To ask what your first 'proper' job was?

[thelongwayhome]

As the title says, what was your first job as an adult, ie. not doing a Saturday shift as a teen but your first full time job?
Did you enjoy it, did you hate it?

Left home at 16 after my O levels to become a trainee jockey living at the yard.

British Army. Hated it but stayed for 14 years because I didnt think id cut it on the 'outside'.

Toy safety analyst. Some of it was great fun (because yes, we did play with the toys when a good one turned up), and it attracted a great team of slightly eccentric characters. Downsides were scraping paint off toys with a scalpel for toxicity testing and trying to calibrate the sodding icp-Ms to run them.

Working in a call centre at 19- absolutely hated it and left after 6 months but I met DH there and we’ve been together ever since so I obviously wouldn’t change that for the world.

Nursing Assistant in small NHS unit for people with learning disabilities.

Loved it, was there 4 years before training as a mental health nurse.

I decided to move abroad and got a job in corporate events. It was a blast.

Toxicologist researching the metabolism of tamoxifen in a number of different species. Enjoyed the work but pay was crap

First job out of uni was on a dial up internet tech support help desk. Amazing company, lifelong friends….just could never and would never pay enough to pay all the debts I had while I lived in London to do it. Brilliant job but I had to leave and come back to Scotland so I could stay at home and save some money and have less expenditure on simply living

Burger king then a care assistant . Been mostly working in carehomes with a couple retail positions inbetween and am now working for the nhs as a healthcare assistant . Much prefer the nhs job

Filing for a big spectacle company.

First proper job with benefits and paid leave, software developer.

Customer service assistant in a call centre for a hated train company. It sucked and I couldn't wait to leave, but looking back it gave me really good experience and I'm glad I did it. It helped that my team were really sociable and we had some fun nights out together.

I worked as a statistician for a group of transport companies - sounds really boring but it was great fun and a good team to work in
Also gave me lots of confidence to do other unconnected things

I worked in an admin/data processing sort of role in the corporate offices of a high street bank for a summer during university. It was nice, pleasant team, easy if boring work and I enjoyed the office environment. It was crap pay though, minimum wage.

Window Dresser/Display Artist

Worked in a post office.

Hated every minute of it. Lost count of how many times I was spat and shouted at by irate customers (when they wouldn’t believe they didn’t have any money to withdraw). I was screamed almost daily by my manager who was a lying bitch (she accused me of stealing from a confectionery counter multiple times when it was really her making merry with the sweets and pop. Stupid cow) and because of her lying (which took weeks to wort out) nobody would speak to me. Still to this day don’t know why she took a dislike to me.

I got my own back in the end before I left. I stuffed 6 tuna sarnies behind the staff lockers.

Firs time full time job was a junior in a jewellers . Within 5 years I had worked my way up to assistant manager... I loved that job bough never had any wages left after pay day!

I left after I had my first child as knew I didn’t want to go back full time and was a SAHM for a bit before getting a part time job in hospitality.

Assistant at a book publishers. Horrible boss. Horrible. Especially after I was so rubbish that I got a promotion. What little self-confidence I had was destroyed. But nice job apart from her.

Worked in the 'cleansing' department at the council. Basically sent the bin men back out to collect rubbish they had missed, and sent the 'hit squad' out to pick up dog poo, dead animals, broken glass or whatever people called in about. The people were nice but the general public could be utter knobs.

Finance assistant at a secondary school. I loved it for the most part, short days, term time only, lovely colleagues (who mothered me!) and really decent pay, especially for an 18 year old.

Barmaid in a traditional city centre pub
Loved it and if the pay wasn't crap would do it forever.

My current job (civil service) is technically my first full time, permanent job. I worked part time at a thinktank while I was doing my masters and also had a sandwich placement during my degree, not sure if those count. I've never worked in retail/hospitality.

I was full time in hospitality when I was young, ever since, only part time. So….never! Long may it continue, selling my life sucks.

My first "proper" job was as a clerical officer in the civil service. I was only just 16 and it was the early 1960s.

I attended the interview wearing my school uniform except with nylons rather than ankle socks. My grandmother went with me. This was considered quite acceptable in those days and some employers really liked it.

I asked my grandmother what I should study up on for the interview. She warned me that they would ask something about my home city so I read up on a few of the more important places. She also advised me that they would ask what sports I enjoyed, because they wanted to see if I was a team player.

I reminded gran that I hated sport and asked should I lie? No, just talk around it. She advised. You have a lot of other competitions in your school which I know you enjoy. Just tell them about those and say that you are proud to represent your house when you get chosen.

I must have said the correct things because I was appointed.

Hotel Services Assistant AKA hospital cleaner I hated it. Totally thankless, and many bullies in it too.