I joined my first job at Ike’s Sandwiches when I turned 17 and continued to work there until I graduated high school. Ike’s is a popular gourmet sandwich chain in the Bay Area and its sandwiches are well loved by Apple employees and Stanford students alike. When I started working, I was the youngest person in the restaurant and felt extremely out of place amongst the hipster older guys and the few older women that worked there. I spent most of the first month keeping to myself and trying to learn the names of all the sandwiches (there are hundreds so this was quite a feat). After I passed the initial learning curve, I was able to open up to the people I was working with as well as to the opportunity of gaining great work experience while making great sandwiches. Here are some things that I learned at my first job:

• Learn as much about the product that you are selling as you can. In my case, this meant that I had to learn about all the dietary restrictions of our sandwiches, all the names on the secret menu, what the secret sauce was made of, and what sandwiches were popular amongst customers. I quickly realized that people would ask me a lot of questions and that I needed to have answers to give back to them. In another work scenario, this might mean knowing all about the technology you are working on or the case that you are in charge of presenting. No matter what you are working on, it is important to know it from beginning to end and to ask questions when you are confused about any aspect.
• Work on your communication skills- I had to spend a lot of time talking to customers, receiving their orders, and answering questions so it was important that I remained personable and communicative. This is true in any work scenario. Whether it is with a customer, your boss, or coworkers, it is vital that you have good communication skills so that you can make the point that you are trying to carry across. (This is especially true when you are asking for a day off from work and need to keep open communication with your boss so that they know this.)
• Show up on time- This seems like common sense, but it was especially important in my position because if I did not come to my shift, there were no backups for my cashier position. This was the first time in my life that I was being paid to be on time and it was a lot of pressure at first. Not only did I have to physically be at work on time, but I also had to mentally stay engaged with customers as part of my job. This ended up being an important life skill that has helped me in many other internships and work situations. If I did not have this pressure during my first job, then being on time would not have been ingrained in me to such an extent.
• Finally, try your product to make sure you are giving customers good advice. In this case, this piece of advice meant that I ate lots and lots of sandwiches J

Here is a picture of an Ike’s sandwich that will hopefully incentivize you to go try one when you are in the Bay Area!