College is a wonderful experience where we acquire skills for our future jobs, make lifelong friends, and learn about life. But some of us, due to the need of money to support ourselves, are forced to find jobs that are nowhere near ideal from what we actually want to do. Whether it is at an office, fast food chain, or at a department store, you are bound to go through at least one of these situations.
1. You absolutely hate what you’re doing.
You wake up in the morning dreading all the chores that you have to do at your job because, let’s face it, who wants to be frying chicken or have to be taking “advice” from customers?
2. You hate who you’re working with.
Your co-workers are likely to be older than you, so they might think that they are superior than you and act like your boss when they actually aren’t.
3. You are underappreciated or taken for granted.
Because of being a student, people will try to step on you and rarely appreciate your hard work and ideas to help the company succeed or improve customer service.
4. You might be underpaid or not paid at all.
Maybe you took an unpaid internship to add to the list of experiences on your C.V., so when you graduate you have a better chance of finding a good job in your field, but, honey you’re not getting any cash. Or because you haven’t graduated and you don’t have a title yet, you are paid less than what you’re actually working for.
5. You get no benefits.
Because you work part-time, you might not get paid during vacation periods, health insurance, sick days, or bonuses.
And, lastly…
6. You get the worse shifts and the job no one wants.
Because you need it more than the others, you might take whatever shift you are offered, and those are probably starting at midnight. Or maybe you are the chosen one to clean the toilets this week.
Despite all the struggles and tears shed, we must be grateful for our jobs. They might not be ideal or enjoyable, but they are helping us survive. Also, they provide us with the opportunity to develop our skills and acquire new ones, they help us gain experience in the “real” world, and most importantly they contribute the money we need. If that is not enough motivation, think of the fact that someday, not so far away, you will finally get to quit this job and work in the field you are interested in. Everything takes time, patience, and hard work. DON’T GIVE UP!