When I turned 16, I applied for my first job as a part-time dietary aid at a nursing home around the corner from my house. My lifelong best friend had already been working there for four months since she turned 16. I started on July 16, 2012.

My responsibilities were pretty simple: pass supplements and juices, wrap silverware, clean up after supper, do the dishes and clean and lock up the kitchen when we finished. It was your average after school, 4 p.m. - 8 p.m., job with longer shifts every other weekend and holiday. I stayed there for three years, and only left because I moved two hours away for college. Despite being on my feet the entire time, having to wear an apron and hairnet and always being covered in dirty dish water, I loved that job, and I wish I were still there.

While it may not appeal to some people, I got to work with the elderly everyday. Sometimes I would spend my 15 minute break in the afternoon sitting down with a resident, just talking. Because it was a long-term care facility that housed up to 140 residents, these people didn’t always get much one-on-one time with another person. Some residents would sleep all day, only waking up for meals and maybe coffee time.

Over the three years I worked there, I learned a lot about working as a team and supporting one another, not only in the kitchen with my co-workers but with the CNA’s and other nursing staff and administrative staff as well. Before I realized what it meant, I was performing process improvement to make things more efficient — which is highly valuable in any career.

I also learned how to help Alzheimer’s patients that are frantically searching for a loved one whom they don't remember died a long time ago, without upsetting them further. I learned to detect signs of illness or injury in a resident, as well as what to do when a resident fell.

Additionally I learned a lot about OSHA and HIPAA and various state health regulations. I learned how to put out fires and which extinguishers to use. I learned a lot about cooking, too, even though I was just a dietary aid. I knew all 100 plus residents in the facility at any given time. I knew what they liked and didn’t like. I knew all of their dietary restrictions. And I was happy to reintroduce myself to some of them everyday because they can’t remember from one day to the next.

My job wasn't always easy. Sometimes residents get really mad at you over seemingly insignificant things. Sometimes they are your best friend, and the next day they say really mean things you because they're upset, but you learn not to take it to heart. Sometimes you have to watch the most beautifully radiant and happy person deteriorate with age and illness. They stop coming out for meals, and sooner or later they pass away. Sometimes you have to see a covered body be rolled out of the facility by paramedics.

Despite the hardships, there were a thousand positive aspects of that job. Everyday at work brought laughter. There wasn't a single day I came home without a story about a resident — like the time a vegetarian resident told me she was sick of being a vegetarian. The best part was seeing a resident light up with joy if you could do something to make them smile. Working alongside my best friends was also a perk, but I loved it even when some of our favorite people moved on to different things.

Anybody that works in nursing homes knows that there are always problems. There are always things you can do to improve the lives of the residents, which makes it a constantly rewarding and goal-oriented job.

So how am I applying my three years of kitchen experience to my current field as an aspiring writer? Easily.

I am an english and history major, with a minor in German. I have work experience in two nursing homes, retail and now a corporate office. Landing that career-building office job, the first job I’ve had in my field, without any experience seemed impossible. The thing is, no matter what your experience, if you are eager and willing to learn, you can apply your skill set anywhere. As I mentioned, I learned how to work with people, and how to work on a team — two of the most important things in every job. I also gained skills in process improvement by suggesting changes to our daily routines that saved time. I also gained immense customer service skills for the six months I worked in retail.

What I lacked in work experience, I made up for with my positive attitude and determination to work hard and learn new things. Now at age 20, I write stories for the internal corporate news website for Daktronics, a worldwide company based in my university town, which gave me experience to be able to write for Odyssey.

I attribute where I’ve come now to where I started — in the little kitchen of a small-town nursing home where I washed a ton of dishes, mopped floors, wiped tables and talked to old people.

Moral of the story: don’t panic if you don’t have a “resume-building” job yet. Every job is a resume builder if you know how to apply your skills in various settings and you continue to work hard everyday.