Sunday 1 March 2015

Job #3 Working in a shop

Ok so this job wasn’t supposed to be one of the 100, I was meant to be working at a garden centre every weekend to pay for this challenge. I actually only worked one shift, then got offered a job somewhere else…sorry!! But I decided that I wanted to include this within the 100 as to me it really reminded me why I am doing this challenge in the first place!...the universe works in wonderful ways! Here’s why…

So as you know I have been unwell and unable to work blah blah blah! But even though I am nearly better my health is still the most important thing, so I wanted a laid back job that would easily run alongside this challenge. I may say these things, and I genuinely mean them – but I am finding that actually taking it easy is easier said than done. As I have said before, I am someone that loves work (weird I know) – so it makes it very difficult for me to take a step back and do something a bit less taxing for my little brain!

I was really excited to work at the garden centre for 2 reasons. 1 – because it’s local, laid back and a very well run business and 2 – because everyone seemed so friendly. I’d like to point out here that the reason I didn’t like it wasn’t down to the place, but was a classic example of where what I had imagined the job to be and what it actually was were two very different things – hence why it’s great to try before you buy as it were!

I had completely forgotten that there are certain aspects of working in a shop that I love and others that I don’t! For example: I was really surprised when I first worked in a shop to find that I’m actually really good at sales – I would never have described myself as one of those people that could sell ice to an Eskimo (not that I have tried!), and I don’t think anyone else would either. As it turned out, I love the buzz and the challenge of sales – although I would only ever sell a good product that I believe in…I do have morals! I used to regularly beat my weekly target so I can’t be too bad at it! However the bit that I had forgotten about was all the standing around waiting for a customer…I’m sure those of you who have worked in a shop when it wasn’t the job for them have also felt that feeling where a minute feels like a day and where you feel like a tiny piece of you is dying inside! I know it sounds dramatic, but it really isn’t an exaggeration!

I had absolutely not thought through the details of the job, and had just gone on what you see as an outsider (even though I’ve worked in this before, so really was just a moron for not thinking it through…I blame my dodgy head!). I am learning more and more with every new job just how much more jobs entail than you would expect. It’s not really something I have ever given any thought to – but now that I am, I am finding it so interesting how different a job can be to what you think it will be. I really do think that as a society we aren’t really encouraged to give much thought to jobs or to explore different options – which when you think about it is just crazy when we spend 25 to 30 years working (source), that’s 1/3rd of our lives!

I have gone from someone who before I got ill had it all planned out, and was happily working my way up the company ladder knowing exactly where I am heading. To now I have absolutely no idea what I want to do, and I’m just taking any opportunities that arise, to see where they take me. That would have scared the life out of me before, but now I have learnt it is all about the journey rather than the destination! #cheesy

A lot of the time when it comes to thinking about a different job, we put up our own barriers – I haven’t got the qualifications I need is a classic. That’s why volunteering is great, as then the company can see your skills. Yes you might not have the qualification they are looking for, but you have all these other great skills that you would never have learnt at college and that make you even more perfect for the job. If you just sent in your C.V however, that’s really hard to get across, and depending how many people apply – your C.V might not even get read if it’s not immediately apparent that you have what they are looking for. By volunteering you become a person as opposed to just a piece of paper. So whilst you may not be the giving type who wants to donate their time for free, on a purely selfish level it’s a great way to get a job that on paper you’re not really appropriate for.

I am a prime candidate for this, as I had no idea what I wanted to do when I left school so I decided not to go to university. I’m glad I made that decision as I still don’t know what I want to do! But it can make it tricky to get jobs sometimes. I have got 3 jobs now from volunteering, so I am living proof that it works, yet when I apply for jobs just sending in my C.V I rarely hear back!

I’m not really sure how I have got from the garden centre to volunteering, but there we go! I hope this has provided a little food for thought!

I have a backlog of blogs as I suddenly had loads of jobs come up at once (going with the flow! ;-)) but I don’t want to bombard you, so I’ll wait a couple of days before posting the next one!

Have a great week

Bobbie :)

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