5 Lessons Your Casual Job Can Actually Teach You

Over the years I’ve perfected my ‘customer service laugh’. I’ve been the dish pig in a hospo joint, scrubbed toilets and been the retail worker belting out the lyrics to Michael Bublé’. I’ve dealt with the patronising Karens, and I've heard "it didn’t scan so it must be free" a gazillion times.

I could rant about it ‘til the cows come home, but copping a crappy job is a rite of passage. They’re a way to finance the fezzie tickets, our first car or a new pair of shoes. And they’re totally worth it.

These jobs may seem like the pits and sometimes they may pay you peanuts, but what you might not realise is that they’re actually character building. During the hours you slog away at work, you're subconsciously picking up a tonne of useful skills!

1. Conflict management and creative problem solving

Between difficult customers and coworkers not showing up on time, there’s bound to be a bit of strife.

Maybe you just sold the last leaf blower and that’s exactly what Susan was coming in to get her husband for Christmas. Susan goes bananas at you and can’t believe that you would personally inconvenience her like this. There’s swearing and products are thrown halfway across the store.

In a high pressure situation like this, you’re forced to learn to control your temper and refrain from throwing hands at Susan. All you can do is stay calm and try to offer other alternatives. The better you get at diffusing situations like this, the more prepared you will be for disagreements and conflict that may arise in future roles, and in life!

2. Optimism and positive outlook even in the face of hardship

Work can be a real drag. So keeping a cup-is-half-full rather than a cup-is-half-empty attitude makes your job (and life) all the more enjoyable. I mean, life isn’t a piece of cake. Things get difficult sometimes, so it’s important to be optimistic!

Even when I was being screamed at by a customer because they couldn’t return the meal that they already ate, I had to put on my best customer service smile and serve the next customer cheerfully.

Work isn’t always gonna be the time of your life, but you’ve just gotta send it and have good vibes only ✌️

3. Communication

Nah, I'm not talking about the workplace gossip. Wait what? She hooked up with WHO? Pass the popcorn!

The real communication skills you’ll pick up from your job will come from talking to heaps of different people from a variety of backgrounds.

For example, you’ll learn how to respectfully talk to your boss even though they rostered you on the same day as your exam that you specifically rostered off for. Or how to talk to a customer having a go at you for reasons out of your control.

You're always navigating how to communicate your opinions, ideas and facts to all types of people and in different circumstances. Now that’s one pretty awesome transferable skill.

4. Taking initiative

Taking initiative means you see something that needs to be done, and you do just do it without anyone telling you to. Yes, that means taking the rubbish out without your boss explicitly asking you to!

There’s always that one coworker who sits around and does diddly-squat all day. So sometimes you have no other choice but to take initiative. How else would stuff get done?!

5. Teamwork

Teamwork makes the dreamwork!

But seriously, you’ve got no choice but to learn how to work as a team. Sometimes you’ll even have to step up and steer the ship yourself when others are standing around twiddling their thumbs...

But you’ll do this while making some pretty cool friends. And thank heavens, because working is only made bearable by your work mates! Will you see each other outside of work? Nope. But you'll have some banter, know each other's deepest, darkest secrets and have a special spot where you go to cry together.

Ya know, you don’t have to settle for your classic hospo or retail jobs. To be frank, a job as a swimming teacher is far from a crappy casual job. There’s flexibility so you won’t have to bug your boss about rostering off during exams and you get paid some decent dosh too! Best part is, you get to be in the water for summer rather than stuck inside smellin’ like the bottom of a fried shoe.

It’s the perfect side-hustle that’s perfect for gaining these soft skills to apply to your future career (possibly as a swim teacher considering how red hot it is). So quit your crappy casual job and check out this short course with AUSTSWIM that’ll get you qualified and working poolside ASAP.