Loving It and Doing It Well

I had the privilege of meeting a woman who needed a resume for job in which she was applying. In organizing her resume there was a theme to the types of employment she performed. She is a waitress and had been one for the past 10 years. However, the job she was going for was in a whole other direction from her current line of work.

When I asked her why, after all this time with three to four jobs to her credit, she decided to create a resume, she replied, “I just wanted to have something to go to the interview with.” The job she was going for was just a part-time position at a blood bank, something to bring in extra money for the upcoming holidays. It surprised me because I had never met anyone who would prepare a resume for a part-time job when they found no need to prepare one for a full-time job.

Throughout her career, she has been a waitress at ma and pa operations, so a resume was never required. She filled out an application or told them her skills. So needless to say, she needed a little help in putting together a resume.

I have to be honest, as I’m working with her, in my mind I’m wondering, “Who would want to be a waitress all their lives?” It must have been as if she heard me, because after we completed this document displaying the wonderful waitressing talent she possessed, she beamed with pride to tell me how she loved her work and knew she was good at it. And if you read it on paper, the resume it proved it too!

I can recall hearing a few times, throughout my career, hearing about successful people not needing to have a resume. They just did such a good job that their work preceded them and companies or positions would just open up for them and they would walk right on through the door to the next opportunity. I wondered if this is how this lady’s life worked.

Whether it does or not, one thing was true, she loved her job and was confident in her abilities. That made me look at her in a whole new light. I no longer wondered about a person being stuck in what I considered a stepping stone position. I saw a woman who was living her dream career and was proud to be doing so. If I didn’t like what I did so much, I swear I would have been jealous of this long-time waitress. Instead, I was able to love, support and see her success.

One of my mentors, Suze Orman, started her career as a waitress. She did it for many years and according to her, was good at it. She had dreams of opening her own restaurant. They fell through, but luckily, she was able to put a spin on it and now she is a leading financial expert.

This just goes to show, never judge a book by it’s cover. If you are able to be successful in one venture, you are surely able to become successful in other ventures. So I’m sure that waitress lady will get that part-time job and who knows where it may lead her, she may be the next Suze Orman. Even if she’s not, loving what you do and doing it well is all that matters.