One of the best ways to earn money as a young adult is by working in a restaurant. I have been working in the restaurant industry since the age of 14. I started as a hostess, greeting guests and walking them to their table. Then, I progressed into a food runner, “assistant server" and finally a waitress.
The money from serving is phenomenal. I am usually able to pay off a month's rent in two nights of work. Mind you, serving is intense eight or more hour shifts, without eating or being able to think due to the chaos of the dinner rush.
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My waitress career started down the shore at a resort restaurant. I could write a novel on stories from my nights serving tables, but one thing is for sure, I made a lot of money and memories.
I believe everyone should serve tables, at least for a few months during their life to experience the amount of pressure and stress involved in this job. It is not as easy as you think to multi-task while dealing with “hangry” (hungry/angry) customers.
Being a server also changed my attitude when I am the customer in a restaurant. I learned not to complain if my food is taking too long, because it is guaranteed the kitchen is backed up, which is not the server’s fault. I also know that if my order is wrong, to not get upset. We are all humans and make mistakes. If the server forgets one small detail, it is not the end of the world.
I also learned the proper gesture of tipping. The tips are the server’s income and there is nothing worse than working hard and not receiving the correct form of payment.
Working in a restaurant also establishes valuable social skills and helps form friendships. All my co-workers turn into family and people I can rely on. I have now worked in three different restaurants and each one gets harder and harder to leave the group of people I work with. Your co-workers are also the only ones who can empathize with you when a table stiffs you, or are continually asking for more condiments and napkins …There are nights I thought about walking out on all of my tables and quitting the job on the spot. While other nights I encounter some of the nicest people and receive generous tips. The unpredictability of the industry is what is so thrilling about the job. It is an experience everyone should encounter one time or another in their life. Especially so you don't become that hangry customer all the servers want to avoid.
