In life, there are certain events which you expect to happen. Like birthdays, weddings, the large lady in the velour jogging suit who slips and slides right into the steel counter at Cold Stone Creamery. But there are some events in which you simply can not plan for, like getting an additional 40% of a mall purchase or given the grand tour of a behind-the-scene's look at the Broadway play, The Lion King. And sometimes, when you least expect it, you get a job.
A few weeks ago, my friend Alice realized as the lazy days of summer dwindled down, so would her staff, as most of them were full time college students. And being that I was a part-time student with too much time, she offered me a part-time job with too much hope that I would do a good job. What did I know about flowers except that you could learn a lot from them, for especially in the month of June? Sure, I had seen my friend Madelaine arrange flowers into living works of art, but could I possibly do the same?
I realized that with every job I've ever had, I always went in with a basic knowledge of what was expected of me. But this was something new. This was something different. Alice was my friend, but was it possible she could also be my boss? Was it possible we could define the line that separated our professional life from our personal one?
So I asked my friend Madelaine.
ME: Dont tell Alice anything, but I dont think I'm gonna work there long.
MADELAINE: Why? What happened?
ME: I dont know what I'm doing, M! Why did I think I could work there? I dont know anything about making flowers!
MADELAINE: Well, it's like that with any new job. You learn new duities, new responsibilties, new procedures.
ME: Yeah, I know that, but I mean, now, it's just weird. I mean, Alice is paying me to work. I cant just be all whatever, you know? I cant just hang around and do nothing like I used to when you worked there.
MADELAINE: David, this isnt your first job.
ME: Yeah, but it's the first one where I'll actually care how well of a job I'm doing. At other jobs I knew if I messed up on anything, there'd be somebody else to fix it. But now it's just me and Alice.
MADELAINE: So it's just weird, then?
ME: It's just weird.
We concluded, that it was just my first, first-job jitters and with a job-hopping career like mine, it was about time I got them. I had nothing to fear but fear itself. And though I'm not entirely sure F.D.R. had first-job jitters in mind when he made that speech, I knew it kinda made sense. Without fear, how would we challenge ourselves? How would we measure our ability to scale new heights?
It happened on Friday. Her name was Raquel, a health care advisor who worked with families with little or no income, but dressed as if she was going out to a club. She was slick, she was smooth, she was a-scured. Because Alice's Downtown Flower Market is located in the lobby of the Frontier Building, most patrons, presume it's also an information desk. Which was exactly what Raquel did when she asked for the location of the stairwell.
ME: All the stairs are actually sealed off.
RAQUEL: But I thought this building used to be a hotel.
ME: It was. But they sealed off all the stairs. There's stairs on the outside, like the fire escape and all, but you have to take the elevator to the second floor to get to them.
RAQUEL: Well, that's what I'm trying to avoid. The elevators. I'm a little afraid of riding them.
Apparently, the very thought of going up and down in a confined area made Raquel shake. She pleaded and begged me to allow her to use any stairs that might have been sealed off from the public but made available to all Pioneer employees. But without a sledge hammer and a detailed blueprint of the building, my hands were tied. The only way I could help was ride with Raquel in the elevator. Holding her hand. Singing a song. I once read an article that said, when placed in a fearful situation, some people used singing as a tool to help keep them calm and relaxed and I figured it could work for Raquel too.
As I helped Raquel to her destination, I offered her a ride down later, and realized just how brave I was. To me, riding an elevator was simple. Hell, I survived the Hollwood Tower of Terror, so going down, floor by floor, at a slow pace was a total piece of cake. But for someone like Raquel, it wasnt so easy. Kinda like me and this new job thing. I guess we cant all be brave. For then when would we ever find the hero within us? So for those of us still searching and trying to conquer our fear, remember, sometimes, you just gotta work up the courage to ask for help and sing, "Twinkle, twinkle, little star..."
A few weeks ago, my friend Alice realized as the lazy days of summer dwindled down, so would her staff, as most of them were full time college students. And being that I was a part-time student with too much time, she offered me a part-time job with too much hope that I would do a good job. What did I know about flowers except that you could learn a lot from them, for especially in the month of June? Sure, I had seen my friend Madelaine arrange flowers into living works of art, but could I possibly do the same?
I realized that with every job I've ever had, I always went in with a basic knowledge of what was expected of me. But this was something new. This was something different. Alice was my friend, but was it possible she could also be my boss? Was it possible we could define the line that separated our professional life from our personal one?
So I asked my friend Madelaine.
ME: Dont tell Alice anything, but I dont think I'm gonna work there long.
MADELAINE: Why? What happened?
ME: I dont know what I'm doing, M! Why did I think I could work there? I dont know anything about making flowers!
MADELAINE: Well, it's like that with any new job. You learn new duities, new responsibilties, new procedures.
ME: Yeah, I know that, but I mean, now, it's just weird. I mean, Alice is paying me to work. I cant just be all whatever, you know? I cant just hang around and do nothing like I used to when you worked there.
MADELAINE: David, this isnt your first job.
ME: Yeah, but it's the first one where I'll actually care how well of a job I'm doing. At other jobs I knew if I messed up on anything, there'd be somebody else to fix it. But now it's just me and Alice.
MADELAINE: So it's just weird, then?
ME: It's just weird.
We concluded, that it was just my first, first-job jitters and with a job-hopping career like mine, it was about time I got them. I had nothing to fear but fear itself. And though I'm not entirely sure F.D.R. had first-job jitters in mind when he made that speech, I knew it kinda made sense. Without fear, how would we challenge ourselves? How would we measure our ability to scale new heights?
It happened on Friday. Her name was Raquel, a health care advisor who worked with families with little or no income, but dressed as if she was going out to a club. She was slick, she was smooth, she was a-scured. Because Alice's Downtown Flower Market is located in the lobby of the Frontier Building, most patrons, presume it's also an information desk. Which was exactly what Raquel did when she asked for the location of the stairwell.
ME: All the stairs are actually sealed off.
RAQUEL: But I thought this building used to be a hotel.
ME: It was. But they sealed off all the stairs. There's stairs on the outside, like the fire escape and all, but you have to take the elevator to the second floor to get to them.
RAQUEL: Well, that's what I'm trying to avoid. The elevators. I'm a little afraid of riding them.
Apparently, the very thought of going up and down in a confined area made Raquel shake. She pleaded and begged me to allow her to use any stairs that might have been sealed off from the public but made available to all Pioneer employees. But without a sledge hammer and a detailed blueprint of the building, my hands were tied. The only way I could help was ride with Raquel in the elevator. Holding her hand. Singing a song. I once read an article that said, when placed in a fearful situation, some people used singing as a tool to help keep them calm and relaxed and I figured it could work for Raquel too.
As I helped Raquel to her destination, I offered her a ride down later, and realized just how brave I was. To me, riding an elevator was simple. Hell, I survived the Hollwood Tower of Terror, so going down, floor by floor, at a slow pace was a total piece of cake. But for someone like Raquel, it wasnt so easy. Kinda like me and this new job thing. I guess we cant all be brave. For then when would we ever find the hero within us? So for those of us still searching and trying to conquer our fear, remember, sometimes, you just gotta work up the courage to ask for help and sing, "Twinkle, twinkle, little star..."
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