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| General Articles :: Career Advice |
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| Real-Life Look: Paying Your Dues |
| by Amanda Fornecker |
paying your dues is an extremely difficult concept to understand once you start to break out into the "real world." You feel as if you have so much to give and you are not being utilized to your fullest potential. And all along you think that the staff is just taking advantage of you and losing out on what you can actually do. You may think to yourself -- "Is it really worth it?"
I had an internship once where all I did was stuff envelopes and make copies. Sure, that's the typical description of an intern, even an assistant with a degree. But is that what paying your dues is all about? They barely made me feel like part of the team there and it was definitely frustrating. But then I've also had internships where the staff never separated me as an "intern." They made me feel like I was an integral part of their successes. (Perhaps that's why I ended up back at my current job!).
But there are those inevitable horror stories you hear of assistants fetching coffee and lunch for their bosses, answering phones, and doing all the dirty work no one else wants to do. I wasn't used to that - maybe I was spoiled. It was at other internships where I was given the opportunity to harness my talents and I feel that it is in these environments where I really learned and got the most out of my experience.
Sure, these "go fetch" jobs exist out there. You see them in the movies and on TV all the time - Andrea Sachs is all but physically abused by Miranda Priestly in The Devil Wears Prada, while Heidi must run around and get her boss' lunch on MTV's reality show The Hills. But eventually they move up, don't they? With experience and time, Andrea is given more responsibility because she has proved herself in a way and has earned a certain amount of trust. And Heidi goes on to help out more in actual event planning.
So many of those I interview talk about their experiences just starting out and you begin to realize that it's something everyone must go through. When asked what the most challenging part of starting out after they earned their degrees or certifications, almost all tell me that "paying your dues" is the worst part. But it's the will to excel and sticking to what they've got that has made them some of the top professionals in their industry.
I think I lucked out because my superiors treat me as an equal and I don't feel like I'm under an enormous amount of pressure constantly. I may be completing the "paying your dues" part of the job with respect to responsibility, but it certainly doesn't feel like it. In fact, since I finished my schooling, I have been less stressed and happier because I'm furthering my career. I think that the right career definitely makes a difference. Where I was miserable at a bad internship and therefore cursed the world and constantly complained, I am now that much happier - constantly turning negatives into positives and encouraging others around me (I've thought this bizarre when taking a step back but it is my job that has made a difference).
I guess my advice about starting out is to be patient - it is a virtue, right? Look for all opportunities to advance, while learning as much as you possibly can. Listen to what your boss talks about and really look at them as a role model of what you aspire to be. We're always looking to move up and should always aim for an extra challenge. Paying your dues is almost like a phase that needs to be completed in order to prove your worth; otherwise you'll never move up the ranks to the top. Who ever heard of a 22-year-old CEO of a major company anyway? You've got to start somewhere...
About the author:
http://www.collegesurfing.com/content
Amanda Fornecker is a staff writer at The CollegeBound Network. Learn more about finding a school that's right for you.
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