To be quite frank, 9-to-5 desk jobs can be quite monotonous and brutal. Most likely, a person will sit there for 7+ hours of the day performing a combination of the same exact task every day and emails. I would know. I just finished an internship where I worked 9-to-5 for five days of the week. While I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to gain more professional experience and to catch a glimpse of what working life is like, there were times during my job in which it felt like I was counting down the minutes until I could go home.
Nevertheless, in hindsight, having that internship made this summer one of the most productive summers I've ever had and taught me some pretty darn good lessons about life and investing my time.
1. Enjoy the little things
Whether it was listening to podcasts or a talk with my coworkers, I learned to appreciate the little things that brightened up my day. These were the things that kept every day from being the same and helped me continue on a track of perpetual growth. (Towards the end of my time at my internship, I started listening to Rebecca Jarvis' No Limits and the Myths and Legends podcast, both of which I highly recommend).
2. Always look towards the positive
Typically, I see that with myself and my peers, that it is quite difficult to transition from school life to work life. Sometimes, I would feel nostalgic for school, as it seemed like every hour I was doing something different and exciting. However, working taught me to always try to find the bright side of the situation. Although for the majority of my day I was doing the same task, for example, I was able to constantly learn and improve on those specific skills. Like I mentioned in my previous point, even if I felt bored at some points, in hindsight, I was way more productive this summer than ever before.
3. Work is not everything
Strangely enough, I had to work to realize that success in work is not everything. While it is important to strive for, it is also important to realize the value of cultivating yourself (i.e. your relationships, ideals, values, etc.) outside of your work life. This is also applicable to academics.
4. The value of time
Most importantly, working full time taught me the importance of time. It taught me how much work I could get done during the day if I just focused my efforts for 30 more minutes. It taught me to appreciate my time at home after I got off from work. It taught me to cherish the moments I spent with my friends and family over the weekend. Ultimately, it taught me that time is the most valuable resource in life and not to waste it.
