<p>I’m so excited! It’s just a part-time job at a new pizza restaurant near our house, but it’s her first job. </p>
<p>She <em>really</em> wanted to do this. She went on line and looked at job postings, made a resume using a template in MS, got some call backs, did a phone interview. Tonight she did an in-person interview and they hired her! She’s only 15 and everyone else they hired were college students (I know because they told her and asked if she would be okay with this). She is beside herself with excitement and is very proud of herself.</p>
<p>And I’m so proud too but I have to explain. This is a kid who was, throughout childhood, a shy, socially awkward, young-for-her-age math-and-science-nerd kinda girl. She was never one to take a lot of initiative or assert herself and I could never imagine her doing college interviews one day! And now, she’s cold-calling and advising kids at school on how to make a resume. And she seemed so confident and poised and adult-like this evening. Oh where oh where did THIS girl come from? </p>
<p>I think teen jobs are soooo valuable to their development, especially for those on the more introverted or awkward side.</p>
<p>Our D shocked us by calling me on her 1st day of school in August by announcing that she had just applied for & accepted a campus job in business/cinema (we had no idea she was looking). She was also the only non-work-study kid & the only kid who wasn’t majoring in cinema who they hired. She loved the job & she’s back for the 2nd term!</p>
<p>Waitressing is a great job if the work environment is pleasant. One of my girls actually quit college when she made more money part time as a bartender than I did as a full time lawyer. She did return to college and earned a degree after a couple of years because she realized she wasn’t going to be a cute little bartender forever.</p>
<p>My current college soph can’t wait to finish her winter break. She had 2 jobs over the summer, one as a waitress, and had only 4 days off. She was hired again for both jobs and has had only Christmas day and today off. She needs to get back to school so she can rest.</p>
<p>One of her college essays was about things she learned from waitressing. Sometimes when the restaurant has catering jobs the customers ask if she can work their parties. It’s never too early to learn how to smile and be pleasant to a grumpy customer.</p>
<p>starbright, as someone who hires a lot of teens I agree with you. Jobs at this age really help mold them into being responsible and driven young people and especially helpful for the normally shy and introverted. Best of luck to your daughter.
:)</p>
<p>Congratulations! Dealing with the public is great experience for anyone. My high school job as a bank teller cured a lot of my shyness. (Interesting how states differ, though. In ours, kids under 16 can only be employ during school vacations.)</p>
<p>Congratulations! I think that’s one of the best feelings as a parent when you see a new quality develop in your kid that you didn’t think possible. Usually it’s just a question of maturing a bit, but sometimes it’s hard for us to hope it will ever happen.</p>
<p>Another parent of shy D who bloomed after getting a part-time job in retail. Cold calls were a breeze for her after the job experience. Congrats!!</p>
<p>That’s neat. It sounds like you and I have similar types of daughters! My daughter is in the job market now and she’s very excited about doing this herself. It gives her a sense of pride outside academics.</p>
<p>It’s moments like this I feel like that momma bird in the “Rescuers Down Under” film, all puffed up with joy to see our children coming into their own.</p>