Work Test

Ever since I entered the working world, I noticed that every day is a test. There is no "practice" - you either do it or you don't; you either pass or you fail. I think of it like a checklist with pass and fail boxes next to each item. At every shift, I hope that most of my boxes are checked "pass," though there will be a few "fails."

After my first week at the restaurant, one of the owners - whom we'll call Z - thought I had too many "fails." Just when I was starting to feel comfortable with how the restaurant flowed, the manager came up to me on the first day of my second week and told me I needed to step up. He said I needed to be more aggressive and that "maybe the restaurant business isn't for everyone." He was completely right about me not being aggressive enough, however I was hoping for a shot to learn the job a little better (more than one week). I mean, they knew when they hired me that I had no restaurant experience. The owner Z wanted me out anyway. The manager told me that he and another owner wanted to give me a second week to improve and feel more comfortable. Unfortunately, comfortable was the last thing I felt at that moment and I think I performed worse for the first two hours of my shift.

Anyway, I got another week. During one of my shifts, Z was considerate enough to tell me this, and that I was almost fired. Lovely person that Z. 

During this "test" week, I covered the Valentine's Day shift. All the owners were on the floor, including Z. I felt like this night was my pass/fail test for keeping my job, and it was easily the busiest night I've ever experienced. The good thing is, though, that I rock busy nights. Empty tables are so few that we just sit people whenever one opens - there's almost no thinking about server sections and double-seating. Busy means get the customers seated wherever and make them happy. I made pointed attempts to be more out-going and talkative whenever Z was nearby. I knew she was watching me. 

I made a few mistakes that night, but all in all I did pretty well: I took control of different situations and made my own judgement calls, instead of hanging back and watching everyone else. So I think I still have a job, but we'll find out at the end of the week. 

Honestly, I really enjoy my restaurant job. It has a young, trendy feel to it. They play pop and rock music like Avril Lavigne, John Mayer, Jason Mraz, and Maroon 5. Most of the people who work there are in their 20s and 30s. The sad thing is, my job isn't sustainable for me because the pay is so low and the hours are so few. I'm having fun (for the first time since being in the working world), but I make only just enough to live on. In other words, the only thing I'm giving myself right now is extra time, because I'm not even able to save money. My life is undergoing more review.