How to Obtain 33 Jobs in 17 Years (2)

How many jobs have you held in your life? I have had a total of 33 jobs in 17 years. This does not include all of the musicals, operas, and television and film projects either. 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 my drug of choice has been WORK! Most of my adult life I have worked at least 3 jobs or more simultaneously in addition to performing. Each week I will discuss one of my former or current jobs. I will reflect on my experience at each job. Here is job number two!

My Second Job

In the summer of 2008 before I went off to college, I worked as a server at Ryan’s Grill Buffet & Bakery. This job may have been one of my worst job experiences to date. Ryan’s Grill & Buffet on Riverdale Road in Memphis, Tennessee was a very popular restaurant for years. I remember going there often to eat with my family on several occassions. However, it was much cleaner and well managed back then.

Bug Problem

When I worked at this restaurant, there was a significant roach problem. It was terrible. One day, a customer told me that a roach went into the salad on the buffet line. This was mortifying. When I would go to the stock room there were always roaches in there too. The Riverdale location closed not long after I left. I was not surprised when the location closed because I am sure they failed the health inspections.

Money Woes

Since Ryan’s servers received tips, the hourly wage was only $2.14 an hour! I had checks that were $14! My total tips for two months was only about $350 dollars. This was enough to pay for my college textbooks only. It is tricky when you are a server at a buffet restaurant because people do not think tipping is necessary since the server does not deliver the food to the guests. But at Ryan’s, I took all of the drink orders with unlimited refills, gave guests multiple baskets of buttered rolls, and bussed the tables.

Quitting for College

I quit this job when I went to Murray State in the fall of 2008. Ironically, there was a Ryan’s in Murray, Kentucky so I could have tranferred! Who Knew! This was my only restaurant server job to date. After this experience, I never wanted to serve again due to the super sporadic tips and low hourly wage. Furthermore, I was not the best server, even at a buffet style restaurant.

Yes, I was friendly, but moving quickly has never been my strength in life. A server has to work fast and swift especially at a non-buffet style restaurant. I struggled to be fast at the buffet style restaurant so there would be no serving for me in my future, not in this lifetime. Serving is a very challenging job that requires significant muli-tasking and strong customer service skills.

Food for Thought

I encourage everyone to appreciate their servers when they go out to eat. If the food is messed up, it is not the server’s fault unless the server took your order incorrectly. If the food is taking too long, this is usually not the server’s fault either. The cooks are probably behind on the orders. If you have ever been in a restaurant kitchen, it is chaotic back there, especially during rush hours.

Your server has between six to eight tables at a time. At the end of the day, most servers want you to have a positive experience and they are not trying to ruin your day. Servers have been some of the kindest people that I have worked with most times. Servers extremely hard working, even the grumpy ones, lol. Please give your servers some grace the next time you go out to eat. Empathy goes a long way.

Dominique Duarte

https://www.bydominiqueduarte.com/how-to-obtain-33-jobs-in-17-years/

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