Author of Hey, Get A Job!

There’s a common list of skills and requirements for employees. This section discusses the traits that make a great employee and those that are sure ways to get fired. These are true not only for teens, but for all workers young and old in any field. After reading through this section, the things your teachers are teaching you in school might make more sense.

Hardworking - This would seem obvious, but people are fired for not working all the time.

Anne was a lazy student in school. When she passed a class, it was barely. Anne promised herself when she got a job her lazy ways would change. Anne was lucky enough to interview with an employer that didn’t ask about her GPA. She got and started the job, but she and her employer discovered habits are extremely hard to break. She was fired because she didn’t have a good work ethic.

Dependability - Most often this is tied to lateness and absences without good reason. Attendance issues are one of the top things people are fired for in this country. Businesses are strict, much stricter than your school when it comes to attendance. In order for an employer to benefit from your work, you have to be there.

Scott couldn’t seem to make it to work on time. He was never more than 3 minutes late, but the company he worked for had a very strict policy. A note went into his file after he was late two times, which meant he received no holiday bonus. After his 4^th, he was fired.

If you don’t already use a planner, you need to start. Don’t depend on memory to keep track of school, work schedules and all your other activities. It will get to be too much. As a part-time worker, your schedule could be different from week to week. To avoid costly mistakes, write things down.

Dependability also has to do with doing what you said you would, when you said you would do it. As you mature, more and more people will depend on you. If you want to have value, you can’t check out physically or mentally and leave people hangin’.

Responsible - Self-motivated people are mature people. They are also the people who can make decisions and stand behind those decisions, good or bad. It’s like life rule #6 - If you screw up, it’s not your parents’ (or anybody else’s) fault so don’t whine about your mistakes. Learn from them.

Barbara’s employer knew his young employees would make mistakes. What he didn’t expect was his inability to discuss those mistakes with Barbara. Each time he tried to teach her something about her job she interrupted him to explain why her mistake was someone else’s fault. This grated on the nerves of her employer and her fellow employees until he was forced to let Barbara go.

In school, being responsible is really a suggestion. There’s truthfully not a lot educators can do if you decide to do nothing. In the world of work, employees must be responsible. If you cannot meet that expectation, you will not have a job.

Honesty and integrity - If these are not two of your qualities, then please don’t get a job because you give all teenagers a bad name.

Flexibility and willingness - Adapting to new situations and things you are asked to do is important. You are going into an entry-level position, which means you will do some things you don’t like to do. We’ve all been there. Ask your parents about their first jobs. Have the ability to be willing and flexible in your job.  Do the things you don’t want to, pay your dues, and someday you won’t be at the bottom. As life rule #5 says, Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your grandparents had a different word for burger flipping; they called it opportunity.

Jared was hired as a receptionist in a dentist’s office. He wasn’t told when he was hired that one of his responsibilities was to clean the bathroom. Jared refused when his boss told him to grab a toilet brush and get busy. He stated, “That’s not what I was hired to do.“ Jared quit that job, but found that no matter where he went to work, he was expected to do tasks he didn’t necessarily care for.

Respectful - Without respect for others, you can’t get along in the workplace. This inability to demonstrate respect shares the top spot with dependability for the reason people are fired. All jobs require you to be a member of a team. It can only be a team if there is respect between its members. And as you’ve probably been told a number of times, you can’t get respect until you give it.

Chris knew copy machines very well. When his employer gave Chris and his fellow employees a big project to do, he emphasized the need to work as a team in order to meet the deadline. Chris didn’t have respect for the others’ ability to get things done. Chris tried to take over the project himself, ignoring another employee when she pointed out a typo to Chris. He was fired when he printed ten thousand business cards with a mistake on them.

Positive attitude ­- You can’t be depressed, mad or moody while you are at work. Many of you will be working with customers who expect a positive attitude ­- not to mention your fellow employees have to be around you too. A negative attitude in the workplace is like cancer in the body: it spreads. In order to return to health, the cancer has to be eliminated, just as the employee has to be fired.

Kara was having a lot of problems at home. Instead of embracing the time at work as a time to be away and think about something else, she stewed about the issues. Kara snapped at customers and her coworkers, and generally made everyone around her tired of her attitude. When her mood became so destructive that customers began to complain about her rude behavior, her employer fired her.

What it really comes down to is remaining an optimist rather than a pessimist. This is not an easy thing to do, particularly if there are negative things going on in your life. There are several choices you get to make on a daily basis; your attitude is one of them. For the sake of remaining employed, choose to have a positive attitude.

Life-long learner - If you’ve ever read your school’s mission statement, it probably includes something about creating life-long learners. What this means is that you are willing and able to learn new things throughout your life. In other words, just because you get a diploma doesn’t mean you’re done learning. Jobs are going to require you to keep training and keep learning. Otherwise you cannot advance within your company, or in some cases, even keep your job. My job as a teacher, at least as I see it, is not to cram information into a kid’s head as much as it is to teach them to learn without me.

Focus - Having ADD or ADHD will not work as an excuse at a job. Employers need you to be able to focus and pay attention to detail. Not only is this needed for quality in your work, but it’s for your safety as well. Work accidents happen when employees lose focus.

Lee was not known for his ability to listen. He tended to daydream instead. He was doing just that when his boss was explaining the company’s filing system to him. When she finished, she left Lee to file a stack of documents. He completed the task, but did it wrong. Needless to say, Lee’s inability to focus lost him a job.

Focusing, like a lot of things, has to do with habits. What are you used to doing? Are you used to listening when being spoken to? Are you in the habit of completing tasks, or do you quit when you lose interest? If you want to experience success in life in general, you must form good habits.

Read more in Jennie Withers’ book for teens, “Hey, Get a Job!“

Find more info on teen jobs on SnagAJob.com

Author of Hey, Get A Job!

Tasha turned sixteen and decided it was time to find a job. She immediately thought of the convenience store around the corner from her house. She knew the manager and thought it would be easy to get a job there because of this connection. Tasha asked her manager friend for an application. He told her he wouldn’t hire her because the convenience store sold alcoholic beverages, and by law, Tasha was not old enough to sell them.

I’m sure I don’t have to tell you, but teens aren’t considered adults in the eyes of the law. So what does that mean when it comes to getting a job? It means you are restricted in what you can legally do for work, the age at which you can begin working, and how many hours you can work during school time and summertime. To find the rules for your state, go to  http://www.youthrules.dol.gov/states.htm and click on the state in which you live.

Besides the laws given by the Department of Labor, individual businesses may set ages at which they will hire. It would be a good idea to ask if they hire teenagers, and at what age, before you fill out an application. If you are involved in an extracurricular activity like a sport, ask the employer if they will work around your schedule. There is no sense in filling out applications for jobs you have no chance of getting. 

Where to look

Tom wanted a job, but didn’t want to work in fast food or at a grocery store. Tom was an outdoors kind of guy. He also played school sports which would severely limit when he could work during the school year. Tom went to a job fair sponsored by his state Job Service in the spring. Tom found the perfect job working in the summer doing landscape maintenance for a school district.

Knowing what you can legally do helps narrow job choices, but you also need to think about what you want to do. Know yourself. Are you a people person? Are you good with kids? Do you like working with food? Do you want to be inside or outside? Are you restricted in times of day or year you can work? Think about your priorities. Don’t lose sight of your long-range goals like a state championship, high school diploma, or going to college.

It is true you can’t be overly picky when it comes to your first job, but you also don’t have to do something you will absolutely hate. It is a common misconception among teens that the only jobs available to them are in fast food restaurants or grocery stores. Those types of positions are often most visible, and they are great jobs, but they are not the only options. Don’t apply for jobs you know will make you miserable. Why do that to yourself?

Connections or word-of-mouth are a good way to find a job. If someone knows you and your strengths, they may be a good source for putting you in contact with employers. Be careful when pursuing a job just because a friend works there, however. Every employer I’ve had, or those I’ve talked to, are afraid that friends will be more interested in being friends than they will be in working. Employers pay people to work, not to socialize. 

When I ask my classes where to look for job openings, many say the newspaper want ads. Although this is a good source for adults, it tends not to be for teens. Businesses believe the newspaper is read primarily by adults, and the want ads reflect this belief. The same goes for the national job search websites. If you can find a local area website, you may have more luck there. There are websites with job listings for teens out there. Your state’s Job Service or job board will post openings on the Internet, but you may need to register with them before you have access to those listings.

There is no law against simply applying at a business. If you think you would really like to work at a certain place, ask them for an application. There doesn’t have to be a ‘help wanted’ sign in the window for you to apply. Ask them to keep your application on file in case of future openings. Call periodically to make sure your application is still on file, and if an opening comes up, call and make sure they’re looking at your application.

Read more in Jennie Withers’ book for teens, “Hey, Get a Job!“

Find more info on teen jobs on SnagAJob.com.

How can you be sure you get the job you want? Here are a few tips especially for teens.

Defy stereotypes. Many managers almost expect teen job seekers to be less professional-and even less respectful-than older applicants. Show them you’re different. Arrive on time to the interview. Shake hands firmly. A suit’s appropriate for an interview at an office job; for more casual jobs, an ironed shirt and a nice skirt or pants are fine.

Be what the company’s looking for. Read job descriptions carefully to get a mental picture of the employer’s ideal candidate. Take these two:

• “Enthusiastic servers wanted for fast-paced, high-energy and FUN environment.“
• “Responsible individual needed for highly visible front-desk position at downtown law firm.“

The smart teen job seeker will tailor his or her interview style to match the tone of the job description. Naturally bubbly? Play it up for the server job; put on your serious face for the receptionist post.

Tell them what they want to hear. Teen job seekers should practice interview questions ahead of time with a friend or parent. One you’re guaranteed to hear is “Why do you want to work here?“ This is a trick question - it’s not really about you, it’s about the company.

Wrong answer: “Well, I think I’d enjoy working here. My friends say it’s a pretty chill place.“

Better answer: “I’m excited about working for one of my favorite stores and I really like the team atmosphere here.“

One more classic: “Why are you a good fit for the company?“ Again, think about what you can offer them, not the perks they’ll offer you.

Wrong answer: “I like the flexible work hours and the uniforms aren’t too hideous. Besides, how could I say no to free burritos?“

Better answer: “I’m a hard worker and I have a lot of energy. I think I would be a strong addition to your team.“

Don’t be scared to talk about money. Money’s a good thing. Money’s the reason you want a job, right? However, many teen job seekers-and adults too-find it difficult to bring up the subject in a job interview.

Be brave and do it! Ask about the hourly wages. Ask how long it takes, on average, for an employee to get a raise. Ask about vacation days, sick days, insurance and benefits. If you don’t ask now, you won’t find out until after you have the job-and by then you could be stuck in no-paid-vacation-ever-land.

Be realistic when you’re talking about your pay, however. Use an online wage calculator to figure out what the average wage is for the job you’re interested in. And keep in mind that if the employer won’t budge on salary, maybe you can negotiate flexibility on other things, such as scheduling or sick days.

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Lifeguard

Being a lifeguard looks like the easiest teen job out there. You sit on a high chair, twirl your whistle and tan-right? Actually, there’s a bit more to it. Becoming a lifeguard requires extensive training, including swimming tests, written tests and CPR certification. Once you have your basic certification, (in most places you must be at least 15 years old), you have to decide what kind of lifeguard job fits you best.

Working at a hotel pool or small community pool is a good choice for teens looking for a relaxing lifeguarding job. There are generally fewer swimmers and no diving area or deep end. This job can be boring-on overcast days you may find yourself playing a lot of solitaire-but be careful to stay alert. You may also be responsible for testing the water each hour, adjusting pool chemicals and cleaning the bathrooms (fun).

Working at a big pool or water park is the perfect job for teenagers who want an action-packed day. You’ll be part of a large lifeguard team watching hundreds of people, including hordes of rambunctious kids. You may also administer swimming tests and teach swimming lessons (this can earn you a little extra cash). Staying alert is essential-you will have to rescue people.

Teens who are serious adrenaline junkies should look into beach lifeguarding jobs. You have to be in top physical shape for these positions; applicants often have to compete for open positions in swimming and running tests. Beach lifeguard pay is usually high for a teen job, from $16 to $25 per hour.

Theme park worker

There are tons of summer job opportunities for teens in amusement parks-the trick is picking one you’ll enjoy. Do you have the stamina to prance around in a SpongeBob SquarePants costume all day? Can you handle wearing lederhosen and serving bratwurst? How about shouting “Please keep your hands inside the car at all times” 500 times a day?

Parks offer seasonal teen jobs in admissions, clean-up, food service, games , security and more. The work itself can be repetitive and the pay is generally a dollar or two above minimum wage, but the people-watching’s always entertaining. You may meet teens from other countries who come to the U.S. to work. Hey, it’s good to have a friend in Spain!

The best part of having a theme park job is the perks, like free park admission. If you’re a roller coaster junkie, you may start coming to work even on your days off. And you’ll suddenly become more popular when your friends find out you have a stack of free tickets.

Camp counselor

One of the best summer jobs for teens is working as a camp counselor. In just three months you bond with kids, get in shape and make close friends. You might even find a little romance on a moonlit canoe trip. Did we mention you’re living far away from your parents?

There are hundreds of summer camps in the U.S.-some single-sex, some co-ed. Some camps  focus on athletics or riding and some are designed for campers with disabilities. Not sure if singing “Kumbaya” is really your thing? Adventurous teens should check out jobs at wilderness camps, which focus more on physical challenges and outdoor survival.

The salary depends on your title but generally ranges from $1800 to $3000 for the summer. Compared to other teen jobs, that works out to a pretty paltry hourly wage, considering you’re on duty almost 24-7. Room and board is typically free, however. On your days off you can have fun with your fellow counselors by hiking, swimming or catching a movie in town.

The downsides? Cleaning the bathrooms, dealing with pushy parents and handling that one kid who throws rocks at hornets’ nests and cheats at Capture the Flag.

Find a Job Now

Ready to find summer jobs in your area? Head on over to SnagAJob.com and start your job search today for your next full-time or part-time job.

Finding a happy medium between satisfying the demands of your boss and the demands of your sanity is not easily achieved, but it is possible. The key is to realize that the discomfort that you experience is only temporary—that in the long run the boss will change his ways or you will not be working for him or her anymore. If it’s clear that others feel the same as you, then it is likely that the boss is at fault. While he may have had many years in the industry, he may not have learned a proper managerial style. However, you must not be too hasty to try to “teach” him how to be a boss—this may come across as insubordination, which could be grounds for your dismissal. Instead, set up a meeting with you, your boss, and some co-workers at a time when your boss will be able to devote his full attention to the issues you wish to address.

In the meeting, bring up some of the complaints about your boss’s micromanaging, but make sure to not sound accusatory. Instead, suggest (and truthfully so) that you and your co-workers would find the workplace more comfortable if your boss wasn’t inspecting your work every minute of the day. Make sure to suggest things you and your co-workers can do to still keep him informed about your progress. These include creating goals for each month or week on the job, submitting a list of your completed tasks each month or week, and meeting with your boss each one morning each week to go over your plans for the coming week and your results from the previous one.

If you make a good enough case, your boss should have no reason to refuse your requests—while he may not feel his behavior has been unreasonable, a willingness on your part to compromise will help convince him to change, at least for a trial period. If he sees that many of your co-workers share your sentiment, he is likely to take a second look at the way he’s been behaving recently. Of course, if your request for change is refused, you need to be prepared to take somewhat drastic action—if the problem is bad enough, quitting is a logical solution. Your résumé will likely not be affected, because most companies understand that there will be personal conflicts between employees that result in firings or resignations.

You certainly should be careful when discussing this subject with your boss. After all, what person likes to be told they’re doing things wrong—especially by someone in a lower position than they are. But if you make your presentation right, include some anecdotal evidence, offer solutions, and are still rejected, chances are you didn’t really want that job anyway. Remember, your job should be something you truly enjoy, and if a micromanaging boss is hindering you from fully enjoying it, there are steps you can and should take to change your workplace environment.

Opening Lines of Communication

If you’re consistently being given new and more difficult assignments, one technique that often works is speaking with your boss one-on-one. Any discussions should take place in private and should reflect your feelings, not ultimatums. Present your points in a positive manner, but remember that positive results are not guaranteed. Bosses are people, too, and they don’t always take to criticism well, no matter how constructive. Your case should include why you feel overburdened and what you would like to see happen. Make sure to give examples, and point out what you have been doing every day at work, so your boss doesn’t think you’re just a slacker.

Take it Higher

If your boss isn’t responsive to your pleas, and you think you have a good enough case, take the issue to your boss’s boss. This should only be used, however, in situations that become extremely unbearable. To avoid your boss telling his or her boss about you coming, let as little time as possible lapse between talking to your boss and to your boss’s boss. In some cases, your company may have a Human Resources representative act as a mediator. Beware, however, that you may be caught on the short end if your boss’s boss agrees with your boss.

The bottom line is that you must determine whether the situation is fixable or whether it would be best for you to look for a different job. In the situation explodes, the chances are great that your boss will be considered more valuable to the company than you are, and you may be let go or worse, fired. Either way, be prepared to do some job-hunting.

To begin with, don’t for a minute believe that because your boss likes you, he or she will definitely give you a raise. The only determinant for salary is your perceived value to the company, so if you are friendly with everyone but do little work, you might want to reconsider asking for more money. If you think you’re on the borderline, in the weeks before you plan to ask, make sure you work diligently, going above and beyond the call of duty. Make sure you don’t appear to be “sucking up,” however, as that will most likely cast you in a negative light when it comes time to hand out raises. Instead, work as a model employee (which you should be doing anyway).

Once you’ve built up a sufficient amount of tasks that you’ve completed, keep a log of what they are by date. This will aid in your presentation, as you can clearly point to the dates when you completed different responsibilities, focusing on the ways they have helped the company. This type of proof will be invaluable to you in convincing your superiors of your value to the company and of the need to reward you with a raise.

If you can outline what you do for the company, how efficiently you do it, and why it is valuable to the company, spend some time researching what a typical person in your field with your level of experience makes. Salary.com and stats.bls.gov are excellent resources for this, but you can also look at your local library and at other sites on the Internet.

Once you’re equipped with the proper resources, you have two options when it comes to presenting to your boss—either schedule an appointment to discuss your salary with him or wait until your next performance review. Most companies have an annual or semi-annual review for all employees, at which time they evaluate your performance over the preceding year or half-year and decide whether or not to give you a raise. If you are close enough to this time, you should probably wait until then to make your case. If your review is still several months away, make a formal appointment with your boss at a time when you know he will be available to give you his full attention.

When you meet with your boss, make sure you convey your reasons for wanting a raise. Don’t include personal reasons, like “I want to buy a better car,” or, “I need more money for college.” Your employer is, as stated before, concerned with your value to the company, so point out the things you have done in the past that have furthered the company’s goals. Make sure what you’re requesting is realistic—don’t ask for a 300% increase in your salary unless you’ve suddenly been given 300% more responsibility. Also, don’t offer an ultimatum (“If you don’t give me a raise, I’m quitting”) unless you truly intend to quit if you don’t get a raise.

If your boss agrees that you deserve a raise but can’t afford to pay you more, try to expand your benefits instead—get additional vacation time, expanded medical coverage, or a better employee discount. If your request for a raise is denied, try to find out where you can improve, so that next time you ask, your boss will have no choice but to reward your efforts. Not only will the company be happy with your performance, but you’ll be happy, too—all the way to the bank.

First, you know it’s wrong to gossip, so that should be enough motivation to stop. If that doesn’t work, think about the opinions people are forming of you when you gossip about others. Often, they’re thinking that you’ve got nothing more important to do than to meddle with other people’s business. You may even lose the trust of your co-workers, who will fear that you’ll be blabbing their problems and dilemmas around the office within 5 minutes of hearing them.

Worst of all, your boss will get a negative impression of you, and you may not be too happy when promotions and raises are handed out. With the downsizing that’s occurring nowadays, you shouldn’t be surprised to be one of the first out the door. During times of high stress, supervisors want employees that can be relied upon, and the king or queen of office gossip isn’t usually high on that list.

If you have gotten yourself into a jam with office gossip, your best bet is to attempt some form of damage control. Your options include keeping to yourself and stopping talking altogether—both of which will help you regain the trust of your co-workers. Go to the person or persons you’ve been talking about and confess—while they may not be instantly forgiving of you, they will realize that you’re making an effort to change your ways.

If you still find yourself caught up in gossip, you probably should find some new friends at work—ones who don’t talk about each other behind their backs. The bottom line is that office gossip is harmful to others and to yourself. Do whatever is necessary to stop it—your career will thank you.

First, you need to recognize where the problem is. Ask yourself, “Is my behavior irritating others? Am I the only one who has problems with a certain co-worker?” If the answer to either of those is “yes,” you should be taking a look at yourself as a source of the conflicts you face at work. Often, we tend to hold others to a higher standard of behavior than we ascribe to ourselves, and taking one day to track what things made you angry and what your reactions were to those things will help you decide if that is the case for you. If you discover that indeed, you are behaving irrationally, make a concerted effort to allow your fellow employees some leeway. After all, they too get in bad moods and may say things they didn’t really mean. Try to be more thick-skinned—don’t let snide comments and little looks disturb you like they may have in the past. You will find that in time, you can develop at least tolerant relationship with your co-workers, if not friendships.

If the problem is clearly with another person or other persons, your best course of action is probably to take it up with them directly and privately. Retaliating with your own actions and words will only lead to escalating tensions and people either getting disciplined, or, in some cases, fired. Try to let them know as gently as you can that their behavior has become quite an annoyance to you (and to your co-workers, if they feel the same as you). Be careful to not sound like a parent, but emphasize that continued misbehavior may result in your lodging a complaint about him or her with a superior. Be sure, however, that the things that upset you are actually personal conflicts, and not just methods of working (or slacking off) that should be dealt with by the co-worker’s boss. You don’t want to appear to be a snitch by ratting out how your co-worker takes breaks every 15 minutes—instead, let your boss see the behavior for him or herself and decide the best course of action.

In the end, resolving personal conflicts should be a top priority. In a recent survey published in HR Executive Magazine, supervisors said that nearly 20% of their time—almost a full day out of every week—was spent dealing with office politics. If you’ve had a long-running feud with a fellow employee, it’s time to bury the hatchet and get on with the real reason you come to work—to benefit the company.

Ever felt like you’ve been given an assignment at work and then gotten no feedback on your performance? Ever been left to find work for yourself for weeks on end? Perhaps you’ve experienced all the symptoms of neglect that come from a boss who gives you no feedback. A common problem as offices become more individual-based, employee neglect doesn’t have to be a reality. In fact, a lack of communication may not be entirely the boss’s fault. Many rifts are caused when we as employees fail to let our supervisors simply fail to give our supervisors all the information they need to know about the work we’ve been doing.

A co-worker once told me a story about communication it work. As a student, he was monitoring computer systems for the military, and because he worked different shifts than his boss, he rarely saw him. One day when they were on the job together, his boss asked him to update some data. He was in the middle of a game of Tetris (which probably wasn’t a great thing to be doing at work anyway) and so merely said, “OK,” and went back to playing. What he didn’t tell his boss was that he had already done the job and the computer was merely processing. Though thankfully he wasn’t fired or severely disciplined, the story illustrates an important point. While we may be quick to blame our bosses for poor communication, our own faults are often at the heart of the matter. Before we ask our supervisors to give us more feedback, we need to be sure we’re giving them proper feedback on what we’re doing.

If you’ve made sure you’re telling your boss how your projects are coming and you still feel like he or she is neglecting you, gently ask for feedback. This isn’t as bad as it may seem—many bosses will be happy with your desire to ensure you’re doing a good job. Be careful, however, to not give the impression that you can’t do a single iota of work without getting your boss’s approval, for he or she will probably not enjoy doing so. Scheduling a weekly or periodic meeting with your boss where you review your plans for the upcoming week and results from the previous week is a very good way to bolster communication. Remember, if you can show your boss that you will work better with more information, he or she will have little choice but to give you more input. After all, what’s best for the company should be what’s best for you, and vice versa.