If I Knew Then by Melissa

If I Knew Then by Melissa - November 2016 Scholarship Essay

IF I KNEW THEN …

I had just turned 16 when I joined the workforce and I was completely oblivious to the path my life was about to take. This includes learning valuable lifelong lessons and gaining experiences that will continue guiding my life, family and career path.
Only if I knew earlier about working under pressure, prioritizing my employment and studying schedules, or what it meant to be a team member in a customer atmosphere with people from all over the world. Had I known earlier, I’d have had a better understanding of the path to the real world and how exciting it really is. I just wasn’t old enough to apply for a job then!
I live in an upscale community, but am among the underdogs here as I am surrounded by a lot of wealth and live in an environment where I watched my mom struggle to stay here so her kids could get a great education. Our community has barriers to the “real” general public, it is within what residents call the “Mt. Lebanon bubble” that’s mostly shielded from other communities. The school district is first-rate and ranks highly in the country and I am most appreciative of that. But had I seen outside of the walls of the community before starting my job, I would have understood a little better about the exciting and genuine differences in people, cultures, communities and the whole world.
Both in school and at my job I give it 100 percent. A lot of long days. In return, I realize I am getting an excellent education and my eyes are opening to the incredible differences of people and communities throughout the world. I am most grateful for that, as well as the management team in my job who so kindly took me under their wing as their youngest employee and gave me a pathway to new opportunities. They taught me business savvy (which I didn’t know existed until about a year ago). I learned how to manage my time, communicate more clearly, and to take responsibility for my actions or own the consequences when I didn’t. I learned awareness of different cultures and information technology skills that enhance what I’m learning in school and are more specialized for the world I will ultimately be approaching. I learned how to get along with coworkers of all ages and backgrounds, and engage with customers from different parts of the world. Today, I know how point of sale and supply systems work, how to understand sales reports and analyze what they actually mean. I learned problem solving and people skills that I can apply to other areas in my life.
I learned even as the youngest and least experienced member of the team, that I can make a difference. Initially, I saw having a job as just a way to get spending money. What I have gained along the way is lifelong skills. I learned business and I learned about people from all walks of life.
I know now I have to give up some things to make sure I get my school work done and remain reliable and focused at work. In high school, the classes and activities I’m involved with are mostly with people around my same age. At work, I am with people of all different ages and backgrounds. This has taught me to be more open in getting to know and understand people who have had different experiences. If I knew earlier the lifelong skills I would be gaining from this job, I would have excelled to the front of the classroom years earlier with worldwide knowledge and skills that I continue to build on and am applying to other areas of my life.
The one thing I know for sure, I have a lifetime of learning ahead of me and a solid foundation going forward.

Melissa Simmons