1. Clocking In

There you were, innocently enjoying your day laying around in the air-conditioning, binge watching eighteen episodes of How I Met Your Mother, and your job rudely expects to get up and come in. Granted, you were on the schedule and have known for the past six days but still, here you are. Clocking in and getting ready to deal with the nonsense that is today's shift, let’s get this over with.

2. Preparation

OF COURSE. Whether it be that the dishes in the back are all dirty, or none of the jeans for the new display have been even close to getting organized, the morning shift left all the stuff they don’t want to do for you. It’s fine, though, you’re here to work. Although you can’t help slamming those cups a little too hard as you load them into the dish rack.

3. Coworkers

You are surrounded by people you probably wouldn’t normally speak to. There’s a hierarchy in every summer job that must be treated with the utmost respect. We have the veterans who’ve been here since before you arrived, and will be for a long time after you’re gone. Your work friends (aka the “homies”), or those who you check the schedule to see when you’re both on the same shift because you know that on that day work will be turnt. But then you have the rookies, the shaky little freshman new hires that it’s your job to train. Whether you’re scooping water ice or lifeguarding the local pool, work can have more drama than 90210 when these cliques collide.

4. Customers

Customers are singlehandedly the best and worst things about summer jobs. Sometimes you get the nicest people in the entire world. Big tippers, funny storytellers or all around just wonderful people. They see how hard you’re working and vocalize how much they appreciate the effort you have put into their requests.

Yet there’s also those customers. Snobby, rude, and more entitled than a two-year-old throwing a temper tantrum. They exist, and they are certainly hard to deal with. But once you know the tricks of defusing the angry spark of such a customer- life becomes easy breezy again.

5. Break

What’s that?

6. Closing

You made it. The store/pool/rink closes in 45 minutes. You’re so close… and there’s only 6,458 things left to do before you can leave. You know if you don’t properly clean the ice-cream machine or vacuum the outdoor carpets the morning shift will have your head on a plate the next day. So now it’s time to kick it into overdrive. Keep pushing on, because while you’re sweeping the same floors for the fourth time this week, you are making both money, and the most out of your summer.