too. But for many, somewhere along the way their childlike optimism gives way to cynicism.
- most people hate their jobs
- they think it’s a drudgery…a necessary evil rather than a privilege
- they work for the weekend rather than for a higher purpose
- they assume everyone is out for themselves
- they do as little as possible
- they focus more on retirement than enjoying a productive, enjoyable life now
But children get it. They understand that working is good…that they can even start their own business if they choose and they can provide a valuable service for others, receive money in return, and everyone is better for it.
Because business is moral and noble…so much so, children get it.
Q. Do you remember your first job?
Q. Which job was your least enjoyable? Why?
Q. What’s been your most enjoyable job? Why?
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