Working in a menial job, or a minimum wage job or any other kind of employment you do just to get some income rolling in, can be a drag. You’re not passionate or compelled by the work and focusing just on the little income you get can get you down. You only take the job because you need it to pay the bills or you’d run for the hills at the first chance you got if you could. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t worthwhile aspects to take away from these experiences. In fact, most successful people also worked jobs they didn’t want to for little to no pay, often learned a new skill or mindset in return. It’s the intangible aspects that can sometimes really be worth it
For example, some struggle with keeping deadlines. The due dates loom overhead and those people tend to avoid the work however they can. Menial jobs usually require you to be on time and ready to work. They also often demand you accomplish a task under a certain time frame, with multiple tracking mechanisms in place to ensure these are met. Both these practices required of the menial roles are skills needed to excel in any job, including the one you want. So learning the lesson of delivering the goods on time is an important one.
Something that can be addressed for some people through menial jobs are those who struggle with socializing. In most environments throughout the working world, communicating with people is a requirement and yet many don’t develop the skills necessary to hold conversations that’ll grow their business. A menial job helps with this skill, often demanding you interact with customers on a regular basis, helping them find products they’re looking for or ringing them up at the checkout counter. These interactions begin building your social graces so that when you do need to be on your game for your business, you’ll be better prepared to present your product in the best light possible.
The big takeaway is to try to see the big picture. Don’t always assume that what looks like a dead end for you at that moment can’t help you win big in the long run. Just because you have to work a job or take part in a project you don’t like, doesn’t mean no value will come from the experience.
Each step of the journey we take teaches us something if we’re looking closely enough. Looking back will always be easier than looking forward, but look forward nevertheless. Motivation often comes from realizing that where we are right now has value no matter how pointless the experience might seem going through it. Be humble, embrace the lessons and be slower to so quickly judge things as ‘good’ or ‘bad’.
Listen to my entire conversation with Marty Vids here.
http://wearepodcast.com/shouldistartapodcast108/
Author: Ronsley Vaz
Ronsley is the founder & chief day dreamer at AMPLIFY. He is an author, speaker & serial entrepreneur.
He has a Masters’ degree in Software Engineering and an MBA in Psychology and Leadership. He is known as the creator of We Are Podcast – the first Podcasting Conference in the Southern Hemisphere, and the host of The Bond Appetit Podcast and Should I Start a Podcast. He has an audience of over 3 million in 133 countries.