Having a crappy job is a part of growing up. Whether it’s stocking shelves in a grocery store, taking orders in a fast food joint, or waiting tables at a restaurant; it is known that these jobs royally suck. But, they are necessary if you want money to go out when your parents stop supporting your frivolous spending. My crappy job throughout high school was serving at this little restaurant. Though I loved parts of the job, there were those moments where I did not want to be there anymore. In the end, I gained so many skills from having a customer service job.

1. Excellent Customer Service Skills

As a server, you interact with many different kinds of people. There are the super nice ones and there are those that make you hate your job with a passion. These people have the mindset that they are better than you but, as much as that suck, you still need to give them your best service because you have no other choice. Having a customer yell at you is better than your manager yell at you.

2. Ability to Multitask

Having to serve many tables at once means you get really good at multitasking. Doing many things at once is part of the job description. A basic schedule for every table is greeting the customers, getting their drinks, taking their orders, running their food out, and continuously checking on them. Now imagine doing that for about five tables at once. Yeah, it gets overwhelming but the longer you serve tables, the easier it is to remember.

3. Know How To Be A Great Customer At Other Restaurants

After waiting tables, you will really feel a sisterhood, or brotherhood, with other servers. Because having difficult customers are the worse, you try to be the best customer ever. Tipping the proper percentage is always engraved in your mind because getting stiffed out of a tip you earned sucks. Personally, I end up stacking the plates to make everything easier for the servers to clean up afterwards. These little things just brighten up a server’s day.

4. Perfecting A Fake Smile

I used to wear my emotions on my face. If I was unhappy, people could tell. Eventually, that caused problems when I started working. After a while, I learned how to suppress my emotions and put on a fake smile. Along with that, I can fake a happy personality to be inviting.

All of these skills I gained from my serving job really did help me get a real job that I liked. As bad as a crappy job may seem at the time, the skills you learn will stick with you for the rest of your life.