I've had a job since I was fourteen years old. In my four years in the workforce, I've learned a lot from my job. At first, I worked at a pizzeria owned by my uncle. When I had decided at sixteen that I needed a job closer to home, I applied to my local Subway that was tucked in a tiny hole-in-the-wall plaza. The store was on the slower side of the business because very few people knew there was even a Subway tucked back in the small strip. In the two and a half years that I worked there, I have learned many lessons regarding customer service and life in general.

Many people can agree with the statement that most people should work in food service at least once in their lives to open their eyes to how people can really treat others. Many people look down upon fast food workers as people who are incapable of doing anything productive in their lives when in reality many people are just working to help them achieve their bigger goals. Many people also look down upon high schoolers and college students who work in the food industry because they try to correlate their young age with extreme immaturity. From working in food, you gain a respect for the others who are judged for the jobs that they may not want. It helps you realize that not everybody works in food because they want to, but more so because they have to.

Working in food also provided me with some of the best friends and memories I have ever made. Coworkers usually are the people that you barely speak to outside of your shifts together, but know every tiny detail about you. Luckily for me, my coworkers became my friends outside of work too. Some people you work with, you normally would not spend your free time with. In my case, I had encouraged old classmates of mine to apply. Their applications turned into lifelong friendships. I would never trade any of the memories I made in the slow Subway for the world.

Working in food has taught me a lot more than sandwich building. Each shift is a new experience that can expand your mindset and change how you treat others. The compassion and understanding you want to receive when you are clocked in help shape how you treat others in the real world, and that is one of the most important lessons.