How to Obtain 33 Jobs in 17 Years (17)

I have had a total of 33 jobs in 17 years. I am a professional singer and actor. Did I plan on having 33 jobs in 17 years? Of course not, but life has been a crazy wild ride. There were no drugs, very little alcohol, but WORK has been my drug of choice!

I have worked at least 3 jobs or more simultaneously in addition to performing over the years. Each week, I will discuss one of my former or current jobs. My seventeenth job was To-Go Server at Olive Garden on Poplar Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee.

2016

In 2016, I was still working as a cashier at Cracker Barrel and continued to teach vocal lessons through my business, Beautiful Melodies. Once again, I needed another job to supplement my income. I was not rehired to work at Lamplighter Montessori in the Fall of 2015. Finding full-time employment in Memphis was extremely challenging during the three years that I lived there after graduating Murray State. So, I decided to get another part-time job to begin saving money to move to another city. In January 2016, I applied and interviewed at Olive Garden as a server.

Training

My last time serving at a restaurant was at Ryan’s Buffet & Grill in the summer of 2008. In 2016, I went to a difficult two week training to be a server at Olive Garden. It was possibly the most difficult training that I had ever had at this point in customer service. We had to memorize the lengthy menu and familiarize yourself with the wines and alcoholic drinks. There were several lecture style trainings. Then, it was time to practice being a server with the customers. I struggled with being a server, so much so that my trainer suggested that I become a to-go server instead.

To-Go Server

I trained to be a to-go server and was a to go server for about a day or so. Eventually, I ended up making the bread sticks throughout my entire shift. From February until August 2016, I would make the breadsticks during every shift. I learned what it was like to work in the kitchen area in a restaurant. It is pretty chaotic in a restaurant kitchen. I would work by myself on the the breadsticks and it got pretty hot near the ovens all day. However, I did like working by myself and the breadsticks is one of the most popular items at Olive Garden.

NYC

I decided to move to NYC on August 6th, 2016, so I quit working at Olive Garden the Sunday before that date. When I moved to NYC, I tried to transfer to the Times Square Olive Garden. But since I had only been a to go server who only made breadsticks, I could not get transferred to the Olive Garden in Times Square.

https://www.olivegarden.com/home

https://www.bydominiqueduarte.com