Every time someone asks where I work, I hesitate. I try to offer the simple answer of "well, I'm a waitress", but it never ends there. It is always followed up by "oh, that's cool. Where do you work?" It is at that point that I am somehow able to muster up the word, "Hooters."

I get different reactions from different people, but most of them are full of judgment.
I've been hit with the "why do you work there? That's so degrading."
The, "Yeah? You must think pretty highly of yourself, don't you?"
And even the, "Oh... well at least it's better than Deja Vu."

It took a while, but throughout my time at Hooters, I've learned exactly what it means to be a Hooters Girl. And it's not to look sexy or flirt with men for money. Being a Hooters Girl is so much more than being a pretty face inside a restaurant.

A Hooters Girl is hired upon her bubbly, outgoing personality.
When our managers are in the interview process, they are searching for that girl who fits the All-American cheerleader. A girl with a captivating smile who can talk to anyone and a girl who is willing to hold conversations with complete strangers. They look for girls who aren't afraid to laugh with their guests and maybe play a game or two while they're at it. That is a Hooters Girl.

Hooters Girls go above and beyond for their guests.
As a Hooters Girl, we must be extremely attentive to our guests. We offer extraordinary customer care and aim to ensure that customers have all that they need at all times. Our goal is to make you feel like our only and most important customer when you enter our restaurant.

Hooters girls give you a break from reality.
"Welcome to Hooters. Where the beer is cold, the wings are to die for, and the girls give you a break from life's stress."

As Hooters Girls, it is our goal to ensure that your time in our care is enjoyable and stress-free. We don't want you to have to think about your bills or how much paperwork you have at the office. We want you to focus on the good things about life (obviously beer and wings are two of those!). But It's also so much more than that. We want to get to know you and not just for the tip. As described earlier, we were hired on our outgoing personalities and our desire to meet new people. We genuinely want to get to know you and invite you back. We want you to have a great time every time!

Hooters Girls get involved in the community and try to make a difference.
Being a Hooters Girl is so much more than going into work every day and heading home at night. We often reach out to others in the community and aim to make a difference. We have volunteered at soup kitchens and helped others in need. In an extreme circumstance, Mariana Villareal from Roswell, Georgia gave a customer a kidney. No, we might not all be offered the chance to donate organs, and we might not all be willing to go THAT far, but we do what we can to volunteer and help our communities.

Hooters girls have beauty and smarts.
To start, our training process is very rigorous. There are a lot of videos and on-the-job training and some of the trainers are tough on the girls, but it is for the benefit of everyone. We also are constantly taking tests on new menu items and safety topics each month. We want to make sure that any question a customer has can be answered almost immediately.
Aside from that, most Hooters Girls are in college. We have a job to pay for our education and to better ourselves. Many people think that Hooters Girls are ditzy and brainless, but it is actually the exact opposite. Hooters offers tuition reimbursement based on grades and average hours worked a week. They appreciate our hard work while in school and encourage us to do well in both school and work.

Do not treat us poorly because you think we are hired solely on our looks. Do not put us down because we "flirt with everyone." We are here to do a job, and we are pretty darn good at it!

SEE ALSO: 9 Questions You Always Wanted To Ask A Hooters Girl But Were Too Afraid To

In my time of being a Hooters Girl, I have learned exactly what it means to be one. It is not to be a flirt or pretend to love everyone, it's about having a genuine interest in the people I serve. It is about creating an experience for my guests that you cannot get anywhere else.

It is about being a good person and a beautiful person both inside and out. Being a Hooters Girl has made me a better person and I couldn't ask for a better family or corporation at my back.