Funny things I got paid for

We've all paid our dues in various jobs over the years doing random tasks and projects. Even what seemed like a menial task at the time had lessons learned and transferrable skills. Here are few of mine:

Ben Franklin: Candy Aisle

In high school I worked at our local dime store Ben Franklin. A dream job since I had grown up coming to this store every Saturday.  When I wasn’t on the cash register (where the price of each item was manually keyed in by me, no scanner) they would ask us to clean and straighten the aisles of merchandise.  I was in heaven when they asked me to clean the candy aisle.  The task simply involved getting rid of empty boxes and trash, returning random items to their homes in other aisles and organizing all the candy stacks and rows.  The bonus to my $4.25/hour was to eat any damaged candy.  This is how I discovered Chick-O-Stick. They were always broken.

This taught me the importance of presenting your best to the customer so they can easily find what they need when shopping. It also taught me there is always something to do if the store is not busy. They were paying me to work and not just stand around.

St. Louis Cardinals:  Amighetti Sandwiches

In college I was hired to provide support to the receptionists and answer customer service (314-421-3060).  When call volume was low (losing seasons or the team out of town) I was asked to help out in all the departments:  administration, promotions, player development, accounting etc.  One specific recurring task was to take orders and payment for Amighetti’s sandwiches on the day our mail man made a special run to The Hill.  I literally walked from office to office taking the precise sandwich order from each interested employee.  Roast beef, heated with provolone cheese and au jus; Mom’s special but hold the pepporcini, etc. 

This taught me how important food is to employee morale in an office setting.  It also taught attention to detail and money management skills.

St. Louis Cardinals:  Confidential Report

When I first started at the Cardinals, Anheuser Busch was conducting individual, confidential employee interviews to evaluate employee engagement, satisfaction and suggestions for improvement.  I was called to Fred Kuhlmann’s office. He was the Chairman and President at the time (the equivalent of the current William Dewitt Jr. and III).  He had received the final, confidential report.  It was a four-inch stack of paper with three-hole punches sitting next to a giant, empty three-ring binder. He asked me to put the paper in the binder without looking at any of the confidential information.  He was sitting behind his desk and I was standing in front of him.  The task took just a few minutes. I had to un-focus my eyes enough to not read any of the pages but focus enough to get the paper into the binder. 

This taught me the importance of keeping confidential information confidential. 

Sea Ray:  Balloon Arches

Sea Ray was AVALA Marketing’s largest and most important client and I was the project manager. I had my MBA and roughly 15 years of experience in marketing. One of my favorite programs was a series of “Living Large” sales events held at the dealerships located on the water.  We handled the direct mail campaigns promoting the event along with providing support on-site.  I got to travel across the country working these events. I worked alongside the client setting up the registration tent, decorations etc.  We were on the dock by 6 a.m. setting up for 9 a.m. event that ran all day sometimes into the evening.

This is where I learned the valuable art of the balloon arch.  You could hire a balloon company to do this for you but the costs quickly add up the more events you run.  We bought our own helium tank and balloon supplies for our DIY version. It’s actually pretty basic.  You buy a special plastic tab that seals the balloons. We named them ‘dobbers’.  Tie two balloons together.  Twist the two sets of two together and slide them on a fishing line. Alternate colors as desired. Anchor the fishing line on a gate or fence.  As the balloons are added you can adjust the size of the arch. Bam! We just saved you hundreds of dollars!

This taught me the value of showing your client you are willing to roll up your sleeves and do what they need to make their event successful even though you have an MBA.  No ego. No complaining.  Just get the job done.

So if you aren't in your dream job yet or you feel under-employed, there are still important lessons to be learned and bullets to be added to your resume. 30 years later you'll think of that candy aisle and just smile.