20 First Job Memories That Still Make People Smile and Blush

Now, we are serious professionals and know what we are doing. Yet there was a time when some of us sold watermelons, cleaned cinema floors, or shouted at the register, “Next!” And it was fun! The memories from those times remain warm and bright, even though it was difficult sometimes.

• At 16, I got a job at a fast-food café. One day, someone asked me for ice cream. I grabbed a bag from the fridge, poured it into the machine, and added some nuts, done.
  A few minutes later, the same girl came back and said, “Could I get one more for my friend?” A little surprised, I silently did the same thing.
  Half an hour later, I opened the fridge and realized that the containers with the milk mix and the Caesar salad dressing were exactly the same! So, half the day, I had been selling ice cream made with salad dressing.

• I worked at a boutique. A woman bought an expensive evening dress. The next day, she tried to return it. “You can’t,” I said. “It’s been worn.”
  She didn’t blink. “Prove it. The tag’s still there.” I stood frozen. She smiled and said, “Let’s make a deal: you take back the dress, and I won’t write a bad review about you, no one will know about your mistake.”
  I was absolutely floored by her audacity. Fortunately, our manager walked into the boutique. She quickly dealt with that woman.
• Being a driver of a children’s train is probably one of the toughest jobs in the world. You want to play something energetic and lively, but no, you have to listen to the same monotonous and sickly-sweet songs about daisies, sunshine, clouds, and hippos every day. This was my most challenging part-time job during my university days. © Ward No. 6 / VK

• At 16, I sold flags at soccer matches. I spent half of my earnings on a pie. But I met a guy during that time who has been my close friend for 20 years, and we stayed connected even after I moved. © Silverchiffa / ADME
• My first job out of college was at a big medical center, where I had worked part-time during school in a related department. I was being hired to work for Gary, and was being interviewed by Gary and his boss Neils as well as several other people.
  I was invited to a staff meeting just before the interview started. No one introduced me to anyone, and they must have figured I knew everyone, and so I went through a day talking to all these people not sure who was who.
  Significantly, I mixed up Gary and Neils since Gary acted like the top man and was very dominating, whereas Neils (his boss) said hardly anything. Gary was giving out assignments right and left during the staff meeting, for example, while Neils just sat there.
  Somehow I got hired and worked there for many years. © WillingPublic / Reddit
• The very first money my cousin and I earned was at the age 8-9. The harvest on our melon patches was very good back then. We would bring entire trailer loads of watermelons, melons, and pumpkins. And we did this 2–3 times a season.
  Basically, we set up boxes by the roadside and sold quite a bit in a day. I don’t remember the total amount, but it was significant money for us.
  And before that we tried selling our grandma’s old clothes, sewn by me with stitches as thick as a finger, and wondered why no one wanted to buy them. © Anastasia / ADME

• I used to work part-time at a fast-food restaurant. On my first day shift, things were going smoothly until the soda machine exploded.
  I was refilling the syrup when suddenly, it started spraying everywhere like a fire hydrant gone rogue. The entire floor got soaked in sticky soda, and I was standing there drenched from head to toe. Customers were watching, fries half-eaten, as I tried to stop it, but it just wouldn’t quit.
  Then, as if things couldn’t get worse, my manager walked in, slipped on the soda, and went down like a cartoon character. Everyone froze, and I was convinced I was going to get fired on the spot. Instead, the manager just started laughing, and soon, the whole restaurant joined in. © Cathy_Love / Reddit
• I earned my first money, when I was in 6th grade. The school offered payment for cleaning the grounds in the fall. Only about 10 people from the entire school agreed to do it. I don’t remember the amount, but I was happy with the money until my mom and older sister insisted that I should spend all my earnings on a birthday present for Dad.
  I had to buy a razor with extra blades and accessories like shaving cream and aftershave. It was supposed to be a gift from the whole family. I couldn’t even buy myself a piece of gum... © Ekaterina K / ADME

• My father was a high-ranking official. My mom also had a good job. And from the age of 14, I washed buses at night in the bus depot during the summer and school breaks.
  I gave the money to the family and was proud of it. I did it simply for self-affirmation, thinking, I can do something too. © Igor / Zen
• In 4th or 5th grade, Mom got me a job binding documents for the local archive. She brought the documents home, and I made holes in stacks of papers according to a template and tied them with a bundle. Dad provided the electric drill for this.
  I don’t remember how much I earned. But with my first real paycheck, I bought Mom a beautiful stuffed animal. © everyman / Zen
• In 7th grade, I tutored French with a neighbor’s girl — she was in fifth grade and just started to learn it. I was a straight-A student, and her well-off mom decided not to spend on a tutor. They paid me in groceries that were unavailable to my family — chocolates and candies, exotic fruit, and juice.
  We ate well those years, but without any delicacies or treats, so I was thrilled to be paid in yummy goodies, and now I realize I should have taken it in money. The funniest part is that at home, I was scolded even for this “salary” because my mom and grandma believed neighbors should be helped for free. © Lika Mad / ADME

• At just 9 years old, I realized that any work must be compensated. Since we spent all our free time in the Leisure Center, I “worked” at the Christmas events during winter holidays, where we had several performances a day. I started as a rabbit, then became a fox, and eventually progressed to the role of the Snow Maiden.
  Between performances, we were fed in the director’s office, and at the end of the workday, we received a free gift. I started earning real money in college during my first year. I worked night shifts as an orderly in the operating room. It wasn’t for too long, but I did receive a paycheck a couple of times. © Luna Nord / Dzen
• Before my first year of university, I decided to earn some money over the summer and got a job as a gas station attendant. There, I had a coworker named Tom. So, Tom and I used to race to the more expensive cars and, at the end of the shift, compare who got more tips. I always won.
  10 years later, we crossed paths for work. I made a presentation in the prosecutor’s office from my bank, and Tom was the prosecutor I needed to work with. We had a good laugh! What a great memory. © saracco.olga

• I worked as a magician’s assistant. He was invited to schools and shopping centers, where he performed simple tricks that only worked half the time. People would say, “That’s your thing, it makes it even funnier.”
  When did I step in? As soon as the show was over, I had to listen to his complaints about life, then get him into a taxi and collect the props. I lasted 6 months; it was too depressing. © Ward No. 6 / VK
• My friend and I got jobs as cleaners in a movie theater during our second year — cleaning floors in the foyer, including the restrooms and the movie hall. We worked practically next to our dorm, could find stray coins in the hall, and the pay was significantly more than our scholarship.
  The only problem was that we were embarrassed to run into acquaintances there and would get back to the dorm around midnight, while the doors were locked at 11 p.m. In short, we had to explain the reasons why we were late to the security guards every single time. © asiia6118

• I’m a student and work part-time as a nanny, picking up a boy from kindergarten, taking him to classes, and staying with him until his parents return from work. The family is young and easygoing, with no strict demands.
  I thought this would just be a temporary gig, but it turned out to be much more delightful than expected. They always ask if I’m tired, offer me to have dinner with them, and once even gave me a gift card to a bookstore for my birthday. It’s the little, but nice things.
  Sometimes in the evening, the boy’s mother says, “You help us so much, thank you.” And I realize it’s not just a job — it’s a relationship. Respectful and humane.
  Then I remember my first job at a café where the manager would throw a rag and say, “Can’t you see it’s dirty here?” There, I was just hands and feet without a face and a name. But here — I’m a person. So now I definitely know that it’s not the position that defines how you’re treated, but the people. © Ward No. 6 / VK
• In my second year, I worked as a cleaner at a theater. The job was tough, 6 days a week. But as a bonus, I could stay and watch the performances for free.
  I watched many wonderful productions. I saw famous actors on stage and in the theater corridors. Starting from the 5th year of university, I began working in my field as a design engineer. © teddy_bear_co_

• At 15, I worked at the market selling a device for making various dumplings. All day long I rolled dough in the heat and shouted, “Magic tube, shapes and cuts. Dumplings, pasties, pies!” © avia_let
• In my first year of college, I made house calls with cosmetics catalogs. Mascara, lipstick, all sorts of perfumes. Once, I went to a customer’s house, and her mother-in-law opened the door.
  She hissed, “She’s at work. But in general, I never want to see you here again!” Suddenly, my direct competitor appeared from behind her with catalogs tucked under her arm, squinting cunningly. I thought, “Well, fine!”
  I contacted the customer directly, we met at a café, chatted, let off steam — she complained about her mother-in-law, and I grumbled about the woman who decided to steal my clients.
• I immediately recall working in a hair salon. Back then, I needed any side job to have pocket money. I swept hair and mopped floors.
  When I met my wife, it seemed symbolic that she worked in a beauty salon. I told her that my first job was in a hair salon, even though I never cut anyone’s hair there.
  Interestingly, I had to clean a salon again, but this time it was my own salon. My wife and I opened a chain of salons. It’s funny, like it was meant to be! © Ward No.6 / VK

Perhaps we remember our first jobs even better than the heartaches of a first love. Do you have similar stories? Share them in the comments section of this article.

And these stories prove that the first job can be a thrilling journey.