I often joke that I work in customer service because I love to apologize for things that are not my fault, but the truth is, I love my job. I've worked part time as a cashier in a grocery store for about three years. My coworkers and managers are all nice, friendly people, the customers are (usually) pleasant, sometimes interesting, and I've made a lot of new friends through work.
When I first started working at age 17, I was a nervous wreck. I was scared to talk to people, afraid I would make a mistake, and I felt like all eyes were on me. Although my friends routinely remind me that I "have no chill," I am much more chill than I was when I was a grocery store rookie. These are the main things I've learned from my time at the grocery store.
1. People love to talk...
about themselves. Now that I know this fact, my people skills have improved greatly. Let's say an elderly couple comes in and buys a large order with a lot of baby food and sugary breakfast cereals. I might ask them if they've tried one of the particular cereals before, and they tell me that they don't eat it, but that their grandkids are visiting from Oklahoma, and they want the kids to have their favorite cereals. Maybe this reminds me of how when I used to sleep over at my grandparents' house, they'd try to get me to eat grapefruit (or as my young self thought of it, barf orange). My first instinct would be to tell the customers this story because I, too, love to talk about myself, and when I was new to the store, I probably would have told this story and no doubt bored my customers to death. Now that I am a seasoned smalltalker, I know that instead of rambling on about myself, to ask the customers questions about (at least in this case) their grandkids. This way, the customer has a more pleasant shopping experience because they get to share good memories about their family, and I get to make an old person smile.
2. It's no big deal...
when you make a mistake. That customer wanted double paper and I put a couple items in plastic before noticing? I broke an egg? A coupon didn't scan? I can fix it. As a rookie, I remember apologizing all over myself when I made small mistakes, but these days, I've learned not to sweat the small stuff. Yes, sometimes the customers yell at me over minor mistakes, but that says more about them than it does about me. I've gained a lot of confidence from working and realizing I can fix most of my mistakes.
3. Everyone has a story.
I love my coworkers. Working at the grocery store has gotten me out of my normal peer group. I have friends older than my parents, and friends who are just starting high school. Some of my coworkers have PhD's, are ex-military, are putting themselves through college, and trying to support their children.
Working at the grocery store has taught me a lot about myself and about how to get along with others. Although a lot of my coworkers, especially the younger ones, think it's cool to complain about the job, I love coming to work because I get to put a smile on people's faces.
