We have all been warned of the hustle and bustle of the glorious life as a retail worker and yet the majority of high school and college students work in that field at some point in their lives. First off you will drink a lot of coffee, and I’m sorry to announce this but at least a good chunk of each of your paychecks will be dedicated to supporting your Starbucks addiction. You will also find it annoyingly convenient that the Starbucks at the mall you work in opens before your store opens so that you have constant access to it at all times…I’m sorry I am personally annoyed by this fact. You will also get reasonably close with your co-workers.
Whether it is making jokes about each other or weird customers that just walked into the store, you guys will be forced to bond as you fold shirts or process shipments in the back room. Your cheeks are going to hurt from smiling at each and every customer as they enter and leave the store, and sometimes you will be hurt when they scurry away from you upon entering the store. Do not take the scurrying personally, it is because you are greeting them and most likely they are shopping alone due to the fact that they do not want to have any human interaction that day. When you go on your break you will find yourself back at Starbucks because you need more coffee to survive the rest of your day, on your phone trying to get in contact with your friends because you have FOMO (fear of missing out) because you have a nine hour shift that day.
Eventually you will get bored on your break and go back to work a few minutes early to annoy your favorite co-workers while they try to enjoy their breaks. One rule I have learned as a retail worker is to bring water. You can lose your voice trying help the customers who really truly don’t want it. I know, I know I joke about how awful it is, how you lose your paycheck chugging venti iced lattes, or feeling rejected by the 75-year-old woman who refuses to hear about the big sale, but retail has taught me a lot. It has taught me to not label people because the really pretty girl who makes me want to crawl under a rock is not always a huge snob, she can sometimes be normal and actually pretty sweet. And the woman who is overly talkative is really just excited because she is a two time breast cancer survivor and in her words “looks at every day as a huge blessing” (true story people).
Retail has taught me to appreciate other retail workers. Now I always stop to say hello to anyone that greets me in a store and I am patient when their cash register freezes on them and I always thank them with a smile. I think everyone should have to work a job in retail because yes it can suck and it can be boring and nobody wants to spend a beautiful sunny day inside folding shirts or stacking purses onto a shelf so they look neat and tidy. However, it teaches you how to speak to people from all walks of life from just about anywhere in the world, which is the most important skill you can have in this world...at least that’s what I think. Life as a retail worker is by no means glamorous but the skills you learn along the way, are more valuable than that week’s paycheck.
