Did you work during college?

MANY jobs!   I started college at Cal Poly, SLO days after high school graduation.  I got my first job within a week after summer quarter began as a barista in the student center coffee shop/ice cream bar.   Best skill I learned from this job was plunking an ice cream scoop into coffee to make the nasty drink palatable!  A bit of caramel was not amiss in this equation.   When fall quarter began, I didn’t have enough money for books and supplies, so I got an additional job working as a developer in the graphics photography center.  I burnt plates for student artwork and kept the books.  The hours I worked weren’t supported by the few jobs from students, so I was let go.  I see this as a blessing in disguise since then found a job that gave me as many flexible hours as I needed and I was able to resign from my barista position.

When I took the job at Central Coast Surfboards, I had no idea what a profoundly awesome impact it would have on my life.  I started as a data entry clerk (due to my ninja typing skills) and worked my way up the chain learning almost every job available until I landed in the warehouse building skateboards and packing orders (my choice and DEFINITELY the most fun job.)  My bosses personally handed us our paychecks each pay day, thanking us for our time.  Nice touch, Guys!  It was, hands down, the best job I had working for someone else.  I relocated back home due to my family’s needs after Mom’s accident and had to resign from Central Coast Surfboards.  When I gave my notice, explaining my situation, my bosses’ only response was concern:  is there anything we can do to help you and keep you here working with us?  I truly wished there was…

Once home, and after caring for Mom wasn’t taking up as much of my time, I got a job at a local print shop.  The owner was a punk and I took away from this job the brutal reality that some employers don’t give a crud about employees.   I moved on to work as a proofreader for the hub of indie newspapers in the greater San Jose area.  That was a fun job until I hurt my back sitting at a ridiculous work station.  Next, I worked as a Team Lead of the Price Change Team at Target while I concurrently returned to college to finish my bachelor’s degree.  I left Target to start my career in Accounting, landing an entry level position at a tomato packing plant keeping track of their nationwide inventory.  Immediately after graduation, I finally got my first job as an accountant at a CPA firm in Los Gatos, CA and learned the most important lesson available to me at the time…  The best thing you can know is what you DON’T know.   I learned so much about accounting at this firm, beginning with basic account reconciliations and ending with how lucrative preparing tax returns can be!