The school holidays have arrived! Since school only starts in February as students await their O-level results, many take advantage of the long break to go on holidays like never before. All over Instagram, I saw my schoolmates visit places like Hokkaido, Rome, London, Melbourne, just to name a few. As they posted about their escapades around the world, I looked on with jealousy as I sat at my desk, at home, preparing for work the next day. Yes, work. For 2 months, I had helped out in my aunt’s retail business, taking stock and attending to the occasional customer. The last month before school began, I caught the Chinese New Year (CNY) train and found part-time work at a CNY stall. Did I overcommit? Maybe. Do I regret it? Not yet. Although the work was tiring, I drew a few important lessons that will help me in the years to come.
Be nice: to your colleagues, your boss, your customers, everyone.
Being nice to your colleagues makes the work environment more enjoyable for everyone. I made the effort to talk to my colleagues and get to know them better. Not only did this help expand my social circle, but it created a more vibrant workplace. From talking about school to discussing career paths, taking that extra step to reach out made work a little more bearable. Being nice doesn’t just mean being friendly, it also means helping each other. The concept is simple: “scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours”. My supervisor bought a drink for me once, so I baked some cookies for her. A colleague needed some help with an order so I stayed back to help. The next time I was swamped with work, that colleague was more ready to step forward to help. These little things build up over the years to create a wonderful work environment.
Being nice to strangers, especially service staff (in my case), may give pleasant surprises. Just a simple “good morning” or “thank you” is already enough to leave a good impression. Benefits may range from better service to extra food. In my experience, we are more likely to agree to your requests if you are nice about it. Need an extra bag? We usually don’t give those out but since you asked nicely, here you go. Want us to pack the items nicely for a gift? Sure. There was a customer who was very amicable, always smiling and making requests politely. Before she left she turned to me and said “very good service! 5 star!” That made my day. You never know who may be going through a tough time, and a simple word of thanks or recognition may go a long way.
Money matters.
Working and receiving a salary really put things into perspective. I was paid $10/hr for my work, somewhat average for my position. Spending my days packing orders and attending to customers, it was satisfying knowing that I was earning money, however little it may have been. But when you think about how much you earn versus how much you spend, the results can be shocking. One meal can cost up to $20 - 2 hours of work. Even the ever-popular bubble tea now averages at $4-5, almost half-an-hour of work. What about a new computer? Probably more than 100 hours of work, which excludes meal and transport expenses. My experience truly taught me the value of money and the importance of budgeting and not overspending. As students and children, we are living off our parents’ money. Especially since we haven’t worked for it, we should learn to be responsible spenders.
Importance of upskilling.
As mentioned before, my hourly earnings was a dismal $10/hr. During this time, I was also taking piano lessons, which cost around $100 - for just one hour. My mother would use this to constantly remind me to prepare properly for lessons, saying that each wasted lesson was equivalent to wasting 10 hours of my time. Easy to say, this motivated me to practice more often and make the most out of each lesson. This also motivated me to study harder and obtain higher levels of education. With an O-level qualification, I was earning $10/hr. If I were to get a degree in music, I could earn that much in 6 minutes (100/hr). If I were to work even harder and perhaps had a law degree, I could earn that much in 36 seconds (charging $1000/hr, yes some top lawyers have this rate). Moral of the story, even if education may be expensive, take it as an investment in yourself.
So the next time holidays come around, why not try something new and take up a job. Instead of staying at home to play games and watch shows, go outside and explore the world, create new experiences. Who knows, maybe you’ll make new friends or find a hidden passion.
