Working in a restaurant can be one of the best experiences, or it can be one of the worst. You work with many different types of people from all different age groups and who all come from many different aspects of life. Here are some of the top five lessons I’ve learned while working in the restaurant business for over three years of my young adult life.

1. Play well with others.

In the restaurant business, you have the luxury of working with an estimated amount of forty coworkers in a small space each shift. Each person is always in a hurry to get their tasks done in order to keep the place running smoothly. Whether it be accidently bumping into someone, pushing through a crowd, or ten people speaking at once; someone is always going to be in your way. With this in mind, you will have to learn how to take your turn and be patient. Patience is key!

2. How to keep your shit together.

Imagine walking up to a table to greet them, and it turns out to be your ex boyfriend with his new girl (its happened before, believe me)…you can’t just ignore the situation, you must learn how to play it cool. The art of faking it until you make it was invented by waiters and waitresses many years ago.

3. Becoming a night owl.

Many times you will not get off work until the late hours of the evening. Many of your friends have already had their night out at the bar and it’s time for them to come home, yet you are just now getting off work. Luckily for you, so did fifteen of your other coworkers! You better start becoming BFF’s with the people you work with, because it is unlikely anyone will want to go out with you at 1 AM besides the people you just slaved the day away with at work.

4. Not eating all the food.

All day you have been staring at fresh food that comes out of the oven or straight off the grill. You haven’t eaten in a few hours, but the smell of the bread is just too much for you to handle. You decide 'why not eat one piece of bread, it won’t hurt?' Well, one piece ends up turning into four and fifteen gained pounds later you’ll be regretting the decision you made in the first place. Eating the food at the place you work is okay every once in a while, but do not make it a habit. Hold back your cravings or eat before you come into work, you will thank yourself later.

5. Having a sense of humor.

One of the most valuable things I have learned about working in the restaurant business, is that you have to learn how to laugh at yourself. You are going to make mistakes, but it’s inevitable. The tray of drinks you just dropped does not mean you will have a terrible night, or that one bad tip does not outweigh all of the good ones! Have fun and never take anything too seriously, especially yourself.