While working in retail, you learn a lot more than just swiping cards and being patient with rude customers. Many times, you learn some of your major life lessons from everyday interactions with not only the clients and co-workers but the business as a whole.
I've worked in retail for a little over three years. Before getting my first job in the business, I was clueless, shy, and naive about many things. I was not very confident in anything I did and was awkward dealing with people. I was surprised I was even offered the job because half of what I said at the interview wasn't even what the questions asked were even about, and I stumbled on my words many times. Thanks to the glimmer of potential the management saw in me, however, I can say I am a completely different person now than I was back then. Working here has helped me grow as a person and for that, I am thankful.
Working in the retail is not for the weak-minded or easily offended. Many, many times you'll encounter situations which require your utmost focus and patience. The field makes you grow some tough skin. When I first started working, I would usually take customer complaints personally and always felt like crap about it once I was off. As time went on, I began to realize that it was almost always never my fault and that the hostile behavior people showed was never about me, simply just frustration about the company that needed to be vented. My manager would always remind me "All we do is sell shirts and pants. That's all we do."
Retail taught me how to manage my time. Going to school, having a social life and having a job was a tough load to balance. It was done, though. After going through many down moments in my early college year, multi-tasking seemed almost impossible for me. Retail put my feet back on the ground and made me realize I was able to divide my time in a fashion that helped me from all aspects.
Lastly, retail helped me develop professionally in so many ways. I can owe my boost in confidence to everything I have done in the field. Many times, I was challenged even as a sales associate about many aspects in the business world, such as sales and credit. I always go into my job enthusiastic about making and helping to reach the goals for the day. My basic knowledge about how credit scores and building it, I learned from working behind the desk and talking to the customers about it in a convincing manner. Eventually, I became so enthusiastic and convincing to myself, I caved in and opened an account for my own!
Many times, retail is overlooked by the many bad things that come with it, like dealing with cleaning out what seems like millions of piles of clothes and the angry customers. It may even be overlooked for just its obvious perks like getting an employee discount. The truth is, though, many could learn a thing or two just from dealing with customers on a day-to-day basis. You eventually learn (especially in smaller stores like mine) and get to know customers on a more personal basis, and your job becomes more fulfilling. If everybody could work one day in retail, I'm sure their perspective on the world would change even if it was just slightly. While it's not something I personally would make a career out of, I definately owe it to this field for preparing a new side of me to present to the world.
